17 March 2020
The Digital Preservation Coalition (DPC) has launched its new Australasia office. The new office in Melbourne should improve access to the Coalition’s programme of activities for members and digital preservation practitioners across the southern hemisphere and help the DPC to enable institutions at all stages of maturity in the digital preservation journey.
The DPC will also support, represent and amplify the work of an established and existing digital preservation community in Australasia, such as Australasia Preserves; complementing, celebrating and sustaining their activities and sharing them with the rest of the DPC. Having an office in Melbourne means that, following an initial planning and development period, the DPC will provide face-to-face events for its members in Australasia, as well as facilitating knowledge exchange between members in the region through briefing days, working groups and task forces.
The initiative is the result of a strategic partnership between DPC and the University of Melbourne, and the office will be staffed by Jaye Weatherburn who has been seconded to the DPC.
“We are thrilled that we have already been able to welcome two new Australasian Members since we opened the office in January. The University of Sydney and, 100th Member, the University of Adelaide join a hugely active and dynamic group of DPC Members in Australasia, and we are very excited about working with them to support a community of practice for digital preservation in the region.”
Members in the region will join the DPC’s new Stakeholder Group, formed as part of its governance structure with the opening of the Office in Melbourne. This Stakeholder Group will ensure that Members in Australia, New Zealand and surrounding areas inform the development of the DPC’s programme and have input to the broader strategic direction of the Coalition.
Any Australasian organisation which joins the DPC through the Melbourne office before 31 July 2020 may benefit from an additional 10% discount (when taking out three-year Membership).