Conference title: “Archives on the Edge”
Organisers
Tasmanian branch of the Australian Society of Archivists
Location: Grand Chancellor, Hotel Hobart
Presenters
There were a plethora of presenters both local state and international representatives from State and Commonwealth archives; museums, private archives, university archivists; college archivists; university lecturers and State library staff.
Time Claimed: 15 hours
Description
Content
The theme of the 4 day conference I attended as a student volunteer was ‘archives on the edge’ which questioned the role of archives and archivists in a world of increasing digital records and Big Data. I attended lectures, panel discussions and plenary sessions on a plethora of topics pertaining to memory institutions across Australia and globally. On the first day of the conference the Special Interest Groups workshops were conducted. I did not attend these workshops but worked on the Powerpoint files of the presenters to facilitate more timely scheduling of the sessions. On the second day Geoffrey Yeo, the keynote speaker from the U.K delivered a thought provoking address entitled : “Archives and Records at the Edge of the Information Society”. He delved into the connection and relevance that records and archives have within the greater information landscape and whether archivists and record managers need to change their approach to some of their key principals such as appraisal and acquisition. In particular many of the panel discussions and lectures were centred around the ubiquity of digital records and how it impacted archivists in relation to acquisition, preservation, access and appraisal. I also attended several other sessions with varying content which are described below.
Sessions I attended
Session Title: To Keep or not to Keep? Selecting Archives in the Digital Age
Presented by Tatiana Antsoupova from the National Archives of Australia (NAA).
The theme of this session related to digital technologies increasing government and business efficiency, but at the same time they had also contributed to the costs for digital preservation, selection and access to digital content. Antsoupova explained how the N.A.A were employing new technology to automate the traditional archival processes of selection and disposal in business systems. She also discussed the challenges such as cost in retro-fitting appraisal and disposal schedules into systems. Eight years on many council systems have now employed technologies in the automation of selecting permanent records for transfer to archives and disposal schedules. This demonstrates how rapid technology is evolving and how it can increase efficiency in archival processes.
Session Title: Access in a World of Big Data Our State of Oversharing: Privacy Matters of Public and Private Sectors
Presenter: Jessica Kilpatrick
This session centred on the World of Big Data and the implications for archives and other memory institutions in relationship to the traditional practices of appraisal and disposal. The presenter discusses the different type of memory such as personal, collective and social memory and how memory can help communities prepare for the future. She also discusses the archivist’s role in selection and disposal of records and how archivists need to present stories from both sides of the coin and the challenges associated with that notion. Since that lecture there has been an increase in digital archives from communities throughout the world. The introduction of more sophisticated technologies and increased connectivity throughout many parts of the world has empowered communities on the periphery of society to have their stories told, in particular Indigenous communities. Participatory archiving and crowd sourcing have enabled communities to have a greater say in their own history.
Session Title: What is in the Files and Who Cares Anyway?
Session presented by Jacqueline Z Wilson. Paper was co-authored by Frank Golding
This was an extremely emotive and instructional session for not only students, but anyone working with ‘Out-of-Home Care’ records. The presenter was a member of the ‘Forgotten Australians’. She detailed her frustration of the existence of these records in institutions and the challenges in accessing records about herself and brother. She recounted how the documentation regarding her and her brother was not reflective of the reality she remembered. Subjects of the files and their families were often denigrated and written in unsympathetic terms and their accuracy was questionable. Wilson also discusses access in terms of who rightfully has access to these files and describes the on-going trauma experienced by members of the ‘Forgotten Australians‘. The discussion that later followed generated interesting questions from the floor, particular in terms of privacy. There were archivists from religious and charity archives who argued that people mentioned in the files were entitled to privacy and that the subject of the file should not expect to see any personal details about them. This was unacceptable to the author who argued that this was the very information that subjects needed to access in order to recover their story as a child.
I was extremely moved by this session and often recall the discussion and how it relates to my current position as an access services officer in the Victorian State Archives. Having seen these records, I can fully appreciate the trauma they would evoke in people who were in institutions and homes. The Victorian State Archives has instigated special viewing policies for people viewing these records and encourage staff to participate in training courses to heighten their awareness of the trauma researchers experience whilst viewing these records.
