Preservation Strategy

A preservation strategy is a high-level document written on behalf of your institution or project stating your commitment to preservation. It is possible that it may sit under a wider strategy (for example a digital strategy), or form part of national strategy (for example for HE institutions) and it may be both strategic and political. It is not all-encompassing and will need to be complemented with a preservation policy.

As the Presto Project explains:

“A preservation strategy is not a full preservation plan. For the strategy, the issue is sequence and timescale. All the elements in the preservation map that need attention are put in a priority sequence – and time information is added according to how long you want the work to last, or how long the funding lasts, or how long the material itself will last.”

Note that the ‘preservation plan’ the Presto Project refer suggests the combination of a preservation strategy and a preservation policy.

Areas you may wish to consider in your strategy include:

  • Your project’s mission
  • Your project’s goal
  • The principles you will be applying
  • The sequencing of actions: immediate steps (1-2 years), mid-range steps (3-5 years) and long-range steps (beyond 5 years)
  • Risk management
  • An overview of your selection of objects for preservation and preservation approach

It is recommended that you consider your preservation strategy before embarking on your preservation policy.

Further Resources

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