The next edition of the European Conference on Archiving has been transformed into the “8th European Conference on Digital Archiving”. Following the invitation of its Scientific Committee, a group of young archivists have already looked into the development of an attractive programme for this important meeting of the archival community which will take place in Geneva in 2010.

The 8th European Archives Conference will take place in Geneva from 28 - 30 April, 2010. Designed to define the current and future challenges of the profession, the conference is being organised by the European Regional Branch (EURBICA) and the Section on Professional Associations (SPA) of the International Council on Archives (ICA) as well as by the Swiss Federal Archives. The International Scientific Committee, responsible for the programme of the conference, decided to choose digital archiving as the general theme for this 8th edition. They wished to innovate by focusing on the function of archives – the archiving – and no longer on the institution. The conference programme will therefore be structured around the challenges and opportunities represented by digital archiving today.

As part of an effort to increase the active involvement of young professionals in the ICA’s activities, the Scientific Committee decided to involve them in the development of the conference programme. To this end, the Swiss Federal Archives organised a pre-conference aimed at giving a voice to fifteen handpicked young professionals. Originating from nine European countries, these young people met for a brainstorming session in Bern on 4 and 5 September 2008.

The conference organisers feel it is important to address the new generation of archivists to benefit from their creative potential and their ability to look at the subject from a new angle. These young people have grown up in a «digital environment» and have a clear awareness of its impact on their profession. During the session’s two days of intensive reflection, their assignment was to lay the foundations of an attractive and innovative conference programme.

The participants of the pre-conference were first invited to identify the challenges and opportunities represented by digital archiving. Their contributions to the subject were certainly very varied but they generally came to a consensus so that the main topics of interest for the conference could be defined.

The young professionals then put forward concrete suggestions concerning the structure of the conference, the organisation of its sessions and its potential players. They voted for a conference which would emphasize the communication of concrete experiences rather than speeches from the chair. A range of workshops, presentations, experience sharing and interactive discussions should allow the participants to explore the resources and solutions which have already been tested in Europe.

The young professionals’ main message is this: we are all aware of the problems and challenges to be taken up in the field of digital archiving. However we shouldn’t content ourselves with just evoking the problems or the theories on the subject. Let’s rather discuss solutions. Those which already exist, those which are currently being implemented and those which still have to be developed. Let’s stop wallowing in complaints and let’s roll up our sleeves and get down to work!

The Scientific Committee has taken note of these lively discussions and will now work on developing a conference programme to reflect their rich content. Both the subjects addressed and the variety of speeches promise a conference with high added value in terms of training, interaction and exploration.

If the preceding lines have caught your interest, and if you wish to contribute to the next major meeting of the archival community in Europe, don’t miss the call for contributions which we are launching on 1 May, 2009. You will find all further information on the conference website: http://www.bar.admin.ch/eca2010.

We already look forward to your contributions and to your participation at the conference!

Andreas Heller

Contact: Email: andreas.heller(AT)bar.admin.ch