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Organization and Members

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ETDE is a multilateral organization formed in 1987 to further international information exchange. It is a group of countries/entities who have chosen to co-operate to meet a key information need in a more cost-effective way. ETDE is considered an Implementing Agreement under the International Energy Agency (IEA) Framework for Technology Co-operation structure. The ETDE Implementing Agreement serves as a legal basis for the collaboration. ETDE's objectives are:

• To compile and maintain a shared database on information related to energy research and technology.
• To disseminate information related to energy research and technology.
• To explore, and where appropriate develop, other ways of collecting and disseminating information related to energy research and technology.
• To support the work of the International Energy Agency.

ETDE is managed on a day to day basis by an entity that serves as Operating Agent (OA). The OA is guided by an Executive Committee made up of delegates from each participating country. The Executive Committee is lead by a Chairperson, and two Vice-Chairs. A Technical Working Group, also made up of delegates from each country, provides advice and recommendations on the technical aspects of the exchange.

Through mid-2012, the following delegates hold the Chair/Vice Chair positions:

1. Chairman: Mr. Brian Hitson, U.S.
2. Vice-Chair: Mr. Hillebrand Verkroost, The Netherlands
3. Vice-Chair: Ms. Silke Rehme, Germany (this position also serves as Chairman of the ETDE Technical Working Group)

Hillebrand Verkroost, Silke Rehme, and Brian Hitson on the
occasion of ETDE's 32nd Executive Committee meeting in
Copenhagen, Denmark, 2010

A Note from ETDE's Chair:

ETDE's member countries have demonstrated a genuine commitment to addressing energy, environment, and climate change challenges. This commitment is in the form of mutual sharing and opening of their energy research, technology, and development (RTD) information to accelerate breakthroughs and improvements. The members have also demonstrated their commitment to the developing world by extending access to ETDEWEB's over 4.5 million records to nearly 100 "low" and "lower-middle" income economies. We invite both nations and partner sponsors to join in the benefits and the task of building on the world's largest energy RTD information collection.

ETDE's Executive Committee meets annually to discuss policy, budget, operational and technical issues. The Technical Working Group meets biannually. Both groups also have discussions and make decisions in an electronic environment throughout the year.

Members (also known as Contracting Parties) participate on a cost- and task-sharing basis. An annual fee is required to fund basic operations of ETDE. Each member is also asked to ensure that the energy-related information published within its borders is provided as input into ETDE's Energy Database, and thus available to members and approved non-members through ETDEWEB and other available sources. Members are also highly encouraged to attend Executive Committee and Technical Working Group meetings and participate actively in electronic discussions.

The Operating Agent for ETDE is the U.S. Department of Energy's Office of Scientific and Technical Information in Oak Ridge, TN, USA. The Operating Agent handles the daily tasks for ETDE. Some of the major functions include:

• Receiving and processing database input and full text from member countries and other sources
• Implementing Executive Committee decisions
• Facilitating projects of the Technical Working Group
• Preparing budgets, reports, statistics, meeting papers, websites and some marketing materials
• Serving as a liaison with other collaborating partners
• Providing member support and training
• Maintaining ETDEWEB, distributed searching, and key authority tools

Members

The following countries participate in ETDE as full members.

Countries

Click on the country to learn which organization is involved, and who the delegates are. Details about the Operating Agent can be viewed here.

Non-Members

The ETDE Executive Committee, in support of the G8 Energy Ministers' efforts to push energy technologies to the developing world, is now granting free access to ETDE's information to close to 100 developing countries. For free database access to be granted, the country must meet the World Bank economic definitions and also be agreed upon by all members of the Committee. Registration for access is no longer required if your country's site is automatically authenticated. Users wishing to establish a subject alert (to automatically learn about records entering the database in set areas) will need to register, however, in order to store the query criteria and send the notification emails. Input to the database, while not required for these countries, is encouraged. Please contact the ETDE Operating Agent if you have an interest in serving as a contact point in your country.

Countries approved for access as part of the ETDE developing country program are:

If your country is not a member country or on the approved developing country list, your interest is certainly also welcomed. Please contact the Operating Agent. Please see the Join ETDE section for details about membership in ETDE.