Emergency Preparedness, Response, & Salvage Workshop

This in-person workshop will introduce key concepts of disaster recovery including risk assessment, preparedness, response procedures, and recovery actions. Participants will leave having talked through two disaster scenarios with their peers and having practiced wet salvage techniques. In-person training with a preservation expert is a kinetic learning experience that offers a powerful supplement to annually updating and reviewing an institution’s disaster plan. Participants will leave the training with an understanding of how a disaster would physically impact their collections and how they can be “first responders” for collections salvage.

Participants will:

• Receive training in risk assessment and mitigation, emergency preparedness and response, and related emergency planning topics;

• Build relationships with nearby institutions to facilitate collaboration, e.g. on policy building and supply purchases;  

• Walk through an instructor-facilitated scenario (table-top exercise) to simulate the experience of responding to a disaster;  

• Acquire hands-on experience with salvage techniques for formats commonly found in cultural collections, including books, documents, photographs, textiles, objects, and audiovisual materials; and  

• Gain an understanding of how disasters can physically impact their collections and how they can be “first responders” for collections salvage.

Who Should Attend

These workshops are open to individuals associated with cultural heritage organizations, such as libraries, archives, museums, and historical societies; government departments and personnel, including town clerks; and offices involved with emergency management and public safety.  

NOTE: Participants are on their own for a 1-hour lunch break. A cafe is located onsite next to the conference room.