Sound And Image Heritage For Global Peace And Development

Photos, films, audio and video records capture memories, creative expressions and vital scientific data. “Wherever the collections of these records exist, they are being used to create jobs, feed research and provide multidimensional narratives of our past and present,” says Dr Stefano De Caro, the Director-General of the International Centre for the Study of the Preservation and Restoration of Cultural Property (ICCROM).

ICCROM is a Rome-based intergovernmental organization with 135 Member States, including Ghana. It is the only institution of its kind with a worldwide mandate to promote the conservation of all types of cultural heritage.

The Institute of African Studies, University of Ghana has now joined forces with ICCROM to promote the conservation of sound and image heritage, highlighting its immense potential through a public symposium in Accra. Scheduled to be held at Kwabena Nketia Conference Hall (University of Ghana campus) on Friday July 21, 2017, the symposium entitled Sound and Image Heritage: for Creativity, Peace & Development features inspiring talks by educators, practitioners and policy makers. The UNESCO Ghana office and the Ghana National Commission for UNESCO are participating in the event. Further information and the full programme are available at www.ias.ugh.edu and www.iccrom.org .

The Symposium forms part of the 2017 SOIMA International Course on Sustaining Sound and Image Collections being held in Ghana, from July 9 to July 23. This international capacity-building initiative has brought together 28 professionals from 19 countries, several of which are from Ghana. Their common objective is to identify innovative solutions for sustaining and creatively using sound and image heritage in their care.

The training includes topics such as assessing values and meanings of recorded sounds and images, digital preservation, collections assessments, dealing with digitization and documentation backlogs, utilizing innovative open access solutions, managing intellectual property rights, and archiving with and for local communities.

ICCROM’s SOIMA (Sound and Image Collections Conservation) course has been held in six international editions in Brazil, India, Kenya, Latvia and Lithuania, Mexico, and Belgium. Cross-disciplinary exchange and networking is at the core of this international programme. It aims at increasing capacity of museums, archives, libraries and other cultural institutions to preserve and provide access to sound and image collections.

SOIMA has developed a robust network of 120 professionals from 56 countries that care for unique sound and image heritage in 109 diverse institutions. ICCROM organizes and coordinates meetings to identify as well as disseminate diverse approaches and methodologies for conservation of different types of cultural heritage.

ICCROM works at the international and governmental level, as well as with institutions and professionals through selected outreach activities. It engages and informs new generations of upcoming professionals and the general public with an interest in heritage.

For further information, please contact:
Aparna Tandon
Project Manager and SOIMA Course leader:
[email protected] or [email protected]