Association of Canadian Archivists conference 2010: Standing on the Shoulders of Giants- the Next Generation of Canadian Archivists Sarah Romkey, Rare Books and Special Collections Archivist Conference Round-up December 2010

Conference outline June 2010 in Halifax, Nova Scotia One day pre-conference, one day of section meetings, 3 days of sessions. Photo by mooncross and used under Creative Commons licensemooncross

Pre-conference: Digital Preservation in the Canadian Landscape Presentations from practitioners from across the country and international experts. Topics included LOCKSS, government documents, physical media preservation, trusted digital repositories. Takeways: Collaboration is key, people and policies are more important than technology, don’t be afraid to “take a stab at it.”

Conference sessions Highlights: – Keynotes by Librarian and Archivist of Canada Daniel Caron and other “archival giants.” – Session on Impact and Value: archives of every- day people, studies on finding meaning in archives and impact on social justice. – Session on collaborations: for acquisition, access and outreach

Conference sessions Highlights continued: – Session by LAC archivists on re-appraisal and deaccessioning – Session on outreach and advocacy and how it has changed over past 20 years.

Overall takeaways Finding ways to economize and make sound, sustainable decisions. Finding ways to fit the “luxuries” (like outreach!) into our everyday work. Technology has changed by our core roles remain the same (reflected in next year’s conference theme, “Back to Basics.”)