Emerging convergence? Thoughts on museums, archives, libraries, and professional training

Abstract

While 'convergence' has been a topic of much discussion in the museum, archive and library communities, the emerging similarities between these three types of cultural heritage institutions -

Archives, Libraries and Museums in the Contemporary Society: Perspectives of the Professionals

“…Together with earlier research on how other stakeholder groups conceptualise the future of ALMs, this study provides insight and useful knowledge of the professionals' point of view for future research on the societal role of the ALMs. The perceived relevance of the collaboration of ALMs and the introduction of such umbrella concepts as the "memory institution" have captured political, theoretical and professional imagination to a degree that it is easy to argue that the notion of convergence warrants a critical discussion of the future role of these institutions in a single study (Trant, 2009). The findings of this study provide understanding of how ALM professionals conceptualise the role of their institutions and what kinds of assumptions and perspectives steer their daily work.…”

“…The past two decades have witnessed an increasing political interest in memory institutions (archives, libraries and museums, ALMs) and their role as shapers of the future society (Trant, 2009). At the same time, some of the proponents of digital information technologies have heralded the Internet age (Usherwood et al, 2005a) as their end.…”

La muséologie au sein des sciences de l’information : utopie ou valeur ajoutée?

“…Cette nette tendance vers l'interdisciplinarité est aussi mise en relief par Trant (2009) bonne connaissance des contenus. À ce savoir doivent s'ajouter des compétences instrumentales et communicationnelles (Galaup 2012 (Galaup 2012).…”

Stakeholders in the Selection of Digital Material for Preservation: Relationships, Responsibilities, and Influence

“…Separate educational regimes for librarians, archivists and curators have been suggested as a factor which hinders working together to manage digital material, as these emphasise differences rather than similarities (Katre 2011;Trant 2009;Given and McTavish 2010, 22); this may make cross-institutional comparison and working more difficult (Ooghe and Moreels 2009). However, libraries, archives and museums face similar problems and issues regarding digital material (Marty 2014, 615) and therefore training in digital preservation which crosses traditional boundaries, such as from the DPC and ULCC (University of London Computer Centre), may help to overcome differences.…”