Preservation Week

This week, the week of 28 April-4 May, is being observed as Preservation Week, an initiative designed to connect communities through events, activities, and resources that highlight what communities can do, individually and together, to preserve their personal and shared collections. This year's them is "Preserving Identities."

According to the American Library Association, Libraries alone hold 3 billion items in various collections (63 percent of the whole). Uncounted additional items are held by individuals, families, and communities. These collections include books, manuscripts, photographs, prints and drawings, and objects such as maps, textiles, paintings, sculptures, decorative arts, and furniture. They also include moving images and sound recordings that capture performing arts, oral history, and other records of creativity and history.

Background information:

American Library Association: Core: Leadership, Infrastructure, Futures: Preservation Week

Facebook: Preservation Week

Heritage Health Index: A Public Trust at Risk:The Heritage Health Index Report on the State of America’s Collections (2005)