International Council on Archives Congress (ICA2012)
Sustainability. Trust. Identity. These are the themes for the 2012 International Council on Archives (ICA) Congress, held in the southern hemisphere for the first time from 20–24 August in sunny Brisbane, Australia. If you are an archivist, information manager, audiovisual or preservation specialist, this could be the premier event in your 2012 professional calendar.
Rub shoulders with the world’s top archivists including keynote speakers David Ferriero, Archivist for the United States of America, and Judge Baltazar Garzón, renowned Spanish jurist. Help drive the future by being involved in ‘talking circle’ sessions and a top program of presentations and gatherings. Enjoy the facilities at the world-renowned Brisbane Convention and Exhibition Centre and experience the vibrant city of Brisbane. And you can save up to $300 if you register before the end of May.
To view the program and register.
Former Polish President checks into the archives
Left to right, Ula Tansley and former President of
Poland Aleksander Kwasniewski delve into the archives.
Archivist Ula Tansley of Polish nationality was the right person in the right place when the former President of Poland Aleksander Kwasniewski made a visit to the Wellington office of Archives New Zealand recently.
Ula has been in New Zealand for just a year and was able to show Mr Kwasniewski some archives relating to the Polish children who came to New Zealand during World War Two.
“Mr Kwasniewski was most interested in documents reflecting life of the children in the Pahiatua camp set up for them near Palmerston North, their day-to-day life, education and documents reflecting their jobs aspirations. He also looked at the film we have in the National Film Unit Collection which shows the children arriving and settling in New Zealand.
“He enjoyed this hands-on view of his national history.” As part of his trip to the capitol Polish Ambassador Beata Stoczyńska accompanied Mr Kwasniewski, who is credited with finalizing and signing Poland’s Constitution in 1997.
Samoan delegation finds their history in the archives
From left to right, Uili Fecteau, Hon Mr Fosi,
Hon Mr Fosi, holding a 1914 map of Europe written
in Samoan, and Chief Archivist Greg Goulding.
Finding out about their past history and particularly the years from 1900 to 1914 when Samoa was administered by Germany was the highlight of a 10-strong Samoan Parliamentary delegation visit to Archives New Zealand on 2 April.
Led by the Hon Laauli Leuatea Polataivao Fosi, Speaker of the Legislative Assembly, the group were given an overview of the documentation held by Archives relevant to Samoa and dating from the present back to 1847.
Archivist, Uili Fecteau, said the group was most impressed by being able to see original documentation from the 14-year German administrative period.
“Little is known of that time, because after World War One, the files were largely neglected and they greatly appreciated being able to see this documentation, “he said.
“The box of archives contained a number of handwritten letters which are extremely valuable in terms of cultural memory. Written in English, Samoan and German the documents keep them in touch with their countries’ past and its relationship with Germany and New Zealand.
“They also appreciated seeing the documents in three formats – the paper originals, the microfilm and the scans. The next step in the process is making these documents available in digital format.”
Currently Archives New Zealand and the German Federal Archive are working on a project to digitise all the Samoan documents. With funding from the German Government the documents are digitised and there are plans to make the files available electronically for research in Samoa, New Zealand and Germany.
This year is the 50th anniversary of Samoa’s independence from New Zealand and the delegation called into Archives as a first stop to a week long visit here.
Samoa’s history has been captured on film and these can be viewed at the Archives New Zealand channel on YouTube.