Telescope Obsidian Vault

A comprehensive Obsidian vault for ethnographic and qualitative research, designed to integrate sources from Zotero and Readwise with field notes, synthesis, and analysis.

Overview

This vault provides a complete workflow for research:

Import sources from Zotero (academic papers) and Readwise (articles, highlights)
Create permanent Reference Notes to preserve your analysis when sources sync
Write field notes and link them to sources and people
Capture quotes that automatically appear in Reference Notes
Track people and their connections across your research
Organize themes with Maps of Content (MOCs)
Manage tasks with integrated logs and reminders

Quick Start

For Workshop Participants

New to this vault? See the Workshop Guide for:

Detailed installation instructions
Complete workflow tutorial
Hands-on exercises
Troubleshooting tips

Two Setup Options

Option A: Independent Copy (customize freely)

git clone https://github.com/ellierennie/Telescope-Obsidian-Vault.git My-Research-Vault
cd My-Research-Vault

Option B: Team Use (receive updates)

# Fork the repo on GitHub first, then:
git clone https://github.com/YOUR-USERNAME/Telescope-Obsidian-Vault.git
cd Telescope-Obsidian-Vault
git remote add upstream https://github.com/ellierennie/Telescope-Obsidian-Vault.git

Then open the folder in Obsidian and trust the vault to enable plugins.

Plugin Configuration

Zotero Integration

Prerequisites:

Zotero Desktop installed
Better BibTeX plugin for Zotero (recommended for stable citekeys)

Setup:

In Obsidian: Settings → Community plugins → Zotero Integration
Configure settings:

Download PDF Utility:
- Click "Download PDF Utility" in the settings panel
- This enables PDF highlight extraction
- Leave 'PDF Utility Override' empty
Database: Zotero

Note Import Location: Inputs/Zotero

Open the created or updated note(s) after import: ON

Which notes to open after import: First imported note

Enable Annotation Concatenation: OFF
Citation Formats:
- Name: Cite
- Output Format: Formatted Citation
- Citation Style: American Psychological Association 7th edition (or your preferred style)
Import Formats:
- Name: Zotero import
- Template File: _system/Templates/_Plugin Templates/Zotero Template.md
- Bibliography Style: American Psychological Association 7th edition
Image Settings:
- Image format: jpg
- Image Quality: 90
- Image DPI: 120
- Image OCR: OFF
Test:
- In Zotero, right-click a paper
- Select "Send to Obsidian"
- A note should appear in Inputs/Zotero/

Readwise Integration

Prerequisites: Readwise account with highlights

Setup:

Get your API token:
- Go to https://readwise.io/access_token
- Copy your token
In Obsidian: Settings → Community plugins → Readwise Official
- API Token: Paste your token
- Customize base folder: Inputs/Readwise
- Sync on startup: Toggle ON
Configure Readwise export settings (IMPORTANT - this customizes how notes are formatted):
- Go to https://readwise.io/export/obsidian/preferences
- Configure each section as follows:

File Name:

{{author|replace('#', '')|replace('@', '')|replace(' on Twitter', '')}}_{{title|replace('#', '')|replace('@', '')}}

Page Title: Leave blank

Page Metadata:

```button
name Create Reference Note
type cursor template
action Buttons/Reference Note
```
- M [[Sources]]{% if url %}
    - URL: [{{title|replace('#', '')|replace('@', '')}}]({{ url }}){% endif %}{% if source_url %}
    - Source: [View original]({{ source_url }}){% endif %} {% if summary %}
## Summary
> {{ summary }} 
{% endif %}
**Mentions**
```dataviewjs
dv.view("mentions", {
  fields: ["note"]
})
```

Highlights Header:

# Highlights 
---

Highlight:

<mark style="background-color: #ffd440">{{ highlight_text }}</mark> {% if highlight_tags %}{% for tag in highlight_tags %} #{{tag}} {% endfor %}{% endif %}{% if highlight_note %}
### Comment
{{ highlight_note }}
{% endif %}

