Conference Agenda

Des de 2006, AsF treballa en la identificació, digitalització i catalogació de documentació històrica dels casals catalans a l'exterior, principalment d'Amèrica Llatina i Europa. Aquest projecte dels Casals catalans busca preservar testimonis de la diàspora catalana, incloent l'exili dels anys 1936-1939 i les migracions dels segles XIX i XX. A més, s'ha elaborat una guia de gestió de documents per ajudar a preservar la identitat cultural dels mateixos que es presentarà en aquest Congrés.

L’associació Arxivers sense Fronteres (AsF) des de 2006 treballa en un projecte pioner dedicat a la identificació, digitalització i catalogació de la documentació històrica dels casals catalans a l’exterior. Fins ara, s'han inventariat prop de 80.000 documents procedents de casals i entitats catalanes a països com l’Uruguai, Argentina, Mèxic, Catalunya Nord, França o Cuba i amb la previsió d'expansió d’aquest projecte per incloure altres països d’Amèrica Llatina o Europa. Aquesta iniciativa va representar la primera gran actuació arxivística per preservar els testimonis de l´èxode català, que inclou no només l’exili dels anys 1936 al 1939, sinó també les migracions dels segles XIX i XX que van donar lloc a les primeres associacions culturals i benèfiques.

Dins d’aquestes entitats, es destaca el projecte de digitalització de l'arxiu històric de la Societat de Beneficència de Naturals de Catalunya a L'Havana que va donar inici dins del projecte dels Casals catalans, partir del 2010. La digitalització del fons pretén garantir la conservació de la informació a llarg termini i facilitar-ne per a la seva consulta en línia, una possibilitat que d’altre forma seria inviable per a l'entitat, donades les problemàtiques energètiques i les restriccions d'accés a Internet que hi ha actualment a l'illa.

El material inventariat inclou entre altres documents: correspondència, fitxes de socis, actes d'activitats, fotografies i documents audiovisuals. L’inventari i la digitalització d’aquesta documentació s’entrega al Arxiu Nacional de Catalunya (ANC) qui en garanteix l'accés i la difusió, a través d’Arxius en Línia, el portal on es poden consultar els fons, documents i objectes digitals dels arxius catalans. Aquest fet permet que els investigadors puguin analitzar el paper històric, cultural, social i polític d'aquestes entitats en el context de l’exili català; però també que tota la ciutadania pugui consultar-los i fer, així, que la memòria de l’exili sigui accessible a tothom.

Per tant, aquest projecte no només busca preservar la memòria de l’exili, sinó també fomentar la inclusió i l’accessibilitat a la informació mitjançant la col·laboració entre professionals de l'arxivística i les comunitats.

En el marc d’aquest projecte, també s’ha elaborat una guia de gestió i tractament de documents dels casals, amb exemples de digitalització i recopilació, per garantir que la història i l'activitat d'aquestes comunitats catalanes a l'estranger estiguin disponibles per a investigadors i ciutadania en general i es presentarà en primícia en aquest Congrés. La intenció és que aquesta guia no només contribueixi a la conservació de la identitat cultural de la diàspora catalana, sinó que també serveixi com a punt de reflexió sobre la importància de preservar la memòria col·lectiva.

This poster presents a disaster recovery model for archives, integrating an infographic and a virtual reality (VR) experience. The infographic, using an iceberg analogy, illustrates practical actions, policy planning, and strategic elements while the VR experience immerses participants in recovery efforts for affected archives in Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil. The model fosters collaboration and offers scalable solutions for preserving cultural heritage globally.

The poster combines an infographic with an immersive experience of virtual reality (VR) to present a coordination and collaboration model designed to improve the protection and recovery of archives affected by disasters. The model integrates practical actions with institutional policies, emphasizing collaboration and strategic planning for effective recovery efforts. Although developed in response to severe flooding that impacted archives in Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil, the model has global relevance, offering scalable solutions for disaster recovery worldwide.

The infographic uses an iceberg analogy to illustrate the coordination and collaboration model for archival disaster recovery. Surface-level actions represent operational practices, such as assessing, cleaning, freezing, and organizing damaged archives. The central area bridges practical activities and policy planning, while deeper layers highlight strategic elements like policy development and procedural standardization.

