Have you been reading the updates on the Haiti earthquake and wishing that you could help? Are you an archivist, conservator, preservation professional? Read on.

There has been a call for volunteers through the Blue Shield network, and according to the International Council of Archives, as of February 11, 2010, there have been over [...]]]>

Have you been reading the updates on the Haiti earthquake and wishing that you could help? Are you an archivist, conservator, preservation professional? Read on.

There has been a call for volunteers through the Blue Shield network, and according to the International Council of Archives, as of February 11, 2010, there have been over 500 volunteers.

From the Blue Shield press release:

The Blue Shield is the protective emblem of the 1954 Hague Convention which is the basic
international treaty formulating rules to protect cultural heritage during armed conflicts. The
Blue Shield network consists of organisations dealing with museums, archives, audiovisual
supports, libraries, monuments and sites.
The International Committee of the Blue Shield (ICBS), founded in 1996, comprises
representatives of the five Non‐Governmental Organisations (NGOs) working in this field:
- The International Council on Archives (www.ica.org),
- The International Council of Museums (www.icom.museum),
- The International Council on Monuments and Sites (www.icomos.org), and
- The International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions (www.ifla.org)
- The Co‐ordinating Council of Audiovisual Archives Associations (www.ccaaa.org)
National Blue Shield Committees have been founded in a number of countries (18
established and 18 under construction). The Association of National Committees of the Blue
Shield (ANCBS), founded in December 2008, will coordinate and strengthen international
efforts to protect cultural property at risk of destruction in armed conflicts or natural
disasters. The ANCBS has its headquarters in The Hague.

The Association of National Committees of the Blue Shield (ANCBS) wants to help the people of Haiti

The earthquake in Haiti of 12th January has caused an enormous devastation. The amount of people that lost their lives is beyond imagination. At the moment basic humanitarian aid and the rebuilding of a functioning infrastructure is crucial.

However, as soon as the situation in Haiti has become more stable, Blue Shield wants to help to enable experts from all over the world to support their Haitian colleagues in assessing the damage to the cultural heritage and therefore to the identity of their country. Subsequently, Blue Shield wants to support recovery, restoration and repair measures necessary to rebuild libraries, archives, museums, monuments and sites.

An important task of ANCBS is to coordinate information. ANCBS needs to know who and where the experts are. ANCBS therefore calls upon archivists, restorers, curators, librarians, architects and other experts to register online as a volunteer.

ANCBS wants to be able to bring experts in contact with those organizations that will send missions to Haiti, and make sure that volunteers will be informed about the situation in Haiti.

Please join Blue Shield to help your Haitian colleagues.

More information at the website.

Information from the ICA- first and second update on Haiti; list/statement of needs (download pdf at this link)

The International Council on Archives wants to publicize throughout the international community the efforts of our Haitian colleagues, who have formed a crisis cell “Heritage in danger”, on the fringes of the official commission for the evaluation of buildings and reconstruction. An initial statement of requirements has been issued and you will find a copy of it attached. The Secretariat has very recently been in touch with Jean-Wilfrid Bertrand, the National Archivist of Haiti, and Jérémy Lachal, Executive Director of Libraries Without Borders, currently on mission in Port-au-Prince. Jean-Wilfrid and others have confirmed that the items on the requirements list are really needed, and that, if anything, it is an under-statement. Jean-Wilfrid has in particular emphasized the urgent requirement for tarpaulins. These are needed to protect records that are at present lying on the ground, because the buildings that previously housed them have been destroyed. If nothing is done now, they will be completely exposed during the forthcoming rainy season. ICA is now working as a matter of urgency on ways of getting these and other materials to him at Port-au-Prince as quickly as possible.

