Archivists need to understand and communicate what they mean by permanence. A historical overview of the concept of permanence starts with oral traditions and ends with current ideas about archives without permanence.
Over time, permanence has acquired varied and shifting meanings for archivists; they distinguish between the permanence of the information and the permanence of the original form of the material. Preservation grew and changed with new technologies, but the only practical solution is to preserve select, rather than comprehensive, records.
The Complicated Concept of Permanent
The idea of permanent records is problematic. To view archival records as permanent disregards the ability of archivists to choose deaccession. The concept of “permanent” in archives has always been a more complicated term than it appears. A reconsideration of the idea of the permanent value of records began to emerge in professional archival discussions in the mid-1980s. A more realistic phrase than permanence is “records of enduring value.” “Acceptable permanence” has also been discussed as archivists further define what can be preserved in contemporary archives.
Digitization as Preservation
The concept of permanence informs digitization. Just as those in earlier times published to ensure permanence of a collection, digitization has become a new tool for preservation. This concept is true to a degree. When a record is digitized, the need to access its original is reduced, limiting wear and tear. Publishing a digitized record online also provides access to many communities previously not served by access to analog records. However, some users believe that if a record is not digital, it does not exist, or the effort to retrieve it is not worth it. Digital preservation is still in its infancy, but it has become clear that there may be even less permanence with digital records than with analog records.
Archivists must understand the nature of the material, such as hardware and software, which make up digital records. They are familiar enough with paper to see how it deteriorates, but they have yet to see how digital records will break down over time and how they can cost-effectively preserve them while retaining their original formatting. Unlike a paper record that may be damaged but is still readable, a digital record that is damaged even slightly is completely unreadable.
Preservation Assessment
Collections should have a preservation assessment at the time of accessioning, with preservation being an ongoing activity. Controlling the environment is the key to preservation, and some preservation activities may be done in-house, while others are left for preservation professionals.
While preservation cannot save materials forever, it can extend their life and their usefulness as historical objects. Preservation can protect items by minimizing their chemical and physical deterioration. In doing so, preservation also reduces information loss.
Making Tough Decisions
Archives without permanence is a contradictory and challenging concept to understand, especially because preservation is so tied to archives. However, this concept offers freedom to archivists because it allows them to make critical decisions regarding the archives.
Using phrases such as “continuing value” or “enduring value” tends to be more accurate than “permanent value” because it recognizes that appraisal decisions made in the past may change. Future archivists may decide that the records no longer hold historical value and can make the decision to reappraise them. This flexibility of judgment allows for archivists to be more responsive to collection needs.
The explosion of records in contemporary times makes selection vital lest archivists find themselves drowning in records. The concept of permanence, and the reality of its temporary nature, is conflicting—but the profession must agree upon standards of “acceptable permanence” to do our work properly and to bring the past to the future.
The blog was originally published on Lucidea's blog.
Financial stewardship in archives goes beyond balancing a budget. It is about responsibly managing resources to ensure the sustainability of collections and services. Stewardship means making decisions that safeguard not just today’s operations, but also tomorrow’s legacy. It requires archivists to think strategically, balancing preservation needs with access goals, and aligning resources with mission-driven priorities.
Many archives invest significant time and effort in creating strategic plans. These documents articulate vision, mission, and goals, providing a roadmap for the years ahead. However, too often, plans remain just that: documents on a shelf rather than living guides that shape day-to-day work. The gap between strategy and execution is where many archives falter.
Institutions like universities and governments have traditionally controlled archives, deciding which histories to preserve. This model can sideline the voices of the communities whose stories are being recorded. In recent decades, participatory archiving has emerged, an approach that acknowledges people as active partners in shaping their own history.
With limited resources, increasing demand, and rapid technological change, archives cannot afford to work in isolation. Building partnerships has become a strategic necessity. Collaboration expands the reach of archives, providing access to expertise, technology, and funding that may be beyond the reach of any single institution.
Archivists often find themselves explaining the value of their work to administrators, funders, and the public. Stories about unique discoveries or heartwarming encounters with collections have their place, but when it comes to advocacy and decision-making, data provides a stronger foundation. Numbers create credibility, offering concrete evidence of outcomes rather than subjective impressions.
Archivists build archives to endure. Unlike many other institutional functions, their mission spans generations.
Society is increasingly treating cultural heritage as a commodity. Archives face broader economic forces that reduce cultural materials to objects for consumption and exploitation. This commodification risks reframing archives as curiosities with market value rather than repositories of cultural heritage that serve the public good. Institutions once preserved records to document the past, but market forces might now recast them as investments.
Archives often find themselves competing for limited resources within larger institutions. Universities prioritize teaching and research, nonprofits focus on programs and services, and corporations channel funds toward revenue-generating initiatives.
With shrinking resources and increasing demands, archivists cannot afford to view budgeting as an afterthought. A carefully developed budget is a strategic tool that connects an archives’ mission to its daily operations. It demonstrates accountability, supports advocacy efforts, and provides a framework for decision-making.
Archives often operate in environments defined by scarcity of space, staff, time, and funding. In these conditions, every decision carries weight. Without a plan, archives risk spreading their resources too thin, responding only to immediate crises, and missing opportunities for growth and impact. Strategic planning serves as a lifeline, providing archivists with a structured approach to prioritize, allocate resources, and communicate the value of their work to stakeholders.
