News

American University in Cairo, Egypt (AUC) is the latest organization to join the Digital Preservation Coalition, as they become Associate Members.

The American University in Cairo was founded in 1919, and from the beginning considered enrichment of Egypt’s cultural life part of its mission, sponsoring lectures and other public programming featuring important thinkers and creative individuals. The major entry of The Rare Books and Special Collections Library of AUC Libraries into the area of preserving cultural heritage came with AUC’s acquisition of the personal library of pioneering scholar of Islamic Art and Architecture Sir K.A.C. Creswell in the 1950s which, with its rare and valuable book holdings, served as the core resource for the university’s Arab Studies offerings. The library’s holdings house important donated archival collections in various disciplines, include pioneer scholars in Islamic architecture, Egypt’s leading architects, world-class photographers, local Egyptologists, famous journalists and prolific artists as well as evidence of everyday Egyptians shaping their nation as in the 2011 revolution, for preserving cultural heritage materials.

Heriot-Watt University is the latest organization to join the Digital Preservation Coalition, as they become Associate Member.

With campuses in Edinburgh, the Scottish Borders, Orkney, Malaysia and Dubai, the University is moving towards a digital only environment, which has been accelerated by the pandemic and remote working and teaching.

The Digital Preservation Coalition (DPC) welcomes the Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology (RMIT University), as they become the Coalition’s newest Associate Member.

With three campuses and two sites in Australia, two campuses in Vietnam and a research and industry collaboration centre in Spain, RMIT University Archives and the Library are required to manage long-term preservation of the digital assets and cultural heritage of a global university. 

The Digital Preservation Coalition (DPC) welcomes the University of Witwatersrand (Wits University), as they become the Coalition’s newest Full Member.

With a vision to be South Africa’s information hub of choice, among the top research libraries in the world, Wits University Library strives to provide inclusive environments for accessing, producing and sharing knowledge. The Library manages the institutional digitisation centre, digital library and archival repositories and are therefore mandated with the preservation of these digital objects.

The City of Edinburgh Council has joined the Digital Preservation Coalition (DPC), becoming the Coalition’s newest Associate Member.

As a Scottish Local Authority, the Council and its Archives have significant long-term and permanent retention requirements around the records it manages. Recognising that the majority of records are now produced digitally, the Council is working to enhance its digital preservation capabilities to ensure these are kept in line with legal and social expectations.