The VR experience complements and enhance the infographic's impact, linking theoretical concepts to real-world applications through immersive scenes of flood-affected archives, from initial damage to recovery and digitization efforts. Strategic "hotspots" connect specific elements of the model to corresponding VR visuals, providing an engaging, interactive understanding of the process. Using VR headsets, participants can explore the disaster's progression and recovery process in vivid detail. The experience begins with scenes of archives submerged in floodwaters, showing the initial devastation. It then moves through various stages of recovery, including cleaning, organizing, and freezing materials to halt further degradation. Participants can observe the work of archivists treating damaged records, combating mold and fungi, and preparing materials for digitization. The VR experience culminates in a tour of the facilities offering a comprehensive view of the entire recovery process.

The model was designed primarily for archivists, public policy managers and academia, this model demonstrates the importance of collaboration, strategic planning, and technological innovation in disaster recovery. Its scalability highlights its potential for adoption in diverse global contexts, offering a powerful tool for preserving cultural heritage in the face of natural disasters.

L’Arxiu Nacional de Catalunya crea interactius per a la presentació de dades dels fons. Ha renovat l’espai web on descriu els tipus de fons que conserva i la història de la seva activitat, en formats dinàmics i actualitzables, que substitueixen la clàssica guia d’arxiu. A més, des d’un espai web propi i la difusió a les xarxes socials, ha creat panells, mapes, ‘storymaps’ i línies de temps que traslladen de forma atractiva la informació dels fons i els fan accessibles des de noves perspectives.

Avui, aprofitant els mitjans digitals, els arxius posem a l’abast de les persones usuàries, a través dels nostres portals, la descripció i la digitalització de milions de fons, agrupacions documentals i documents. Aconseguir que aquesta informació no quedi reclosa en les esferes dels experts acadèmics i la recerca, demana una estratègia basada en accions que reforcin el paper de l’Arxiu com a mitjancer qualificat entre la informació que conserva i gestiona i el conjunt de la ciutadania. Aquesta intermediació es tradueix en àmbits com ara els serveis didàctics per al món escolar o en la producció d’elements com ara exposicions i publicacions.

En l’espai digital són moltes les vies per enriquir aquesta intermediació. En els darrers anys l’Arxiu Nacional de Catalunya ha desenvolupat una política activa de creació d’interactius per a la presentació elaborada de dades dels seus fons i documents, comptant amb els seus recursos propis i a través de la col·laboració entre les àrees gestores dels fons i l’àmbit de difusió.

D’una banda, a través de la pàgina web de la institució, ha renovat els espais dedicats a la descripció dels tipus de fons que conserva l’Arxiu i a la història de la seva activitat, en formats atractius, gràfics i audiovisuals, permanent revisables, que substitueixen la tradicional guia d’arxiu publicada.

De l’altra, comptant amb un espai propi a la pàgina web del centre, però també amb la difusió a través dels perfils de l’Arxiu a les xarxes socials, ha creat panells de targetes, mapes, ‘storymaps’ i línies de temps que descriuen d’una manera atractiva elements de contingut dels nostres fons i alhora remarquen els de més valor, els fan més accessibles i permeten observar-los des de noves perspectives i interessos.

Us en destaquem tres: el 'Calendari anual d’efemèrides' (una galeria de mig centenar de commemoracions sobre les quals l’Arxiu disposa de recursos), 'Arreu del món. La carrera musical de Victòria dels Àngels (1939-1997)' (un mapa elaborat a partir dels programes de mà de la cantant conservats al seu fons) i 'Els Fets d’Octubre de 1934 des de dins' (un ‘storymap’ que situa en l’espai dotze testimonis sonors).

A través de la creació d’aquests interactius l’Arxiu surt a trobar la ciutadania per saltar la distància que la separa de la informació continguda als fons i documents que conservem, descrita a través dels llenguatges tradicionals de l’arxivística, fent possible un coneixement més col·lectiu i reforçant-ne el gaudiment social.

This paper proposes uses a combination of digital humanities technology with traditional archives methods to propose a practice informed framework for industry heritage preservation as well as access and utilization of this type of heritage archives, provides an analysis of the relationships between the dimensions so that the framework can be used in practice in the construction of industrial heritage archives and transferable to other similar types of archive resources in China and elsewhere.

