ProjectARCC Meeting Agenda and Minutes

June 18, 2015 at 7:30pm ET

Link to join meeting: http://wgbh1.adobeconnect.com/projectarcc/

 

Attendees:

Carey MacDonald

Danielle Cordovez

Rose Oliveira

Sibyl Schaefer

Genna Duplisea

Kristen Weischedel

Dan Bullman

Rebecca Fraimow

Ryan Edge

 

Action items = Green

 

Carey MacDonald took minutes for the meeting.

 

The group decided to establish at least four committees, including Protect, Reduce, Elevate and Preserve. Sign up sheet for committees can be found here: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1jq5WPYKfQXrI7y-S9pg_bw1IEIRjHxKsx6U0CEGpwdQ/edt

 

The group did not discuss the acronym for ProjectARCC, but there was discussion in the comments of the agenda document. We’ve considered several options: “Archives, Risk and Climate Change,” “ARchives and Climate Change, “Archivists Recording Climate Change,” and “Archivists Responding to Climate Change.” Archivists Responding to Climate Change seems to be the most encompassing of all four missions of ProjectARCC.

 

Below is an initial summary of the four committees, but the group decided that committees should take their mission and run with it! Committees are at liberty to refine their mission to ensure that their efforts are spent on what the group and community considers most important.

 

Founded on Earth Day in 2015, ProjectARCC is a task force of archivists striving to motivate the archival community to affect climate change. We believe that archivists, those responsible for the preservation of history for future generations, should be as passionate and concerned about preserving a habitable and safe planet for future generations.

OUR MISSION

Protect archival collections from the impact of climate change

Reduce our professional carbon and ecological footprint

Elevate relevant collections to improve public awareness and understanding of climate change

Preserve this epochal moment in history for future research and understanding

 

One of the first goals of the committees should be to formalize a purpose and scope of efforts.

 

1. Protect
   1. With climate change already affecting our profession (ex. Hurricane Sandy, TX/OK floods, etc.), increased carbon dioxide, sea levels rising, and more frequent/severe weather events, we need to provide archivists with resources on climate change (like what NEDCC has=D plan) and inform archivists on how to mitigate the effects of climate change in their institutions
   2. This could entail sharing existing resources for disaster preparedness, hosting disaster preparedness webinars/workshops/conference sessions.
   3. Eira Tansey is taking the lead as Chairperson. She is also writing an article this summer for a sustainability journal on the physical risks to archives WRT climate change.
   4. The committee has a section on the website that is currently listed as “in progress.”

 

1. Reduce
   1. Also add to resource list on website (and everyone, if you see them!)
   2. As individuals, we can reduce our carbon footprint; as a profession, we can encourage our institutions to reduce their footprints
   3. Idea: we could lobby larger organizations for organizational change; carbon offsets at archives conferences? Incentives for reducing carbon footprint at conferences and at our institutions? Casey suggests checking out Green Street as a platform to use for incentivizing reducing carbon footprint. We use it at WGBH.
   4. Provide resources for reducing professional carbon footprint?
   5. Carey MacDonald is taking the lead as Chair of this committee.

 

1. Elevate
   1. What archives have collections?
      1. Elevating our collections means increasing public awareness of materials concerning the environment/climate change
   2. visualization/mapping project
      1. Add to website
      2. It would be great if we could find a library/archive developer to do the visualization project.
   3. Reach out to archivists to learn of the climate-related collections they have and the ways they exhibit this information to the public
   4. How can we exhibit this information for them?
   5. Reach out to Sands Fish and Internet Archive (Sibyl will reach out to Internet Archive).
   6. Dan Bullman is taking the lead as Chair of this Committee.

 

