I don’t think that making connections is a contentious subject for a blog post, but I do think it’s a really important one. As I mentioned in previous posts, I believe that the role of the archivist is changing, and I think this involves a more focused approach to collecting. For some time now the sector has been talking about addressing gaps in collections, but how do we go about finding the communities that represent those gaps; and even more importantly, how do we have the right conversations that encourages collaboration with us in a way that is fair. That’s the subject of this blog post.
Although collecting has always been an important part of archive work, there hasn’t always been a targeted focus on what should be collected and what shouldn’t. Recent archive sector research has discussed the gaps in our collections and archives across the world are working to fill these and provide better representation to as many people and groups as possible. However, communities have also been doing this work, noticing the gaps in their own stories and working to fill them without institutional help. It could be argued that this is a factor in the increase in community archive work we have seen in the last few years.
There is an argument that if communities are doing this work themselves, why are archive organisations getting involved? Communities are best placed to tell their story and collect what they know to be the essential records for doing this and archives don’t need to be involved. For me, there is an element of truth to this. However, it is also true that community groups and archives are particularly under funded and under resourced and this for me is the main reason for the wider archive sector to get involved. Collaboration is always the key to success for me and I think we can do a lot more together than we can apart. However, the trust needs to be there and at the moment that is definitely not always the case.
As previously mentioned, community archives are wary of engaging with institutions, seeing them as gatekeepers which will keep them from their own records and store them for years without doing any work to make them accessible. This is generally due to lack of fund on the part of the institution but this is largely irrelevant to the group who have worked so hard to pull a collection together and feel really passionate about it’s topic. Approaching community groups is also challenging because, just like archives, no two are the same. Some have a wealth of archive knowledge and training programmes to help spread this throughout their teams. Some are individuals with true passion for the items they collect but no real understanding of the good practice required to preserve them long term. This is a particular problem with digital records, where storage is regularly confused for preservation and access via a website is a common form of ‘preserving’ records.
So, what do we do? I would suggest we approach these groups ready to learn. Make it clear that we are interested in what they’ve been doing and are keen to help, but most importantly, help within their context. We are not the saviours of these collections as they have already been saved, but we can help with advice and guidance on what happens next. Offering collaboration over collections deposit for me is a good thing. If these collections can be preserved to the standards required for long term preservation within the community, then we should be facilitating that and helping to facilitate access and promotion rather than suggesting removal of the collection for cataloguing. Having a list of resources on hand will be a huge help in this work.
It’s also important to show actual interest in the communities we want to connect with. Go to their events, have conversations about things other than archives and forge a connection that’s about more than work. I think if we can do this, we are a good way down the path of collaboration. Working together, for me, is the key to all archive work, and this includes working with other archivists and record practitioners. There is a wealth of hugely successful projects and work in this area already and learning from those who have done or are already doing it will really help improve our own practice. Let’s work together and move the sector forward in a new way that benefits us all and makes more collections accessible in new ways. It all starts with a conversation…
The Un-Accessioned Archivist 