In 2006, the National Cultural Heritage Administration of China, proposed a Chinese interpretation of The International Committee for the Conservation of the Industrial Heritage (TICCIH) Nizhny Tagil Charter For The Industrial Heritage issue in July 2003. This was denominated the Wuxi Proposal and puts forward the first Chinese official view of intangible industrial, including preservation processes flow, classification of archival data and the notion that enterprise archives should be regarded as industrial cultural heritage. In 2021, Industrial Heritage Preservation was written into the 14th Five-Year Plan for Chinese National Archives Development as a national key archive and conservation development project. This is of major importance in Chine and resulted that, for the first time, research into industrial heritage archives became a National priority and an official key research direction.

This paper proposes uses a combination of digital humanities technology with traditional archives methods to propose a practice informed framework for industry heritage preservation as well as access and utilization of this type of heritage archives. The research design included practitioner consultation through the use of semi-structured interviews (17) and thematic analysis as well as a grey literature review of companies’ internal documents (4 companies in the coal industry sector). This research proposes a framework for industrial heritage preservation consisting of four dimensions: archival resources classification and integration; archives management; use and dissemination of resources; and adoption of cutting-edge technology. The paper also provides an analysis of the relationships between the four dimension so that the framework can be used in practice in the construction of industrial heritage archives and is not just an academic model. It is also hoped that the framework may be transferable to other similar types of archive resources in China and elsewhere.

This presentation follows on the posters presented at the 2016 and 2023 Congresses. Adding new knowledge and insights after the study tours exploring museums and archaeological sites in Turkey and Greece, I review the origin of democratic archives ”demosion” in Athens, which was the old ”Bouleuterion”, the council’s house. The poster also focuses on ”Bouleuteria” in the other city-states which kept records because of their legislative and governmental functions as the foundation of democracy.

"Foundation of Democracy, Learning from Ancient Greece III" follows on from the posters presented at the 2016 and 2023 Congresses. In Seoul, I presented an overview of Archives in ancient Greece, focusing on Classical Athens with the history of “Archeion”, etymology of archives. In Abu Dhabi, I introduced Athenian “Demosion” as the origin of democratic archives as well as examples of “Bouleuterion”, the House of Council. This year I will introduce various Bouleuteria in Greece and Turkey. I also refer to the Kingdom of Macedonia. Though it is difficult to discuss ancient archives that are almost lost about 2500 years ago, I will do my best using the recent open resources.

Archival materials in ancient Greece had varied names such as treasures, golden things, people’s writings, and so on. Their media vary: metals, stones, papyri, wooden boards, etc. They were stored in temples, palaces, magistrates’ places or “Plytaneion”, and the council houses.

Was Metroon the central archives in Athens? In fact, Metroon was converted from the old Bouleuterion, the council’s meeting place. At that time, the Council expanded its power with the flat political system among citizens. According to orators, after the construction of the new Bouleuterion, it was called Demosion, the people’s building, where the “Anagraphe” like Nicomachus collected the records and codified the laws and decrees. Demosion has the same word-root as democracy.

Applying the theory of archival science, we can assume that the records kept in each place are related to its functions. In temples like Parthenon kept religious records and offerings. In the case of Parthenon, the temple also might keep records of the Delian League. Plytaneion in Athens was the office of Eponymous Archon. It might hold religious and diplomatic records as well as the list of guests at honorary dinners.

Bouleuterion at Olympia kept Olympic records. Bouleuterion at Delphi kept oracle records. In Dodona the oracles on the lead tablets are now in Archaeological Museum of Ioannina. I also observed Bouleuteria in Miletus, Priene, Pergamon, Aphrodisias, Ephesus, Troy, Assos, Thessaloniki and so on. Most of them were in Agora. Some of them were complexed buildings with Plytaneia. Some were converted to "Odeon" (Theater). As even Hellenic cities constructed Bouleuteria, we can assume that the city-states were autonomous cities with local governance. In Assos, this city was as old as Athens, we could see the letters “Demos” on a stone in Bouleuterion. Museum of Fine Arts, Boston holds the Stele excavated from Assos.I could read a field notebook written in 19th century in Central Archives of the Berlin State Museums.