… from the “equipment” section of the list:

2.2. Equipment
2.2.1. 60,000 acid-free archive storage boxes (350 x 350 x 350
mm)
2.2.2. 150,000 plastic gloves
2.2.3. 150,000 protective masks
2.2.4. 30,000 rolls of adhesive tape (neutral glue)
2.2.5. Pencils, felt-tips, labels, acid-free wrapping paper, glue,
string, zinc-coated paper clips, staplers, needles, 8½ x 11,
8 ½ x 14 size paper
2.2.6. 50 laptop computers
2.2.7. Three computer servers
2.2.8. 100 tents to act as temporary shelters for records and
salvage personnel
2.2.9. 20 two-way handheld radio transceivers
2.2.10. 20 mobile phones
2.2.11. 15 digital cameras of semi-professional specification
2.2.12. 8 GPS (global positioning system) devices
2.2.13. 200 safety helmets with lamps (miner’s helmet-style)
2.2.14. 30 heavy duty flashlights
2.2.15. 10 pick-up trucks
2.2.16. 5 lorries
2.2.17. Temporary storage facility measuring 10,000 square meters.
The managers of the Canne-à-Sucre historical park have
offered a storage facility, which is far too small
2.2.18. 2000 struts or props with hydraulic jacks
2.2.19. 2000 tubular scaffoldings with gaskets
2.2.20. 30 20 x 40 feet containers
2.2.21. 100 metal trunks (or durable plastic)
2.3. Financial Resources
We need money to:
2.3.1. Provide logistical support (fuel, food, transportation,
communication expenses, etc.
2.3.2. Rent storage facilities
2.3.3. Rent or buy second hand containers
2.3.4. Offer incentive pay for non volunteer workers
2.3.5. Purchase records, photographs, audio and video material
created prior to the earthquake
2.3.6. Write a damage report with photographic evidence
2.3.7. Purchase inventory software and set up a database

Full list of needs, requirements available in PDF at the bottom of this ICA announcement.

A few sources of information:

dLoc (Digital Library of the Caribbean)

IFLA- Haiti update

Cultural riches turn to rubble in Haiti quake- New York Times

We found out in mid-June that we were selected as a recipient of the IMLS Connecting to Collections Bookshelf in the final round of awards. Since then, I’ve been itching to receive the materials from the American Association of State & Local History (AASLH) so that I could review them and put together a [...]]]>

We found out in mid-June that we were selected as a recipient of the IMLS Connecting to Collections Bookshelf in the final round of awards. Since then, I’ve been itching to receive the materials from the American Association of State & Local History (AASLH) so that I could review them and put together a short presentation for the department.

The intent of the Bookshelf, as stated (in part) by the press release:

To help raise the conservation IQ of museums, libraries, and archives, IMLS, in cooperation with the American Association of State and Local History (AASLH), is offering 2000 free copies of the Connecting to Collections Bookshelf, a core set of books, DVDs, online resources, and an annotated bibliography that are essential for the care of collections.

Over at Spellbound Blog, Jeanne provides a great overview of the contents of the Bookshelf here, and points out that some of these resources are freely available online. For example, the Guide to Online Resources is divided into six sections, such as Preparing and Responding to Emergencies, and then further broken down into the categories of Prepare and Respond. Having dealt with a collection-related environmental disaster and written a disaster plan over the past year, I think that being able to find all of this information in one easy place is a boon to any archivist, librarian, curator, or director. While having a plan in place prior to disaster is important, no plan will cover every contingency– and having these resources at your fingertips could be very useful. A group of resources for discovering funding, the Increase Support for Collections section breaks down into three parts: Funding, Promoting, and Informing the Public.  Think there’s something missing? You can email the IMLS to suggest other resources for inclusion on the site.

The intent of the Bookshelf is to help smaller institutions establish better preservation/conservation practices. While we’re a larger state institution (and a regional repository), I do spend a lot of my of time working with individuals and local programs that really need a helping hand when it comes to basic preservation practices. Because this is the largest city (and largest archive/library) within a six hour drive, we’re a resource for many small historical societies, town archives, and local genealogical researchers. My hope is that the Bookshelf can be utilized in this area as a source of preservation knowledge and as a starting point for some small local workshops and outreach programs.

Look for more on the books and other materials once they appear on my doorstep.