Archivists have long recognized patterns of limited funding that shape their institutions, yet they have consistently responded with creativity, commitment, and innovation. Even when resources are scarce, archives continue to find ways to build and maintain essential infrastructure and strengthen public engagement. Each challenge underscores the importance of archivists’ labor and provides an opportunity to advocate for the central role archives play in their communities.
Archives safeguard treasures, including objects like the founding documents of a nation and photographs of defining cultural moments. These holdings inspire a sense of connection to the past, and at the heart of that work are archivists whose expertise brings these collections to life.
No archives is an island. Especially in resource-constrained environments, collaboration through shared infrastructure provides a lifeline. Consortia models turn scarcity into opportunity by spreading costs and expertise across multiple archives. By pooling resources, institutions achieve more than they could alone.
Well-resourced institutions have developed archival best practices, including comprehensive finding aids, climate-controlled storage, and digital preservation systems. For small or resource-constrained archives, these standards can feel out of reach. The danger is that the profession’s ideals may discourage institutions from taking action, leaving records vulnerable. The solution lies in paring down practices and procedures without abandoning principles.
Many archives exist within environments of chronic underfunding. Community archives, small historical societies, or lone arrangers may work with little more than donated materials, a handful of volunteers, and minimal budgets.
However, these institutions remain vital, safeguarding the histories of communities often absent from mainstream narratives. Scarcity shapes their reality, yet it can still allow meaningful work.
Humanity produces more digital content than at any other point in history. Every click, message, and post contributes to an expanding universe of data that represents the cultural memory of our time. At the center of this transformation stand archivists, the professionals uniquely trained to ensure that memories survive in the future. However, even as the scale of the challenge grows, their voices risk being sidelined in public conversations about digital preservation.
In recent years, the concept of “slow librarianship” has emerged as a thoughtful response to the accelerating pace and pressures placed upon library professionals. Drawing inspiration from the broader slow movement, it emphasizes care, reflection, ethics, and people-centered work over speed and efficiency.
The archival profession is characterized by dedication to public memory, cultural preservation, and service. However, beneath this noble mission lies a troubling reality: the increasing reliance on gig and contract labor.
Written documents have long occupied a privileged position in archives as the most authoritative memory source. However, this excludes vast repositories of knowledge that reside outside the written word, especially within Indigenous communities, where memory is often preserved and transmitted through oral traditions, performance, storytelling, ceremony, and embodied practices.
Archival description is often treated as a neutral or technical task: summarizing contents, assigning subject headings, and organizing metadata for retrieval. However, description is actually far from neutral. It shapes how users interpret records, which narratives are centered, and whose voices are made visible or erased.
As the archival profession reckons with the legacies of colonialism, more institutions and practitioners are turning toward Indigenous and decolonial approaches that reframe traditional archival practice. Central to this shift is recognizing cultural protocols and community-defined rules governing how knowledge is created, shared, accessed, and preserved. Cultural protocols are foundational to ethical, respectful, and reciprocal relationships between archives and Indigenous communities.
In recent decades, Indigenous communities and archivists have challenged the dominant frameworks that have long shaped archival practice. Traditionally, Western archival models have prioritized state authority, institutional control, and the presumption of neutrality. These models often fail to reflect Indigenous worldviews, community needs, or the rights of Indigenous peoples over their records and heritage.
As archival practice shifts to meet the challenges of the digital age, the ethical use of born-digital materials has become one of the most pressing concerns for archivists. These materials—emails, websites, text messages, digital photographs, spreadsheets, social media posts, and more—are created and stored digitally from their inception.
The fundamental principles of archival preservation focus on the agents of deterioration, preventive conservation, and essential preservation strategies applied in archival settings.
The monetary appraisal of archives and manuscripts is a critical yet underexplored intersection of library science and financial valuation. This article addresses the persistent knowledge gap between archival assessment and fiscal valuation and provides an overview of the monetary appraisal process in the United States. It focuses on concluding the fair market value (FMV) of noncash charitable contributions, a process governed by Internal Revenue Service (IRS) regulations and the Uniform Standards of Professional Appraisal Practice (USPAP). By documenting practices and terminology, the article serves as a resource for archivists navigating the complexities of donor relations and institutional stewardship. It advocates for increased fiscal literacy within the archival profession, suggesting that an integrated understanding of market dynamics and stewardship costs is essential for the care and financial substantiation of collections.
Proper archival storage is one of the most critical aspects of archival preservation. In addition to housing collections in a dedicated archival storage room, using suitable storage materials and enclosures helps protect archival collections from environmental damage, physical wear, and chemical deterioration.
One of the core challenges archivists face is determining the appropriate description level for materials in their collections. From broad collection-level overviews to granular item-level details, descriptive hierarchies play a crucial role in conveying the context and structure of archival materials.
Description is a cornerstone of archival practice, providing the means for users and archivists to understand, access, and interpret materials.
Mixed-media archives, which contain physical and digital records, present unique challenges for archival arrangement. These collections require archivists to develop strategies that address the different needs of physical and digital materials while maintaining the collection’s coherence and accessibility.
Archives have long been known for their reliance on meticulous, manual work. From processing paper collections to creating detailed finding aids, the work has historically required significant labor and time. While accuracy remains critical, the sheer volume of collections and the rising expectations of users have made traditional methods increasingly unsustainable. This opportunity is where automation becomes transformative.