In contrast to these city-states, we can see the ”Demosio Archeio” (People’s Archives) in Pella, the birthplace of Alexandros the Great. The city was the heart of Macedonia Kingdom, the capital was moved from Aigai. In modern Greece, the town hall is called DHMAPXEIO. We can still find the spirit of democratic archives even now.

I would like to express my gratitude to the archival institutions in Greece, Turkey, and Germany.

El maig de 2024, l’alumnat de la matèria Projecte de comissariat d’exposicions, de primer de batxillerat artístic de l’Escola d’Art d’Olot, acompanyats de la professora Montserrat Planella, van crear i presentar una proposta expositiva sobre el fons fotogràfic de Salvador Calm Castañer conservat a l’Arxiu Comarcal de la Garrotxa. L’exposició sorgeix de l’encàrrec de l’Arxiu de treballar la documentació fotogràfica d’aquest fotògraf amateur com a pràctica de l’assignatura.

Creació d'un pòster per explicar com la col·laboració amb l'Escola d'Art d'Olot va permetre als alumnes d'aquest centre conèixer l'Arxiu, les tasques que hi fem i com tractem els fons fotogràfics.

Primerament, l'impuls d'aquest projecte va permetre a l'arxiu digitalitzar i descriure el fons fotogràfic Salvador Calm Castañer (1933-2014) i posteriorment, un cop conegut l'abast, es va redactar l'encàrrec per els alumnes.

Aquests van fer totes les feines necessàries per a l’obtenció d’un disseny expositiu final a partir del contingut proposat. Així mateix, van dur a terme els treballs necessaris per a la confecció de l’obra final i la seva exposició a la Sala d’actes de l’ACGAX, les tasques de coordinació, de disseny de l’espai i els materials expositius (plafons, vitrines, cartel·les, fulls de sala i vinils) el muntatge i el desmuntatge.

En la inauguració de l'exposició els alumnes van explicar el projecte, els reptes i les dificultats que es van trobar. També es va implicar a la família del fotògraf, donadora del fons, en el projecte. Van ajudar en la documentació de les fotos i van respondre totes les preguntes dels estudiants, cosa que els hi va permetre entendre el context i connectar amb el fotògraf i la seva època.

Heavy rains in Rio Grande do Sul damaged archives, including UFSM's historical records. UFSM responded by mass-freezing the collection, a first in Brazil. Documents were sealed and frozen. UFSM also launched TransDoc, a document recovery center, assisting other institutions. This initiative highlights the importance of swift action and collaboration in preserving historical memory.

The heavy rains that struck the Brazilian state of Rio Grande do Sul in April 2024 caused widespread destruction, affecting over 80 documentary collections across the state. At the Federal University of Santa Maria (UFSM), 12,000 boxes of historical records (1930–2020) were completely submerged. The magnitude of the disaster demanded a swift and innovative response to prevent irreparable losses to this invaluable historical heritage.

Faced with the severity of the situation, UFSM implemented large-scale freezing as the primary stabilization strategy. This procedure was carried out using four 12-foot refrigerated containers, freezing a total of 10,000 archival boxes, marking the largest documented case of mass freezing of records in Brazil. The temperature was maintained at -20°C, halting the growth of microorganisms and preventing further damage to paper fibers.

The process adhered to a strict protocol. Each document was carefully sealed in high-barrier plastic bags, with air removed using vacuum sealers. Perforated plastic crates were employed to ensure safe stacking and uniform cold circulation, maintaining optimal conditions for future recovery. The freezing operation was instrumental in stabilizing the collection and enabling its gradual restoration in the coming years.

Transforming this challenge into an opportunity, UFSM established TransDoc, a reference center for the recovery of documentary collections. Beyond preserving its own institutional memory, TransDoc supports other institutions in the state by offering integrated solutions that combine Archival Science, Chemistry, Engineering, and Information Technology. This pioneering model in Brazil positions UFSM as a beacon of resilience and innovation in the preservation of documentary heritage.

The large-scale freezing initiative and the creation of TransDoc represent a milestone in the history of archival preservation in Brazil, underscoring the critical importance of rapid response, advanced techniques, and interdisciplinary collaboration to protect historical memory in the face of disasters.

