National Collections Preservation Week, April 28 – May 4, 2024, raises awareness about the need to preserve cultural heritage materials whether in personal and family collections or libraries and archival institutions. Sponsored by Core: Leadership, Infrastructure, Futures, a division of the American Library Association, Preservation Week “inspires action” and “raises awareness of the role libraries and other cultural institutions play in providing ongoing preservation education and information.”
Since its start in 2010, Preservation Week, in particular, draws attention to problems and gaps in the long-term care of culturally and historically-relevant materials. These problems include a lack of proper staffing to oversee collections, improper storage of materials, and the absence of emergency and disaster preparedness plans. As Core states, "personal, family, and community collections are equally at risk."
This year’s theme, Preserving Identities, emphasizes how cultural heritage materials contribute to the preservation of group and individual identities.
To support the sharing of preservation knowledge, ALA offers free resources including webinars, handouts with quick tips, and preservation guides.
Another good source for preservation advice is Gaylord Archival. They offer free webinars and preservation tutorials on book, document, and photograph preservation. Connecting to Collections is another useful website that offers hundreds of free webinars on preservation and collections care topics.
Additional questions about preservation and collections care? Schedule a preservation consultation.
And be sure to pick up a free preservation advice bookmark at the HSLIC public services desk and at the Happy Heart Bistro during Preservation Week!
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