Discovering Collections, Discovering Communities

discovering collections discovering communities logo

TORCH will be discussing "Oxford Alternative Stories: Diversifying the University Voice"  at the 2017 DCDC Conference, on Tuesday 28th November 2017: 16.15-18.00. 

TORCH (The Oxford Research Centre in the Humanities) and the Pitt Rivers Museum have been working collaboratively to develop a mobile platform that allows them to ‘crowdsource’ content from the collections. We are diversifying the voices heard by including source communities, students, researchers to create content that can engage and connect the public with that research.This paper will share come of the challenges in crowdsourcing this kind of content and refections of using research content to connect and have impact on new audiences, as well as the opportunities to be a pathway to impact for research.

Speakers will include:

Victoria McGuinness, TORCH Business Manager, University of Oxford

Jess Suess, Digital Projects Manager, Oxford University Museums Partnership

Ted Koterwas, Team Lead, Web and Mobile Applications, University of Oxford

Further details of the programme can be found here.

 

About the Conference

Discovering Collections, Discovering Communities (DCDC) is the conference of collaboration between the archive, library, museum and academic sectors. Now in its fifth year, DCDC provides a platform for colleagues to come together in joint conversation, looking beyond their own specialisms to forge new partnerships and enhance the social,
cultural and economic impact of our unique collections.

The cultural value of collections and the creative economy

In today’s uncertain political and economic climate the ability to demonstrate why heritage and culture matter – and to whom - has never been more important or relevant. The ways in which we gather, measure and present evidence of cultural value and impact has attracted increasing attention in recent years, as emphasis has led to a stronger focus on the experience of individuals and of communities.

Archives, libraries, museums and heritage organisations across the UK and further afield have played a leading role in this movement. They have actively looked to examine, capture and measure the wider social, cultural and economic impact of their collections, and to engage more effectively with a wider variety of audiences. Work in this area continues to evolve, as does the need for new and better ways of evidencing value and impact through continuing research and the effective sharing of experiences within and between sectors.

DCDC17 will consider how, by working collaboratively through networks of inter and crossdisciplinary initiatives, we can continue to improve and develop methodologies in order to build a strong evidence base to demonstrate the cultural value of collections and their contribution to the creative economy.

The DCDC conference series is run in partnership between The National Archives and Research Libraries UK.

 

Public Engagement with Research

Contact name: Laura Tompkins

Contact email: Laura.Tompkins@nationalarchives.gsi.gov.uk

Audience: Open to all