ARA Environmental Sustainability Group Case Studies

The ARA Environmental Sustainability Group launched on Earth Day 2022. The purpose of this group is to advocate for environmental sustainability in the record-keeping sector and to provide the tools and resources to help members enact this professional duty to the environment. A duty that is outlined in the ARA code of ethics, ‘Insofar as it is within their power to do so, members [of the ARA] should minimise the adverse effects of their work on the environment’. You can find out more about the group here.

The group are collecting case studies to help inform the sector on a number of topics: Built environment, Collecting environmental records,  Strategic management,  Knowledge sharing and Digital Preservation.

If you would be interested in providing a case study, please contact the group via ARAEnvironment@archives.org.uk

Case studies on Built environment and passive storage

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The Story at Mount Oswald, Durham - Built environment & passive storage
The Story at Mount Oswald, Durham - Built environment & passive storage

Mount Oswald Manor House, a Grade II listed building, has been converted into The Story, a facility designed to showcase the history of the county and its people. In the construction of the service, The Story implemented low carbon measures on the one hand, and a passive ethos to the construction of the archive storage repositories on the other.

Conwy Archive Service - Built Environment and passive storage
Conwy Archive Service - Built Environment and passive storage

In 2015, Conwy Archive Service (CAS) began the process of securing funding for a new archive building. At the time, the service was housed in a draughty Victorian school building in Llandudno with a leaking roof, which posed a threat to the archive collections and offered no space for new additions. A move had become critical

Bangor University Archives: Passive storage - the built environment
Bangor University Archives: Passive storage - the built environment

Several passive storage improvements have been made to the strongroom at Bangor University Archives, which have resulted in a safer and more stable environment.

Case studies on Collecting Environment records

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Explore York Libraries and Archives
Explore York Libraries and Archives

York is a city used to dealing with floods, but climate change has increased the severity of these events.

Case studies on Digital Preservation

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The Box, Plymouth - Digital Preservation
The Box, Plymouth - Digital Preservation

Two projects from The Box, Plymouth

Case studies on Strategic Management

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London Metropolitan Archives - Strategic Management
London Metropolitan Archives - Strategic Management

Creating a bespoke Sustainability Policy for London Metropolitan Archives.

Case studies on Knowledge Sharing

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BREAKING THE CLIMATE SILENCE: Climate Outreach at Shropshire Archives
BREAKING THE CLIMATE SILENCE: Climate Outreach at Shropshire Archives
Resources for Environmental Advocacy, Outreach and Sustainability
Resources for Environmental Advocacy, Outreach and Sustainability

A selection of useful resources for exploring the role of the archive sector in responding to the climate and ecological emergency, both in terms of mitigation and resilience. Very few are archive specific, as yet, but the list includes resources which can most readily be applied to the sector.

Memories of Mr Seel’s Garden, Partnership research project - Knowledge sharing & research projects
Memories of Mr Seel’s Garden, Partnership research project - Knowledge sharing & research projects

Two research projects by CLANDAGE (Building Climate Resilience through Communities, Landscapes and Cultural Heritage)

Get in Touch

If you would like to know more about this group, please contact us at ARAenvironment@archives.org.uk You can also follow us on Twitter @ARAEnvironment