[Dialogue] Archive Report

[Sandra/Bob True]

Once again the email with attached report is waiting moderator approval.
Until then here is the report:


Global Archives Project of the Ecumenical Institute  & The Institute of
Cultural Affairs
PSU, (Possibilities, Solutions and Undertakings)
 ICA Center, Chicago, IL - June 1-3, 2009

      During the past 24 months, there has been a discernable focusing of
energy around the numerous manifestations of the movement - ICA-USA, ICAI,
The ToP Trainers Network, Springboard, and the Profound Journey Dialogue.
>From within, this new energy has raised a renewed interest in the
preservation and utilization of our collected past, usually referred to as
the archives.  Some of this interest has been born out of nostalgia which is
a very human response and therefore very understandable.  However, beyond
the desire to preserve the past, the demands of the world are calling us to
use our wisdom to help create solutions to the current needs of the planet.
This desire has given rise and impetus to the new form of the Global
Archives Project (GAP).

      The task of the GAP is to preserve and transform the collected wisdom
of the Ecumenical Institute, the Order Ecumenical, and the Institute of
Cultural Affairs in order to contribute to the ongoing sustaining of the
earth, the creation of structures of justice, and the awakening of the human
spirit.

      To further the work of the GAP, a task force, named the Archive PSU
(Possibilities, Solutions, and Undertakings (actions), was organized to plan
the next steps necessary to complete this mission.  This group consists of
colleagues, both old and new, who share a common desire to make the archives
available both to those who have common memory of the movement and to the
broader communities of the global village.  The purpose of this daunting and
complex mission is to bring forth and make available the wisdom developed
throughout the ICA movement so that it may now be refocused and made new in
order to address the needs of the 21st century.  

        The Archive PSU identified the following contradictions:
1. The sheer size of the collection: 170 file cabinets, hundreds of boxes, a
room filled with films, videos, audio tapes, photographs, and artifacts;
2. The lack of knowledge and skills of most of the task force regarding
archival work;
3. The lack of knowledge and skills regarding the transformation of the body
of the collection into forms that are readily available for broad
distribution.

      In order to begin to deal with these contradictions, the PSU decided
to initiate a pilot project.  Our thinking is that the pilot will consist of
selecting a series, the archivists' term for a discernable portion of the
collection, which we will use as a workable amount of data with which we can
experiment in order to create our model.  This demonstration project will
show how we will use the complex set of systems (cataloging, policies
formulation, transference methods, storage, and retrieval) necessary to make
the entire collection usable.

      The PSU decided to use Global Community Forums as the pilot series.
The decision to use this series is based on these factors:
      1. Data from the Global Community Forums is probably in the best
shape, organizationally speaking, of any of the discrete blocks of material.
      2. The sequence of material can be easily cataloged.  For instance,
the U.S. Town Meetings can be catalogued by states, counties, and towns.  
      3. This sequencing will allow the rapid assessment of missing
material.  
      4.  Once the "holes" are identified, requests for the missing material
can be made, thus allowing for the collecting of needed material rather than
having everyone sending all their collected material to the GAP.
      5. The present status of the GCF documents collection lends itself to
transference of written material to digital format and therefore makes it
readily available for research purposes.

      When the PSU examined the possibilities of this pilot, we became aware
of the following points:  
     1. The pilot requires funding; indicating that appeals from the ICA are
needed in the near future.
     2. We recommend scheduled PSUs during the next 24 months on the
following issues:
            a. How to advance the initiation phase of the pilot;
            b. How to preserve the collection, particularly the films,
videos, audio tapes, photographs, and artifacts; 
            c. how to apply what we learned during this initial phase to the
remainder of the project.
      3. Plans are underway to investigate a possible joint project between
ICA-USA and Oklahoma City University as a means of enhancing the development
of the Global Archives Project.  Terry Bergdall and David Scott will explore
this possibility more completely later in June.
  
Anyone who wishes can become involved in any of the following ways and
undoubtedly in other creative ways not yet imagined.  Plan now to make
yourself available to:  
1.  To participate in one or more of the PSU's mentioned above.
2.  To help fill the holes in the collection.  It is critical to understand
that "filling holes" in the collection DOES NOT mean sending your box of
academic notes, RS-I files, etc.  THE PROJECT DOES NOT HAVE THE ROOM FOR
STORAGE.  
The process through which we will fill the holes in the collection is as
follows.  As we build the system, we will become aware of missing pieces in
the collection.  When these become obvious, the project will contact YOU to
see if you can help fill these SPECIFIC holes.  If you have the missing
data, you will be asked to contribute it.  In this manner, members of the
List-serve will allow the needs of the GAP to tell us what needs to be
located and contributed to the comprehensive collection.
      The members of the PSU, the Board and staff of ICA-USA, and many
movement colleagues are excited that we have the possibility to not only
preserve the materials and artifacts of fifty-five years of movement work
and dedication. Even more importantly, we have the possibility of launching
this institutional legacy into the future for the good of the peoples of the
globe.
  
Acknowledgement
We want to acknowledge and express our deep appreciation to the ICA-USA
staff and the Keystone Ecological Urban Community for their gracious hosting
of the meeting of the PSU (Possibilities, Solutions, and Undertakings), of
the Global Archives Project. 

Participants in the initial GAP PSU
Terry Bergdall, Associate Executive Director of ICA-USA, ToP Facilitator
Beret Griffith, writer, editor, artist, ToP Mentor Trainer
Cheryl Kartes, ICA-USA Board Member, ToP Trainer
Jim Litton, Senior Aide, Research Specialist 
Marge Philbrook, Senior Aide, Research Specialist 
Evelyn Kurihara Philbrook, Vice President of Asia and Pacific ICA-I,
Certified Facilitator 
David Scott, ICA-USA Board, Professor of Religion, Flathead Valley Community
College, Kalispell, MT
Karen Sims, Director of Resource Development and External Affairs, ICA-USA
Nino Tillman, Executive Director of ICA-USA
Sandra True, Vice President and Secretary of the ICA-USA Board 


Respectfully submitted by: David Scott
 



Sandra True
icatrue at igc.org
201-209-1809
646-498-8449