Thank you for joining us in New Orleans, November 7th-9th, 2023 for Architecting Sustainable Futures at Five (ASF@5) to highlight our successes over the last five years and plan for the future of community-based archives and independent cultural memory organizations that are committed to documenting and celebrating the lived experiences of marginalized and oppressed people. Whether you are new to our network or an old friend, we are excited to be in community with you next month. 

When we hosted the first ASF meeting in 2018, Shift Collective and all of the attendees were committed to seeing real change in the funding landscape for these organizations that could help put them on a more sustainable path. And there have certainly been some changes since we last met. Funding to community-based archives and independent cultural memory organizations has grown in the last five years. Funders have made significant changes in their funding models to be more inclusive of these organizations as well, including the Mellon Foundation developing a program that for the first time included a call for proposals and that allowed for funding of operations at community-based archives. And funders like Council on Library and Information Resources, the National Endowment of Humanities, and the Institute for Museum and Library Services have all tried to find ways to be more inclusive of these organizations through new funding programs, changes in application processes, and more intentional engagement. Community-based archives have also continued to grow during the last five years thanks in part to these increased funding opportunities, but more importantly through support from their local communities and the hard work of their founders, staff, and volunteers. 

We look forward to continuing the good work in New Orleans!

 

Brief Schedule Outline [a more detailed program will be shared later] 

  • Wednesday November 8th, 6:30pm-11pm: dinner\events at The Blue Nile