Welcome to the Community Archives Digital Preservation Toolkit. This toolkit has been designed in collaboration with a wide range of Community Archive groups to enable you to tackle preservation of your digital collections.
Digital Preservation can be complex, and there is no one size fits all process or workflow that works in all situations, but there are simple steps you can take to help safeguard your digital collections. This toolkit guides you through the basics in a series of levels to ensure that no matter where you are with your digital preservation journey, you will be able to find and implement guidance that’s relevant to you.
Working to preserve your collections for the future is an important task and small steps can have a large impact. The toolkit has been designed to empower you to work on your digital collections with confidence. It will be continuously improved and added over time so if you have feedback or suggestions, please send your thoughts to karyn.williamsonatdpconline.org.
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How to use this toolkitAn introduction to the toolkit and how it can be used. Use this to find out more about how the toolkit works and what sections will help you most. |
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Toolkit MatrixAll the toolkit topics and level subjects arranged together in one place to help you decide what areas may be of interest to you. Use this to see what is covered in each level of the ten toolkit topics. |
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What is Digital Preservation?An introduction to the concept and practices of digital preservation and why we do it. Use this to find out what digital preservation is, what it is not, and why it is important. |
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Digital Preservation – Just One ThingThis resource pulls all of the level one information together into a handy step by step guide. Use this if you need a step-by-step workflow to get you started on your digital preservation journey. |
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Explaining the LifecycleIntroduction to the record lifecycle, which explains about the processes a digital file goes through on its journey from creation to preservation and access. Use this to learn about how the topics in the toolkit link to the record lifecycle. |
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You Are Not AloneCollaboration is key to the success of digital preservation. This document details the options you have and how you can find out more. Use this to learn about your options for collaboration with archive professionals and other community groups. |
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Jargon BusterAcronym and glossary list of technical terms used within the toolkit Use this if you find and terms or acronyms in the toolkit you don’t understand. |
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Case StudiesA range of community archives have written about how they work with their digital content. Read their experiences here. Use this to read more about what processes and practices other community groups are using to preserve their digital content. |
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What Next? Resource ListThe toolkit provides a range of options to get you started on your digital preservation journey. This resource is for those who want to take the next step and build on what has already been achieved. Use this to find out what other learning resources are available once you have used everything applicable to you from the toolkit. |
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Suggested citation of current version |
Digital Preservation Coalition (2024). Community Archives Digital Preservation Toolkit [http://doi.org/10.7207/communitytoolkit24-01] |
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Last updated |
November 2024 |
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Date of next planned review |
2027 |