In this news section you will find Archival Platform announcements. You can also download Archival Platform newsletters.
Archival Platform January Newsletter
Download the Archival Platform January Newsletter here.
EDITOR’S NOTE
Dear colleagues
This year will be concerned with not just the 2010 FIFA World Cup™, but also with issues such as digitisation, repatriation, and education in the archive and heritage sector. We also plan a project on family histories/clan names, following the excellent response to Mbongiseni Buthelezi’s blog last month.
We hope you had a good holiday and would like to wish you all a very fruitful 2010, promoting professional, government and public communication to enhance the status and good management of archive and heritage resources in Africa. Our January update is just a short account of some of the news, opportunities, conferences and resources that have cropped up over the summer break. Our next full newsletter will be published on our website in February.
This month we have blogs on the declassification of archives, Zimbabwe’s work on intangible heritage and the role of the city museum.
Remember that we are offering book and cash prizes to young professionals who submit blogs, book reviews and other relevant reports for publication on the Platform. Please send submissions of around 1000 words, and a picture if possible, to .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) by 15 February, 2010.
If you have any queries or suggestions, please feel free to contact us. I will remain acting Director until our new Director is in place, and will continue to support the Platform’s work.
Best wishes,
Dr Harriet Deacon
Acting Director, Archival Platform
Email: .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address)
ARCHIVAL PLATFORM BLOG
Increased access to classified state archives
After attending a conference on the political life of documents, Dr Harriet Deacon reflects on the value of increased access to classified state archives.
The proposed declassification of some of the US’s security archives raises a number of questions about the value of increased access to classified state archives. First; what constitutes a “legitimate” state secret and at what point should state secrets be declassified; and second, what do historians do with such data when they do have access to it?
GUEST BLOGS
Zimbabwe’s experience implementing the 2003 Convention on Intangible Heritage
Stephen Chifunyise explains how Zimbabwe has been implementing UNESCO’s Convention on Intangible Heritage at national level.
City Museums and Urban Development
Patrick Abungu, recently an MA student at the Reinwardt Academy in Amsterdam, comments on the role of a city museum using examples from Africa and Europe.
NEWS
Online records management forum launch
COR Concepts has launched an online records management forum, where all document and records management practitioners can participate in a vendor-neutral environment.
www.archivalplatform.org/news/entry/on-line_forum/
Looting cultural property a major problem
Illicit trafficking in cultural property is a global issue; in this article UNESCO and its partners continue to highlight and address the problem.
www.archivalplatform.org/news/entry/looting_increase/
US declassifies some of its historical archive
US President Barack Obama commits to declassify millions of pages of historical materials after issuing a new executive order governing classified national security information.
www.archivalplatform.org/news/entry/overclassification_of_state_archives/
Is Google good for history?
In a recent blog, Dan Cohen, director of the Center for History and New Media, applauds Google for being “probably the most powerful tool in human history”. He says “Google has been very good for history and historians, and one can only hope that they continue to exert pressure on those who provide costly alternatives.”
See the full blog at www.dancohen.org/2010/01/07/is-google-good-for-history/
OPPORTUNITIES
2010 US/ICOMOS International Exchange Program
US/ICOMOS offers internships in historic preservation within the United States and abroad during the course of 2010. This program provides unparalleled opportunities for early-career preservationists to gain hands-on experience in a country other than their own.
www.archivalplatform.org/news/entry/us_icomos_internships/
Fellowships in Japan
UNU-IAS and UNU-ISP offer PhD and postdoctoral fellowships to provide young scholars and policy-makers, especially from the developing world, with a multi-disciplinary context within which to pursue advanced research and training.
www.archivalplatform.org/news/entry/fellowships_in_japan/
Scholarship Program for PhD and post-doctoral studies in Sweden
Graduates from African countries can apply by 1 February, 2010 for PhD and post-doctoral scholarships to study in Sweden.
