National Library of Australia - Gateways

ISSN 1443-0568 | no. 74 | April 2005


The Multicultural Documentary Heritage Project

Greg Power
The opening of the Multicultural Documentary Heritage Workshop by Sir James Gobbo
Part of: Multicultural Documentary Heritage Project Workshop, 9–10 June 2004
Pictures Collection, nla.int-nl39346-
grp7
[CLICK ON IMAGE TO ENLARGE]

The recent Multicultural Documentary Heritage Project undertaken by the National Library has helped community groups from culturally and linguistically diverse (‘CALD’) backgrounds to set up and maintain their own archives. The project included three major components: a survey of multicultural documentary heritage collections, a workshop on archival collection management and preservation, and publication of a starter kit.

The survey established that the majority of the heritage collections held by CALD community groups were in the early stages of development and not yet ready for inclusion in national directories such as the Register of Australian Archives and Manuscripts (RAAM) and Oral History Directory (OHD). However, a number of the organisations contacted are now actively working towards listing their collections in the directories at some stage in the future. So far, as a result of the project, 12 entries have been added to the national directories.

Greg Power
The participants of the Multicultural Documentary Heritage Workshop held at the Library on 9–10 June 2004
Part of: Multicultural Documentary Heritage Project Workshop, 9–10 June 2004
Pictures Collection, nla.int-nl39346-grp117

[CLICK ON IMAGE TO ENLARGE]

The workshop on archival collection management and preservation, held in Canberra on 9–10 June 2004 in collaboration with the National Archives of Australia, was a lively and colourful event which gathered 45 participants from 29 different cultural backgrounds. They were selected from all states/territories on the basis of the national significance of their organisations’ collections and the expected effect of workshop participation on improving access to their collections. The workshop, conducted in a friendly and supportive atmosphere, enabled the participants to learn about the issues involved in setting up and managing an archive, as well as issues of preservation, digitisation and archiving oral history.

Following the success of that workshop, the National Library is now assisting six state/territory libraries in organising their own local workshops based on the model developed for this project. The libraries involved are the Northern Territory Library and Information Service, the ACT Heritage Library, and the State Libraries of Queensland, South Australia, Victoria and Western Australia. It is hoped that workshops in Darwin, Canberra, Brisbane, Adelaide, Melbourne and Perth will meet further demand for assistance, particularly from regional, remote and rural areas. 

Any groups unable to attend the workshops can use the NLA starter kit, Preserving Australia’s Multicultural Documentary Heritage, designed to provide practical advice on setting up and maintaining a small archive. The kit has been praised for its consistency, easy-to-use format and clear layout. An online version is available for downloading at <www.nla.gov.au/multicultural/kit/>.

By the end of June 2005, close to 300 representatives of a range of diverse community organisations from all state/territories (including regional, rural and remote areas) will attend workshops around the country, and more than 2000 starter kits will be distributed at no cost to diverse community groups.

The National Library hopes that organisations taking part in the project will develop skills enabling them to preserve their documentary records so that the richness of their multicultural heritage can be appreciated by all Australians of today and tomorrow.

More information is available at the project website <www.nla.gov.au/multicultural/> which also provides access to the PDF version of the starter kit, and a list of relevant links to other resources.
—Barbara Rozmus, Manager, National Initiatives, Tel: (02) 6262 1575; Fax: (02) 6273 2545; Email: brozmus@nla.gov.au

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