Closing the year with links to 3 articles, each covering an issue which could be seen as pointing to emerging trends in heritage preservation and conservation.

from CBC
U.S. artifacts at risk because of poor storage
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The recent Heritage Health Index Report on the state of storage of heritage collections in the United States may be a depressive read, but the underlying forces resulting in such a state of affairs began much earlier, when pressure to reign in costs in museums often resulted in support functions being sidelined. In moving forward, there must be renewed recognition (and funding) for the essential long-term nature of the care of tangible heritage artefacts - building both (in-house) professional expertise and infra-structure for processes and physical spaces.

from New York Times
If Cambodia Can Learn to Sing Again
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With intangible heritage, the picture seems rosier, with increasing levels of awareness and number of initiatives in documenting, recording and making available various reference resources of intangible traditional heritage, which might otherwise be lost due to a break in transmission. Disruptive acts of war or political apathy, notwithstanding.

from BBC news
Classic poets' voices go online
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Advances in digital technologies have made the realisation of a separate category of heritage materials inevitable. Digital collections, which often incorporate references to either tangible or intangible heritage, are increasingly seen as the next frontier in heritage preservation. Although not likely to supersede tangible or intangible forms of heritage materials, digital collections will nevertheless fulfill the role of enhancing the long-term effort in preserving the memory of human civilisations across the world.

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Wishing one and all a Happy and Peaceful New Year!

from The Art Newspaper
Nazi photo archive goes online
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A clear case of how historical records, even those with a "negative" association, could be used for a greater good in time to come. In this case, it was the merticulous (or some would say, manic) documentation by a criminal regime that, because it was preserved, became the critical source for visual records aiding the restoration of the historic cathedral in Dresden (see previous BBC news item).