Linking Libraries, Museums, Archives: Archivist of the U.S. David Ferriero Speaks at Harvard

From the Harvard Gazette:

The archivist of the United States, David Ferriero, says that one of the core challenges facing today’s librarians, archivists, and museum curators is the need for them to work across disciplines to deliver the integrated, seamless level of service that tech-savvy users are increasingly coming to expect.
“We are all in the same business: protecting, collecting, and allowing the use of information,” he told a packed audience during a “Harvard Library Strategic Conversation” on integrating libraries, archives, and museums (an initiative referred to as “LAM”) held Monday at Longfellow’s Askwith Hall.
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Ferriero, along with other speakers, highlighted the challenges to creating an interdisciplinary LAM structure. For example, he referred to the growing difficulty of collecting and archiving electronic records, mentioning that “only” 8 million of them were archived from President Ronald Reagan’s administration, while 70 million were collected from President Bill Clinton’s, and a jaw-dropping 210 million were collected from President George W. Bush’s tenure.

The article continues with comments from other speakers including:

• Professor Holly Witchey, Interim director of the Marcus Institute for Digital Education in the Arts, Johns Hopkins University
• Günter Waibel, Director of the Smithsonian’s Digitization Program
• Tom Hickerson, Vice provost of Libraries and Cultural resources, University of Calgary
• Robert Darnton, Carl H. Pforzheimer University Professor and University Librarian, Harvard University

Learn More About This Event as Well as Previous and Upcoming Events in the Harvard Library: Strategic Conversations Series
Read the Complete Article

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