Digital storage poses unique challenges for community-based archives, especially when resources are limited. In a recent webinar titled “Preserving Community Histories: Advancing Ethical Digital Storage Solutions,” Shift Collective showcased their three-year research dedication towards ethical, sustainable digital storage solutions for smaller cultural memory organizations.
Guest experts Zakiya Collier and Jon Voss introduced the project Modeling Sustainable Futures aimed at addressing gaps in technological storage options for community archives. They shared strategies for creating trusted networks of decentralized storage, ensuring autonomy, and strengthening community engagement without exploitation.
The discussion highlighted case studies using platforms like Historypin, emphasizing the importance of local control and preservation integrity. Participants learned the significance of ethical considerations and community values in developing these storage models.
For those interested in exploring these concepts further, a new initiative, the Cultural Memory Lab, offers education, technical support, and funding to decentralized storage solutions for galleries, libraries, archives, and museums.
About Shift Collective
Shift Collective is a non-profit consulting and design group that helps organizations better engage, collaborate with, and reflect their local communities. We are committed to an inclusive record of our shared cultural heritage, and help promote equity in the historical narrative through tools, platforms and field-leading convenings. Our digital history platform, Historypin, serves over 4,000 cultural memory organizations worldwide, and has generated over $10 million in investments to humanities research and community history projects globally since 2009. We’ve provided strategic planning support for organizations like Bay Area Video Coalition, Storycorps Archives, the Furious Flower Poetry Center/JMU Libraries, and many more.
Download Resources from Today’s Presentation
Please find resources from today’s presentation and more at: https://shiftcollective.us/ffdw
This event was hosted by TechSoup's Public Good App House on December 10, 2024. This event is part of the Empowering GLAM Makers & Institutions through Innovative Memory Projects. This event is supported by an award from the Filecoin Foundation for the Decentralized Web.