YAML Frontmatter:

class: Sources
category: Readwise
author: <% await tp.user.processAuthorLinks(tp, "{{author|replace('#', '')|replace('@', '')|replace(' on Twitter', '')}}") %>
sourceTitle: {{title|replace('#', '')|replace('@', '')}}
type: input
itemType:  {{category}}
source: {{source}}
date_saved: {{last_highlighted_date|date('y.m.j')}}{% if source %}
site_name: {{ source }} {% endif %}{% if source_url %}
sourceLink: [🔗]({{ source_url }}){% endif %}{% if highlights_url %}
readwiseLink:[Readwise](https://readwise.io/bookreview/{{book_id}})
highlights_url: {{ highlights_url }}{% endif %}{% if num_highlights %}
num_highlights: {{ num_highlights }}{% endif %}
flag: null
tags: {% for tag in document_tags %}[[{{tag}}]] {% endfor %} 
note:

Sync Notification:

## {{date|date('y.m.j')}}
**Synced {{num_highlights}} highlight{{num_highlights|pluralize}} from {{num_books}} document{{num_books|pluralize}}.**
{% for book in books %}    - {{ book.num_highlights_added}} highlights from [[{{ book.title }}]]
{% endfor %}

Save settings in Readwise
Back in Obsidian:
- Settings → Readwise Official → Click "Sync now"
- Your highlights will appear in Inputs/Readwise/ with custom formatting

Note: The custom template includes:

A "Create Reference Note" button (just like Zotero notes)
Proper formatting for highlights with colors
Dataview queries for tracking mentions
Clean author/title formatting (removes @ and # symbols)
Direct links to source material (including specific tweets)
Full-text article content (syncs by default - see below to control)

Full-Text Article Sync: By default, Readwise syncs complete article text along with your highlights. This gives you the full content for analysis.

To control full-text sync:

Go to https://readwise.io/export/obsidian/preferences
Find the "Full Document Text Link" and "Full Document Text" sections
To sync full text: Leave the default content in these sections
To sync only highlights: Delete all content from both sections (leave them blank)

Mobile Workflow for Readwise

Saving content from mobile devices (especially tweets):

The Readwise Official plugin syncs highlights, so you need to highlight content for it to appear in Obsidian.

Best method - Use Readwise Reader app:

From X (Twitter) mobile app:
- Tap the share icon on a tweet
- Select "Copy Link"
In Readwise Reader app:
- Tap "+" to add new item
- Paste the tweet URL
- Reader imports the tweet
Highlight in Reader:
- Open the tweet in Reader
- Highlight the tweet text (or any part you want)
- Your highlight syncs to Obsidian with the custom template
In Obsidian:
- Settings → Readwise Official → Sync now
- The tweet appears in Inputs/Readwise/ with a direct link

Alternative - Browser extension on desktop:

Install Readwise browser extension
Open tweet on desktop
Click extension → Save
More reliable than mobile app for tweets

Why highlighting is required: Readwise only syncs highlighted content to Obsidian. Just saving an item keeps it in Reader but doesn't send it to your vault.

Set Yourself as Vault Author

When you create Reference Notes or import sources, the vault needs to know who you are so it can add your name as the note author.

How to set up:

Create your People note:
- Use the Production hotkey (Cmd+Shift+P) and select "5. Profile"
- Enter your name
Add vaultAuthor to frontmatter:
- Switch to source mode (click '...' in top right)
- Manually type a new line: vaultAuthor: true
- Your frontmatter should look like this:

---
class: People
category: People
type: moc
title: Your Name
vaultAuthor: true
created: 26.02.11
tags: 
flag: false
note: 
aliases: 
---

Important: Only ONE note should have vaultAuthor: true - this tells the vault which person is you

Test it:

Import a Zotero note or create a Reference Note
Check the noteAuthor field
It should show your name as a clickable link: noteAuthor: "[[Your Name]]"

Note: If you don't set this up, notes will show noteAuthor: "[[Unknown Author]]" instead.

Security & Privacy

What's Synced to GitHub

✅ Included:

Vault structure and templates
Plugin configurations (without API keys)
Hotkeys and settings
Documentation and guides
Scripts and automations

❌ Excluded (gitignored):

Your personal notes (Notes/, Inputs/, People/, Synthesis/)
API keys and tokens
Smart Connections embeddings (.smart-env/)
Zotero attachments
Obsidian workspace/cache files
KOI-Sync cache (rid_cache/)

Verify Security

After setup, check that sensitive files are ignored:

git check-ignore .obsidian/plugins/readwise-official/data.json
git check-ignore .obsidian/plugins/koi-sync/data.json
git check-ignore .smart-env/
git check-ignore rid_cache/

All should output their filepath (meaning they're ignored).