ArcLight is a Blacklight based discovery tool for displaying archival description and digitized archival material. Stanford University Libraries (SUL) is developing an ArcLight instance with the goal for implementation in mid-2025. We will share how we created a systematic approach to manual review of our collections data across multiple discrete software programs and demonstrate the reality that large-scale, impactful remediation projects often cannot be resolved with automation.

ArcLight is a Blacklight based discovery tool for displaying archival description and digitized archival material, and can be integrated with request management software. Stanford University Libraries (SUL) has been developing an ArcLight instance since late 2022 with the goal to commence implementation in mid-2025 with Aeon integration. SUL prioritized ArcLight to provide a more seamless route of discovery to our collections for the Stanford community and external researchers. This required University Archives (UA) to survey not just the EAD encoded finding aids but also our legacy issues throughout our collections; including, but not limited to: collections with little or no description, collections with insufficient catalog records, and inconsistencies across digital objects.

Researchers are currently directed from SearchWorks catalog records to the Online Archive of California (OAC), a free and public source as a discovery instrument for all of Special Collections’ finding aids. The Digital Library Systems Services (DLSS) team determined that for this implementation to succeed, ArchivesSpace (ASpace) was to become the single, authoritative source for EAD finding aids to support ArcLight. This would require our staff to manually review resource records to evaluate our institutional restrictions. We realized that this work would be high touch and saw this as an opportunity to build upon our remediation efforts to expand the workflow to resolve persistent issues throughout our collections data.

This poster will share and interrogate the method we developed and applied across 2596 finding aids. This will include charts organized in collaboration with the DLSS team at Stanford Libraries, from which we were able to derive data that highlighted discrepancies between the XML sourcing our finding aids on the OAC and the data in ASpace. By adding ArcLight into the mix, we were running the risk of creating another platform with inconsistent collections data. We will show the development of our first target, to match the visibility of collections in the OAC to that of ASpace, which revealed a need for more refined evaluations. We will share how we created a systematic approach to manual review across multiple software programs. The goal for this poster is to highlight the reality that large scale, impactful remediation projects often cannot be resolved with an API script, but it doesn’t make the work less of a priority. It can be done!

La metadada tipologia documental, obligatòria segons la Norma Técnica de Interoperabilidad (2a ed., 2016), és especialment crítica en la fase d’avaluació i disposició de la gestió documental, i més quan hi ha sèries de conservació parcial.

L’estudi de cas que presentem exemplifica com l’anàlisi lingüística pot ajudar en la seva identificació automàtica durant un procés de migració i quin ha estat el grau de precisió i fiabilitat aconseguits.

El context de treball de l’estudi de cas que presentem és la migració d’expedients de contractació que van ser creats en un gestor d’expedients, adquirit per la Universitat, amb unes funcionalitats específiques per als processos relacionats amb aquest àmbit. La problemàtica que es detecta durant el procés de migració és una descripció poc precisa i fiable de la metadada tipologia documental donada la inconsistència de la llista de valors d’origen.

A partir de la hipòtesi de que l’ús de tècniques pròpies de la lingüística computacional permet determinar la tipologia d’un document a partir del seu contingut i/o forma, l’objectiu que ens hem marcat és classificar de manera automàtica els documents durant el procés de migració.

La metadada tipologia documental, obligatòria segons la Norma Técnica de Interoperabilidad (2a ed., 2016), és especialment crítica en la fase d’avaluació i disposició de la gestió documental, i més quan hi ha sèries de conservació parcial com es dona en aquest cas.

En les conclusions es presenta una valoració quantitativa i qualitativa dels resultats obtinguts així com unes futures línies de treball, com poden ser la definició de processos inteligents(RPA) en la gestió documental.

En Brasil, el proceso de regularización agraria se ha convertido en una discusión de interés para la política agraria nacional, ya que la regularización agraria, así como la reforma agraria, son estratégicas en el desarrollo económico del Estado brasileño.Blockchain se presenta como una ruptura paradigmática en lo que respecta a cuestiones relacionadas con la autenticación, integridad e identidad de registros.

