Swansea University becomes the newest Associate Member of the Digital Preservation Coalition this week.
Home to the Richard Burton Archives which holds material of local, regional and national significance, the Archives preserves and makes accessible records of historical value created or acquired by the University. Through its holdings and the expertise of its staff, the Archives actively supports the mission of the University to provide an environment of research excellence, to deliver an outstanding student experience with teaching of the highest quality, and to enrich the community and cultural life of Wales and beyond.
Swansea University is also home to the South Wales Miners' Library which aims to preserve oral, visual and written evidence of coal mining and miners in South Wales at a time when the industry had started to decline, and valuable material was in danger of being lost. The History of Computing Collection is also based at Swansea University and contains equipment, software, archives, ephemera, oral histories, and videos.
“As a member of the DPC we hope to improve our workflows and infrastructure to provide best-in-class digital curation and preservation facilities,” explains Alexander Roberts, Digital Humanities and Research Data Manager for Swansea University. “We are excited at being able to participate and support learning and collaboration with other DPC members and the opportunity to advance and strengthen the conversation regarding digital preservation and its role in society and academia.”
Chair of the DPC Board and Head of Data Division for STFC, Juan Bicarregui welcomed the news saying, “we are delighted that Swansea University has become part of the Coalition, and we look forward to working with them as their team seeks to strengthen its role as a community knowledge hub and custodian of cultural heritage.”
The not-for-profit DPC is an advocate for digital preservation and helps members to deliver resilient long-term access to digital content and services through community engagement, targeted advocacy work, training and workforce development, capacity building, good practice and standards, and through good management and governance. Its primary objective is raising awareness of the importance of the preservation of digital material and the attendant strategic, cultural and technological issues.
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