Ohu Cultural Heritage and Digital World

Ohu Cultural Heritage and the Digital World

Description

Ongoing digitalization offers a great chance, namely to significantly simplify the access to our world’s cultural heritage and thus to create an important contribution to the future’s knowledge society. Common memory institutions such as libraries, archives and museums are affected in numerous ways by technological developments of the Information Age. Firstly, the objects of collection are changing, seeing that the testimonies of cultural life are becoming more and more digital. Along with this, new questions of long-term safeguarding have come to the forefront. Secondly, (several) existing archive and library collections are being retrospectively digitalized. Thirdly, the possibilities and practices of compilation and indexing through databanks, networking and new standards are undergoing a profound change. All this is culminating in the expectation of better and easier access to our cultural heritage on the net.

Structure

The Ohu "Cultural Heritage and the Digital World" brings together representatives from libraries, archives and museums to exchange various strategies and experiences in their fields. This group is supplemented by actors from internet-specific institutions, such as Wikimedia Germany, and certain individuals, for example those who have extensive experience in presenting cultural heritage on the web. In order to promote an open discussion, members are selected based on their personal expertise and not as official representatives of their institutions. Therefore it is important to directly approach individuals who are able to assess underlying culture political inputs based on experience with a variety of projects, whether through concrete professional practice, participation in panel discussions and/or membership in associations or initiatives. Notable experts have come from the Haus der Geschichte, the the Federal and State Archives, the Rundfunkarchiven as well as from the Institute for Museum Research, German Museums Association, the Deutscher Bibliotheksverband, network media libraries and various institutions of higher education.

Method and Goals

Primarily, this Ohu will foucs on discussion of different projects, concepts and strategies to preserve cultural heritage. It will present its result to experts and policy makers at the conference „Ins Netz Gegangen“. In the followup to this conference, the Ohu will evaluate its processes and maybe change its topical focus to e.g. longterm preservation.