Reference Redux: Fostering Successful Reference Services (Nov. 20, 2024)

Webinar description: Join us for this 2024 Archives Awareness Week webinar on archival reference services! Participants will walk through best practices to apply a sound reference services program. Topics include assessing your audience, developing reference service policies, creating a welcoming but secure reference room, and how to support researchers when accessing sensitive materials. We will be joined by Georgia Twiss, Reference Historian with the Museum of North Vancouver Archives (MONOVA) who will share how they manage access to their holdings and work with the public.

Telling Our Community Stories through Private Records (February 12, 2024)

Webinar description: Join us for this webinar where will discuss what it means to acquire, preserve, and use private records from your community. The webinar will include discussion about working with donors and setting expectations, a review of Deed of Gift forms and related policies, providing access, and strategies for building your local archives profile. We will be joined by Sonia Nicholson, Archivist from the Log Cabin Museum and Archives on the Saanich Peninsula, to talk about her role in working with donors and fostering community relationships.

The Lone Arranger: Practical Approaches to Arrangement (Nov. 16, 2023)

Webinar description: Join us for this webinar where we will walk through a key stage of processing records: archival arrangement. Participants will learn how to arrange records based on best practices and the theoretical framework of respect des fonds. But a box of archival records is not always a straightforward (!) so the webinar will introduce practical strategies for approaching records when original order and provenance is unknown. A review of processing supplies, workflow, discussion of the “more product, less processing” concept, and arrangement examples will be evaluated.

A+: Teaching with Primary Sources from the Archives (February 15, 2023)  

Webinar description: As archival practitioners, we find ourselves surrounded by records on a daily basis that contain fantastic stories, mysteries, drama and the mundane…all forming part of our collective identity and history. Sharing these records with the public is one of the reasons why we open our doors to researchers and engage in different types of outreach. Using records themselves as a teaching tool for students offers a renewed interest and focus on the work we do behind the scenes. Join us for this webinar as we discuss the “who, what, where, when, why, how” of teaching with primary sources. We will also hear from Emily Lonie who will share her experiences with using the archives to teach while working at the City of Coquitlam Archives.

Creating Archival Exhibits (Oct 25, 2022)

Webinar description: Join the AABC to learn about creating effective and engaging exhibits using treasures from your archival holdings! In this webinar we will discuss the steps for designing an exhibit, consider the use of displaying reproductions vs original records, and review best practices for mounting and providing a secure environment for textual records and photographs. Participants will also hear from Krisztina Laszlo who will share her experience preparing the exhibit “Past Purrrrfect: Cats in the Collection” for Rare Books and Special Collections, UBC Library.

Archives 101 for Summer Students! (June 28, 2022)

Webinar description: Are you starting your summer contract working with archival records but not sure what to do? This 3.0 hour webinar will introduce participants to archival terminology, accessioning, and appraisal. Building upon these themes, participants will learn strategies for organizing legacy collections. We will also talk about best practices and standards for processing records in different formats (textual records, photographic images, audio visual media, and electronic records) and how to create a stable and secure environment to promote the long-term preservation, access, and use of archival records.

Disaster Response: Prep and Priorities

(Jan 26, 2022)

Webinar description: Preparing for a potential disaster can seem daunting and stressful, but it is even more challenging if you don't have a plan in place when a disaster actually impacts your archives. Join us for this webinar where you will learn how to identify risks to your holdings and proactive strategies on how to create safer conditions before a disaster happens. We will also talk about the importance of identifying vital records within your organization and key priorities when developing your institutional disaster response plan. 

Digitization and Small Archives: Case Studies and Best Practices (Dec 7, 2021)

Webinar description: Do the words “digitization and archives” in the same sentence scare you? Join us for this webinar where we will review best practices when undertaking a digitization project. Hear from speakers who will present digitization case studies on working with VHS recordings and maps with highlights of their challenges and successes. We will also learn about  the Indigitization project and the range of digitization resources that are available along with community protocols and access points that should be considered when working with and digitizing Indigenous records.

Genealogy Research Tips & Resources 

(June 28, 2021)

Webinar description: Join the AABC and our panel of speakers to talk about genealogy research and resource tips! Speakers from the City of Surrey Archives, Vancouver Public Library, and Library and Archives Canada (Vancouver office) will share some of their experiences and strategies when working with researchers, popular collections for genealogy research, and tips for using LAC resources both in person and online. This webinar will support the work of archivists, historical researchers, and librarians providing assistance to the public but also for staff research. 

Privacy 101: Managing Personal Information in Collections (July 29, 2020)

Webinar description: Join the AABC & BCMA for this cross-themed webinar. Cultural heritage professionals have a mandate to protect records and information, while promoting their accessibility and use. Although these two mandates seem contradictory, there are ways forward that balance privacy and access. This webinar will present an approach to managing personal information in cultural heritage collections. It will present an overview of basic privacy principles, outline factors to consider when releasing information, and describe tools that can be used to ensure personal information is released in compliance with legal and ethical considerations. 

Setting Up Your Archives (July 8, 2020)

Webinar description: Join the AABC & BCMA for this cross-themed webinar presented for non-Archivists including Curators, Librarians, Records Managers and Volunteers who have been tasked to set up an Archives but don’t know where to start! This webinar will present an overview of archival principles and policy development;  archival supplies that you’ll need; dealing with your backlog; storage conditions and access considerations. 

ABC's of Archival Appraisal & Deaccessioning (June 15, 2020)

Webinar description: Join the AABC for a webinar on best practices for appraising archival records and the steps to deaccession records that do not meet your mandate. This webinar will also include an overview of the National Archival Appraisal Board (NAAB) program and the services they offer.