1. Preserve
   1. This group will focus on outreach to activists and scientists to ensure long term preservation of the outputs of their efforts.
   2. This may include gathering and sharing existing resources for data management, days of service, creating custom data management plans for specific projects, consulting with organizations and activists, helping groups find long term repositories (the work being done by Elevate to identify repositories will be very helpful for this work).
   3. Question for Ryan Edge (who is going to advise on web archiving for activists): how does he envision ensuring preservation of activists’ websites? Could this be a collaboration with the Internet Archive? What would Ryan propose as our role in this effort?
   4. Updates on potential and current collaborations
      1. WeKnew.org = platform for people to write letters (expand to video/other media) to future children/loved ones. The project comes out of Harvard’s environmental policy department. Casey’s colleague’s wife is leading the project.
         1. Casey is taking a bigger role in this project, serving as their “Archivist,” although the plan is to simply manage their data and create a plan for annual submission to a long term repository.
         2. Writers can update letters, then update metadata; preserve
         3. We will be listed as a partner on their website!
   5. iSeeChange = crowdsourcing stories and photos from people documenting changing landscape in local communities
      1. Not archiving their material or writing metadata yet
      2. Casey will be in touch with them and may set up an in person meeting in Boston. Casey will let others on Preserve know if there will be an in person meeting.
   6. ReNEW Mass. = we can provide them with resources and maybe data management plans
      1. Also, have a day of service at their facility? Find permanent storage for them?
      2. Casey is waiting to hear back from them.
   7. 350.org = not archiving their material yet; opportunity to work with them to find a permanent home for their collection. Casey is waiting to hear back from them.
   8. Contact Raphael Mazzone, former archivist now climate change communication PhD candidate at George Mason: http://www.climatechangecommunication.org/our-team/raphael-mazzone
      1. He may be willing to share advice and recommendations
      2. He may be willing to participate in a live tweet with ProjectARCC
      3. He may be willing to serve on a panel presentation.
      4. Casey is waiting to hear back.
   9. Reach out to children’s group dealing with science/environment/climate change?
      1. We didn’t come up with an action plan, but something to discuss at our next meeting.
      2. Contact WeKnew.org about this
   10. What services will we provide?
       1. Data management plans, metadata, web archiving via Internet Archive, days of service, helping people find long-term repositories
       2. Create a webpage or blog post about existing personal archiving/data management resources
   11. Recommendations from Jessica Venlet for next Preserve meeting discussion:
       1. In going forward with consultations with specific groups, the Preserve team may want to decide what resources to use or create before any meetings/emails with activist groups really begin. The team could do some practice consultations with each other, so we’re all on the same page and doing similar consultations.
       2. How will we filter and divide up consults and responding to emails from activists?
       3. What’s out of scope for the Preserve team consults with activists? We want to help, but I think we should also be clear on what we cannot promise or give to activist groups.
       4. Casey: could we examine project specific goals and create data management plan for project?
       5. Could we create and share template for project to create and manage their own metadata (filemaker, spreadsheet)?
       6. Casey: could we create a video for climate activists on why they should be preserving their collections?
       7. What templates can we create?
   12. Other suggestions?
2. Partners = also listed above
   1. Activist Archivists = Rebecca’s contact; Casey needs to follow up!
   2. SAA Issues and Advocacy = presenting in August at annual business meeting; meet-up around then for those who are going to SAA.
      1. Casey will propose some opportunities for collaboration to the I&A roundtable.
   3. Other potential RT to reach out to inc Archives Management, Preservation, Security, Science and Technology, and the RTs devoted to representing communities who may be disproportionately affected by CC (e.g., LACCHA Human Rights, Native American Archives, Archives and Archivists of Color)
   4. WeKnew.org
   5. Others Potential Partners include those listed below. Who is willing to contact?
      1. Natural Science Archives Association see https://archives2015.sched.org/event/1ec9d384f3ceda8a6369f04acd6aa134#.VYBd_aMUN2Q for SAA 2015 session and https://crackingthecollections.wordpress. com/2014/12/10/growing-a-collaborative-community/ for more info
      2. WITNESS
3. Events
   1. tweet-up = for mid-July
      1. Come up with phrases and questions to tweet to get more folks on board (Rose, Genna)
      2. Here is a page to work on creating tweets for the tweet up: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1rrd7r97wEfkMJCSXnHLvv8rQmfAGzUa-NxE_0k2EwVs/edit
      3. Casey is waiting to hear back from Raphael Mazzone about being a potential collaborator for the Tweet-Up.
      4. We are hoping for July 8 (Wednesday) at 1pm ET.
      5. Casey will create language for the event to share on listservs.
   2. live-streamed event in October at Simmons College. Would someone like to take the lead on coordinating this? Betts? Kristen?
      1. Head of WeKnew.org willing to present
      2. Lucas Stancyzk — This is Betts’ partner. He is teaching a class at MIT on the Ethics of Climate Change.
      3. Archivist with experience dealing with climate change to speak or skype in?
         1. Rebecca = Kara van Malssen wrote her thesis on post-Katrina disaster recovery for a/v archives. Rebecca — can you reach out to Kara Van Malssen?
   3. Eira’s SAA 2016 proposal
      1. Maybe we could get the Issues and Advocacy Roundtable to endorse her proposal, too?
   4. Casey is proposing SAA 2015 pop-up session
      1. Proposals are due on July 17. She will keep folks updated as we hear more.
   5. Climate March in September
      1. In NYC; Casey may go, Dan would like to go
   6. Other events?
4. Blog
   1. Carey is going to create a blog sign-up sheet and calendar and send it out to everyone.
      1. Point person for getting blogs submitted =
      2. Update blog every month
      3. Genna is planning to write a blog post.
      4. Everyone who gave Casey a bio and headshot should have write access to the blog. Feel free to post anytime!!
      5. Does anyone want to co-write something about the Papal Encyclical with Eira? Casey would be willing! Let’s talk!
5. Social Media
   1. FB
   2. Tw – #preserveclimate #projectarcc @projectarcc
6. Other ideas?
7. How often should we meet?
   1. The task force will meet quarterly. Committees will meet monthly (if they see fit). Committee chairs will send around an update to the Task Force every month. Chairs should have email addresses for everyone on their committee. Chairs will be in touch soon with next steps!
8. When should we meet again?
   1. Meet-up at SAA?
   2. Who will be there?
      1. Casey
      2. Eira
      3. Jessica