For the Record(ed): Frameworks for Human-Centred Archival Practice

In the Western archival tradition, government archivists have historically prioritized the needs and interests of record creators (i.e. government agencies) and academic historians, with significantly less attention given to the needs and interests of those documented in the historical record. In recent decades, however, archivists have begun to explore critical frameworks for a more human-centred archival practice: rather than merely aspiring to serve the record itself, archivists are aiming to also serve the recorded—for example, by providing more resources for people to access records that have been collected about them. In this talk, Michael Carelse will draw on recent archival scholarship and personal experience working at UBC’s Indian Residential School History and Dialogue Centre to discuss three of these critical frameworks—reconciliation, cultural humility and trauma-informed practice—and how they can lead to more human-centred archival systems.

Michael Carelse is a second-year dual master’s student in Archival Studies and Library and Information Studies at UBC’s School of Information. His current work and studies focus on socially responsible and reparative information practice. Since 2022, he has worked as a Collections Assistant at UBC’s Indian Residential School History and Dialogue Centre, where he supports the Centre’s mandate to help Residential School Survivors and their families access their records in a safe, respectful, and trauma-informed way.