This year, I planned a full day of disaster and salvage-type activities for all staff, but due to scheduling conflicts it will not happen until the end of May. Unfortunately, that means that I don’t get to participate in all of the cool MayDay-type stuff that seems to be going on elsewhere– [...]]]>

This year, I planned a full day of disaster and salvage-type activities for all staff, but due to scheduling conflicts it will not happen until the end of May. Unfortunately, that means that I don’t get to participate in all of the cool MayDay-type stuff that seems to be going on elsewhere– here are some of the 2009 participants. Take a look at past MayDay festivities from 2007 and 2008. Tell Heritage Preservation about your May Day festivities and you could win a disaster-themed prize here.

Did you see any really neat May Day stuff that I didn’t mention? Please post and tell me about it!

Some [...]]]> Do you have a disaster plan? When was it last updated? In case of an emergency, how useful would it be? These are just a few questions that apply to the situation in which museums, libraries, and archives found themselves over the past few weeks in Iowa, Minnesota, and other places affected by flooding.

Some photos from the University of Iowa Special Collections taken as they moved materials to higher parts of their building (photos from UI News Services photostream):

Volunteers sandbagging outside:

Moving collections to higher ground:

University of Iowa Museum of Art:

From the University of Iowa Libraries website:

Friday, June 13. Libraries administrators were notified that the Main Library would be evacuated. More than 150 staff members in the Main Library packed their belongings and prepared to disperse to other libraries and locations across campus.

Relocation of Special Collections and other difficult to replace materials continued through the efforts of hundreds of volunteers throughout the day and evening. Handing books along a “book brigade” that snaked down hallways and up stairwells, volunteers were able to move tens of thousands of books from storage including thousands of theses of University masters and doctoral candidates. One volunteer estimated that they were “passing nearly 100 books a minute.”

Sandbaggers built a dike along the west side of the Main Library and around the loading dock entrance.

From the University of Iowa Museum of Art website:

The University of Iowa Museum of Art will be closed until further notice due to flooding.

Working nearly non-stop during the week of June 9, we were able to evacuate artworks totaling approximately 99 percent of the value of our collection. That figure represents nearly 80 percent of the 13,000 works of art in our collection ­– all evacuated in less than four days.

This is an incredible success story, and it wouldn’t have been possible without the proactive planning of the University and the massive outpouring of support from UIMA and Pentacrest Museums staff, student employees, and volunteers.

Water levels have receded and recovery of the building is currently underway. Exhibitions and events scheduled to be held in the Museum during Fall 2008 are under review and further information will be posted to this Web site and to the UIMA blog as it becomes available. Up-to-date flood news is available at the University of Iowa Flood Information web page.

If this kind of threat emerged for your collection/building, what kind of volunteer brigade could you amass without much notice? Do you have contracts with disaster recovery companies as well as local companies to provide assistance? It looks like the University of Iowa had enough time and volunteers to be able to save quite a lot of their collections. However, some other collections were not as lucky. From an art brief in the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel:

For the past 7 days I’ve been in Cedar Rapids, Iowa working on a project and just happen to be here during the terrible recent floods. A brief report about the conditions here of the local museums:

I reported for Red Cross duty last week and have been translating for the Hispanic community and helping where I could. I have to go to another site for work now, so this will be my only report to you about conditions.

Internet service has had its ups and downs. About 4,000 homes damaged, and more rain to come.

The University of Iowa Art Museum took four feet of water. There is major damage on campus, but the art collection is mostly safe, I was told.

Cedar Rapids Art Museum was just above flood plane, the mostly safe Czech-Slovak Museum was 15 feet under water, with major damage, though the collections are mostly safe. Very sad. The African American Museum of Cedar Rapids had 15-18 feet of water and damage. The Seminole Valley Heritage Farm had major damage.

The Marion Historical Society is all safe

The Grant Wood Studio is completely safe.

The Granger House is all safe

The Kalona Heritage Village in Iowa City is safe.

Brucemore House is OK.

I’m sure your assistance will be needed, and I hope this brief report is of assistance to you. I’m exhausted and worn out by the recent events.

They will need your expert help. Pray for these people and these communities.

Tony Rajer, art conservator