En Brasil, el proceso de regularización agraria se ha convertido en una discusión de interés para la política agraria nacional, ya que la regularización agraria, así como la reforma agraria, son estratégicas en el desarrollo económico del Estado brasileño, lo que pone de relieve un punto de tensión entre los intereses privados con el poder público. Así, la migración de las colecciones de tierras desde el entorno informacional analógico, que se produjeron durante décadas, en el que predominaba la materialidad de la información orgánica y de los registros en formato papel, al entorno digital, se vuelve de fundamental importancia y altamente necesaria para satisfacer las demandas de la regularización de las tierras brasileñas con mayor precisión. A partir del 18 de marzo de 2020, entra en vigor en el territorio nacional brasileño el Decreto nº 10.278, que reglamenta la Ley Federal nº 13.874, de 20 de septiembre de 2019, y la Ley Federal nº 12.682, de 9 de julio de 2012, con la finalidad de asegurar que los documentos digitalizados, es decir, los representantes digitales, tengan capacidad probatoria, garantizando su validez jurídica, al igual que los documentos analógicos originales. En los tiempos modernos surgen varias tecnologías disruptivas, como blockchain. La tecnología Blockchain se basa en la distribución de registros en sistemas de consenso descentralizados y se basa en una red peer-to-peer, que opera sin una autoridad central, a diferencia de la arquitectura centralizada, que se basa en el cliente/servidor. Blockchain se presenta como una ruptura paradigmática en lo que respecta a cuestiones relacionadas con la autenticación, integridad e identidad de registros. Por lo tanto, surge la pregunta de cómo se puede aplicar la tecnología blockchain a los documentos digitalizados que componen los acervos de tierras en Brasil. El objetivo es analizar las posibles aplicaciones de la tecnología blockchain en el contexto de la regularización territorial y la reforma agraria en Brasil. Para ello se utilizará como metodología la investigación bibliográfica, documental, cualitativa, exploratoria y descriptiva. La recolección de datos se realizará a través de la literatura nacional e internacional en libros, artículos, disertaciones, tesis y disposiciones del sistema jurídico vigente en el territorio brasileño en portugués e inglés. Como resultado, se espera demostrar que la cadena de bloques encripta, envía y valida transacciones, lo que proporciona un registro cronológico inalterable de todas las operaciones realizadas. De esta forma, será posible demostrar la aplicación de la tecnología blockchain en la autenticación de documentos territoriales en Brasil.

UCSF Archives and Special Collections was awarded a grant by NHPRC to support the project titled “Pioneering Child Studies: Digitizing and Providing Access to Collection of Women Physicians who Spearheaded Behavioral and Developmental Pediatrics.” The grant funded the digitization of 68,000 pages, the creation of five digital collections, and a primary source website.

In 2021, UCSF Archives and Special Collections was awarded a grant by the National Historical Publications and Records Commission (NHPRC) in support of the project “Pioneering Child Studies: Digitizing and Providing Access to Collection of Women Physicians who Spearheaded Behavioral and Developmental Pediatrics.”

The project highlights five women physicians and social workers: Hulda Evelyn Thelander, MD, Helen Fahl Gofman, MD, Leona Mayer Bayer, MD, Selma Fraiberg, MSW, and Carol Hardgrove, MA. All five were 20th-century trailblazers in developmental-behavioral pediatrics research, patient care, and public health policy. Developmental-behavioral pediatrics arose in the 1920s from an increased demand for mental health services in pediatric care. While infant and child mortality rates in the United States declined, in part due to public health campaigns and medical advancements, concerns over behavioral problems and developmental delays increased. There were also societal influences in the 20th century that impacted child-raising, such as changes to the family structure and an increasing demand for technically trained laborers. Thus, the field of pediatrics began to look beyond child survival and started to consider the whole child.

Digitizing The Collections

The NHPRC award supported digitizing over 68,000 pages and creating five digital collections in collaboration with UC Merced Library's Digital Curation, Archives, and Special Collections Unit. By digitizing these collections, the materials are more widely accessible for teaching and research purposes. These collections capture the contributions these women made and the challenges they faced. Furthermore, the materials within these collections will support ongoing educational programs and research within the history of medicine, women in health sciences, disability studies, public health, social work, and medical humanities.