www.archivalplatform.org/news/entry/studies_in_sweden/
Scholarships for artists from Southern Africa
Pro Helvetia Cape Town facilitates studio and research residencies in Switzerland for artists from Southern Africa. Artists and cultural practitioners in the areas of the visual arts, music, literature, theatre and dance are eligible to apply. Applications for 2010/2011 can be submitted until 1 February 2010.
www.archivalplatform.org/news/entry/scholarships_for_artists/
CONFERENCES and MEETINGS
DAC workshops on archives and library training
During January and February 2010, DAC will hold stakeholder workshops on sector education and training.
www.archivalplatform.org/news/entry/archives_and_library_training/
NHC workshop on draft policy framework for the repatriation of heritage resources
11 February, 2010, Midrand
This workshop is an opportunity to critically engage with the draft policy framework content and to participate in developing the policy framework through facilitated discussion groups.
www.archivalplatform.org/conferences/entry/repatriation_of_heritage_res/
Harare International Festival of the Arts
27 April, 2010 to 2 May, 2010, Harare
Artists keen to participate please contact .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) before 31 January, 2010.
www.archivalplatform.org/conferences/entry/harare_international/
International Symposium on the future of Museum Climate seen in the context of Global Climate Change
1 March 2010, Copenhagen
How can we create exhibitions and expose our common cultural heritage in a sustainable and acceptable manner for future generations? How can museums be more carbon-neutral, while simultaneously guaranteeing an adequate indoor climate?
www.archivalplatform.org/conferences/entry/museum_climate/
RESOURCES
Heritage practices in Egypt and the Sudan (in French)
Scientific journal series CEDEJ (Cairo, MAEE/CNRS USR 3123) on Egypt and the Arab world was released on 21 December, 2009 in Cairo. It will soon be available online at ema.revues.org.
http://www.archivalplatform.org/projects/resources/eygpte_et_au_soudan/
Repatriation and looting: The Rape of Mesopotamia
Lawrence Rothfield, an associate professor of English and comparative literature at the University of Chicago and author of The Punching Bag blog, recently sat down with The New Yorker to discuss his new book, The Rape of Mesopotamia: Behind the Looting of the Iraq Museum.
http://www.archivalplatform.org/projects/resources/rape_of_mesopotamia/
e_conservation magazine
This is a free online magazine, published bi-monthly for professionals involved in cultural heritage conservation/restoration.. Issue No. 12 of e-conservation magazine is now online and available for free download.
http://www.archivalplatform.org/projects/resources/e_conservation/
Research on cultural heritage in Europe, 1986-2006
European Commission, Research DG, EUR 22050, two volumes
This two-volume publication covers 20 years of research, from 1986 to 2006, in the area of cultural heritage. Volume I provides an overview, while Volume II contains outlines of nearly 100 projects implemented between 2000 and 2008.
http://www.archivalplatform.org/projects/resources/cultural_heritage_in_europe/
WHAT IS THE ARCHIVAL PLATFORM?
The Archival Platform is a strategic research, networking and advocacy initiative. We aim to promote collaboration and information sharing within the broad archive sector – including archives, museums and heritage, tangible and intangible – enabling effective dialogue between government, academics, practitioners and the public. Key areas of focus for the Platform in the medium term will include the economics of heritage, digitisation and use of digital tools in archives and heritage management, and heritage education.
Our networking efforts will reach out beyond South Africa, to elsewhere in Africa and other continents to expand this debate.
Entries for this newsletter come from lists such as South African History Online, the Southern African NGO Network, International Council on Museums and Sites (ICOMOS), Australia Icomos, United Nations Educational Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), International Council of Museums (ICOM), Icom-SA, the International Council of African Museums (AFRICOM), H-Net, International Centre for the Study of the Preservation and Restoration of Cultural Property, Observatory of Cultural Policies in Africa (OCPA), Unesco Forum, the Getty Conservation Bulletin and your contributions.
Feel free to pass the newsletter on, and let me know if you don’t want to be on the list.
The Archival Platform is funded by Atlantic Philanthropies, supported by the Nelson Mandela Foundation and the University of Cape Town.
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