Mobile Setup

If using Obsidian mobile with Obsidian Sync:

Initial Setup

Set your vault author (see above for instructions)
Update the mobile note template:
- Open _system/Templates/+New Notes/Simple Note Mobile.md
- Change noteAuthor: "[[Ellie Rennie]]" to your name
- Example: noteAuthor: "[[Your Name]]"
Configure default note location:
- Settings → Files & Links → Default location for new notes: Notes
Enable Obsidian Sync:
- Settings → Sync → Sign in
- Choose what to sync:
  - ✅ Settings
  - ✅ Themes and snippets
  - ✅ Plugins
  - ✅ Hotkeys
  - ✅ Core plugin settings
  - ✅ Community plugin settings
Configure excluded folders (IMPORTANT):
- Settings → Sync → Excluded folders → Add these:
```
.git
.obsidian/workspace.json
.obsidian/workspace-mobile.json
rid_cache
```

Plugin Compatibility

✅ Will work on mobile:

Dataview (for queries and MOCs)
Templater (basic features)
Readwise Official (syncs highlights)
Quick Add
Button Maker
Most formatting/UI plugins

❌ Won't work on mobile:

Zotero Integration (requires Zotero Desktop)
Smart Connections (embeddings stay on desktop)
Any plugin requiring desktop applications

Workflow: Import sources (Zotero/Readwise) on desktop. Read, annotate, and create notes on mobile!

Core Workflow

Import sources
- Zotero: Right-click → Send to Obsidian
- Readwise: Auto-syncs highlights
Create Reference Notes
- Open source note → Click "Create Reference Note" button
- Your analysis stays permanent even when source syncs update
Write field notes
- Cmd+Shift+N → Choose note type
- Link to sources: [[source-name]]
- Link to people: [[People/Person Name]]
Capture quotes
- Select text → Cmd+Shift+R → Capture Quote
- Quotes auto-appear in source's Reference Note
Organize with MOCs
- Create hub pages for themes/projects
- Link related notes together
- Navigate research visually
Track tasks
- Add tasks anywhere: - [ ] Task description
- View all tasks in Navigation/Notes/2. Reminders

Key Hotkeys

Hotkey	Action
Cmd+P	Command Palette
Cmd+O	Quick switcher (find notes)
Cmd+Shift+N	New Notes menu
Cmd+Shift+R	Referencing menu (quotes, references)
Ctrl+Cmd+L	Log Tool (quick capture)
Ctrl+Cmd+Z	Import from Zotero

Full list: See Navigation/Documentation/All Hotkeys

Documentation

Workshop Guide - Complete tutorial for new users
All Hotkeys - Interactive list of all shortcuts
Feature Guides - In Navigation/Documentation/

Press Cmd+P → Type "Documentation" to find guides.

Getting Updates

If you forked the repo (Option B):

# Pull latest changes from main vault
git fetch upstream
git merge upstream/main

# Push to your fork
git push

Your personal notes (in gitignored folders) won't be affected.

Requirements

Obsidian 1.4.0 or later
Zotero Desktop (for academic source import)
Readwise account (for web highlight sync) - optional
Git (for version control and updates)

Troubleshooting

Plugins not working?

Settings → Community plugins → Enable them
Restart Obsidian

Zotero import failing?

Ensure Zotero Desktop is running
Download PDF Utility in plugin settings
Check template path is correct

Hotkeys not working?

Check for conflicts in Settings → Hotkeys
macOS/Windows use different modifier keys

More help: See Workshop Guide troubleshooting section

Contributing

This vault is designed for ethnographic research workflows. Suggestions and improvements welcome:

Open an issue on GitHub
Submit a pull request
Share your customizations

About

Created for ethnographic and qualitative research workflows by Ellie Rennie.

Development:
Ellie Rennie and Matthew Green (Research Assistant)

For questions or support:

Workshop Guide: Navigation/Documentation/Workshop Guide.md
GitHub Issues: https://github.com/ellierennie/Telescope-Obsidian-Vault/issues

License

Vault structure, templates, and documentation:
CC BY-NC 4.0

Custom code and scripts (JavaScript, CSS):
MIT License

Third-party plugins:
Included for convenience. Each plugin retains its original license (see individual plugin repositories on GitHub).

Attribution

When using or adapting this vault:

"Based on the Telescope Obsidian Vault by Ellie Rennie and Matthew Green (CC BY-NC 4.0)"

Last updated: February 2026