DDI: Where we've been, where we're going

In the 1990's DDI grew out of the need of archives to exchange metadata in a consistent format and support storage, discovery, and access systems. By 2000 we were looking at metadata driven data creation systems and reusing metadata to support comparison, quality control, and consistency. DDI is now addressing issues of Big Data, Data Lakes, and data derived from activities rather than planned collection. In this ever-evolving world of data, why is DDI special? What do we do that others do not? Is it important and where might it lead? A view of DDI from 10,000 feet.