Nominations open for Heritage Trust Contest

As part of the EMC Information Preservation Initiative to advance the conservation of the world’s information heritage, EMC has announced that nominations for the 2016 EMC Heritage Trust Project are being accepted, effective immediately through 20 May 2016.
Grants of up to $15 000 will be awarded to projects from around the world that practice and encourage the digital stewardship of cultural information.
“As the world enters a new digital era, it becomes more important – and more possible – than ever to preserve, protect and make the world’s information heritage available for future generations,” says Jessica Anderson, senior director: community involvement at EMC.
“Since 2007, EMC has donated more than $42 million toward the conservation of the world’s cultural information through the Information Preservation Initiative, including programs like Heritage Trust Project. We look forward to reviewing this year’s nominations.”
As an important pillar of the Information Preservation Initiative, more than 45 Heritage Trust Projects have been funded since 2007. Grants are awarded based on the number of individuals that would benefit from access to the information that would be protected; the ‘at-risk’ status of the information that is driving the urgency for preservation; and how beneficial the grant would be to the overall success of the project.
Heritage Trust 2015 recipients included the History of Latin America High Education Administered through Spanish Royal Decrees (Colombia), the Digitization of the Radar Collection (Canada), and the Ulahingan Chronicles Digitization (Philippines).
The Secrets of Radar Museum digitised the history of thousands of Canadian men and women who served in radar during World War II. “For fifty years the histories and experiences of the men and women in Canada’s WWII radar program were covered by the Official Secrets Act, which expired in 1991. Now, as a result of the EMC Heritage Trust grant, these stories of mechanics, operators, teachers, trainers, physicists and researchers are becoming accessible. They serve as a reminder of the role these people played in the outcome of WWII – and the technological and scientific trajectory of the 20th century,” said Maya Hirschman, Curator and Manager at the Secrets of Radar Museum.
The Filipinas Heritage Library was awarded a Heritage Trust Grant to digitally preserve and convert an epic poem of the Manobo indigenous group of Mindanao, Philippines, according to Simon V. De Leon, Senior Associate, at the Filipinas Heritage Library, 6F Ayala Museum. “The Ulahingan Chronicles is an oral tradition that has been passed between generations involving several days of continuous chanting. By digitizing an estimated 1 200 audio reels, tapes and other materials into playable digital sound files, we can ensure this treasure is available for future generations,” says De Leon.