Session Title: A Wartime Perspective: Walking the Foote-steps: The Lewis B. Foote Photographs and the Curation of a Digital First World War Exhibition
Presented by Danna Slessor-Cobb
This presentation was a great example of an increasing trend at this time in organisations developing virtual collections and exhibitions. This presentation outlined how the new web 2.0 technologies had enabled archivists to curate their records in different ways, particularly by the use of social media sites such as Facebook, Instagram and how social media enabled them to reach a more diverse and larger audience. Practically every large institution now presents documents, artefacts etc on their social media accounts, particularly on Instagram. These subjects intertwined with the description of the Lewis B. Foote fonds held at the Archives of Manitoba, Canada. L. B. Foote was a well -known early twentieth century commercial photographer in Winnipeg, Canada. His collection contains many photographs documenting Winnipeg in the First World War. Slessor-Cobb discusses the role of archives in creating memory by using collections of historical importance that will create more subtle narratives for archival exhibitions and reach a wider audience.
Slessor-Cobb also discussed the integration of web analytics for archival exhibitions. She pointed out the many advantages of using web analytics in terms of assessing user interaction with online structures, and collecting information and statistics to gauge the needs of users. Since I attended this session many archivists have fully embraced digital technologies to create online exhibitions and digital archive that creates a more diverse perspective in comparison to tradition archival collections.
Format
Conference
Length
4 days: I am claiming 15 hours
Audience
The audience comprised of all types of archivists that included school, university, council , Faith and State and Commonwealth government archivists, historians, historical societies volunteers.
Organisers
Tasmanian branch of the Australian Society of Archivists
Reflection
Objectives
The conference was designed to inform and educate participants from across Australia and internationally of the current trends and challenges for GLAMR institutions, not only throughout Australia but globally. It is held annually and provides archivists, librarians, historians and students with the opportunity to network, catch up and utilise the information learned from the many lectures, workshops and sessions. There are many leading information practitioners who attend and impart their knowledge, skills and expertise through the workshops and sessions.
Reasons I attended
I had just started my Bachelor of Information studies course when I saw an opportunity to be a student volunteer at the conference. I had a passion for history and archival collections and my vision of archives was a room full of documents and artefacts unseen by the world. This was my first experience attending a formal conference and it presented a valuable opportunity in engaging with information professionals from government and non-government organisations and learning more about archival collections.
In between working on the registration desk and helping set up the sessions I was able to attend sessions relating to digital archives and learn about how the rapidly evolving technologies had affected archive collections in terms of discovery and access.
Relationship of Activity to your work and Study
The information I learnt from the conference in terms of digital collections and automated processes for preservation and selection has held me in good stead for the work that I now undertake as an access service officer for the Public Record Office Victoria (PROV).
Overall, my participation in the conference was a great experience in terms of its educational value and networking opportunities which I have found invaluable throughout my career.
Learning Outcomes
Although I had worked for several years as a library technician and archival officer I had never used social media, either in my professional or private life. As a volunteer I was expected to tweet the main theme of lectures and panel discussions to create interest in the conference. Growing up in an older generation the very thought of tweeting in a public arena created a panic within me. Collaborating with a staff member from the National Archives of Australia I created an account and we practised using Twitter which gave me confidence to use the platform when assisting in lectures and panel discussions. For me this was such a useful skill to embrace as I now consider the frequency that archivists and librarians use social media to advertise their outreach activities and connect with their communities.
How will I use the learning gained? – How I have used the learning gained
Since attending the course some eight years ago many of the things I learned have assisted me in my present role as an access services officer. For example, I routinely use social media to advertise outreach events. The session conducted by the NAA gave me an insight into automation in business systems for disposal and selection . The Public Record Office Victoria also contain ‘Out-Of-Home-Care’ records, and the session I attended on ‘The Forgotten Australians’ at the conference reminds me of how traumatic these records are for people who were in out-of-home-care. Additionally, many of the sessions I attended assisted me in my studies as I chose to specialise in record management and archives in my university course.
Evidence
ASA Conference evidence