Western Archivists Meeting 2020 (Cancelled due to COVID-19)

Archives serve as a backstop against the loss of institutional memory. Nonetheless, most archival units depend upon a certain level of institutional memory to run smoothly. In an era where the profession has experienced labor challenges related to turnover and tight budgets, the threat presented by the loss of institutional memory grows more prescient. This panel will consist of three brief presentations and is comprised of archivists from institutions dealing with the loss of knowledge and data due to staff turnover, death, and server crashes. Each speaker will address how each is helping to build a more sustainable archives by speaking to issues related to staffing, documentation, technology, and collections management. Panelists range in terms of experience, age, and institution.