In addition to the digital collections, a primary source website was created for teachers, researchers, and students.

Primary Source Set Development

Aimee Medeiros, PhD, an associate professor of history and health sciences in the UCSF Department of Humanities and Social Sciences, collaborated with Archives and Special Collections to create the primary source set. This resource captures each woman's key contributions in developmental-behavioral pediatrics by highlighting original documents and artifacts. Materials include diaries, memoirs, travel accounts, medical manuscripts, and research notes. Furthermore, the primary source set aims to expand innovative and meaningful learning strategies while supporting learner’s knowledge-building, engagement, and critical thinking skills with items from UCSF’s holdings.

Archive of the President of the Republic of Kazakhstan invites you to be acquainted with the topics and results of the I (2022) and II (2024) Сongresses of archivists of Kazakhstan, and contribute your ideas to be discussed during the III Congress, that will take place in Astana in 2026.

Every year, new archival documents enter scholarly circulation, serving as testimonies and primary sources that contribute to a comprehensive and broad understanding of both national and global history. Historians worldwide face the complex task of expanding historical comprehension through the study of these sources. Equally challenging tasks of collecting, organizing, preserving, and ensuring broad access to archival collections lie with archival institutions. Addressing these enduring and long-term challenges in today’s rapidly evolving information society requires significant investments in education, infrastructure, and international cooperation.

The Archive of the President of the Republic of Kazakhstan is the country’s largest repository of documents on the socio-political history of the 20th century and the period of Independence, entrusted by the country’s leadership with a special responsibility and mission. As part of efforts to modernize its activities, in 2022 the Archive adopted a Concept that outlines strategic directions for its development until 2035. Within the framework of its development as a leading research and methodological center, the Archive initiated and organized the Congress of Archivists of Kazakhstan. This event serves as a platform for professional engagement and constructive dialogue, the generation of innovative ideas for archival development, the implementation of projects, the dissemination of best archival practices, and the training of young specialists.

I Congress (2022): The first Congress, held under the auspices of the International Council on Archives (ICA), was dedicated to the theme "Open Archives for an Open Society." It explored the transformation of archives in the context of democratic principles and the expansion of public access to information. The event concluded with the adoption of a resolution establishing the Congress as a regular forum for professional cooperation.

II Congress (2024): The second Congress expanded its focus to the role of heritage institutions in sustainable development of the society. Key discussion topics included digitization, the integration of archives into research projects, document preservation amid climate change, data protection ethics, and the standardization of archival processes. The resolution of the II Congress highlighted archives as underutilized assets in governance, culture, and the economy, while also emphasizing the need for strategic planning, international collaboration, and professional development.

Vision for the III Congress (2026): During the poster session at the International Archives Congress ICA Barcelona 2025, the Archive of the President will present the themes, outcomes, and resolutions of the I and II Congresses. Additionally, the Archive invites international colleagues to contribute their ideas and identify pressing issues for the III Congress, set to take place in Astana in 2026. This session will underscore the Archive’s commitment to engaging the global archival community in shaping the agenda of this significant event.

One of the International Council on Archives most effective ways of supporting and communicating with its members is through its sections. This poster presentation will introduce the different sections and outline how they operate. The emphasis will be on communicating projects and activities which sections have organised. This will also be an opportunity to receive feedback from delegates and understand what ICA members hope the sections will achieve.

Currently there are eleven ICA sections aimed at those working with different types of archives and in different types of archival institutions. This poster presentation will introduce the various sections and outline how they operate. The emphasis will be on communicating projects and activities which sections have organised so that Congress attendees are aware of the training, discussion and networking opportunities that sections offer. Examples will include information about the SAHR newsletter, SPO webinars, SPP work on AI and SUV conferences, as well as information from other sections and the examples will be tied to the conference sub-themes so the current relevance of the work is clearly demonstrated. The sections provide a forum in which ICA members can communicate with and learn from archivists and records professionals across the globe which is at the heart of what ICA aims to achieve. The poster presentation will ensure that delegates are aware of the opportunities that belonging to sections bring. It will also be an opportunity to receive feedback from delegates and understand what ICA members want from the sections and what they hope that they will achieve.