Important information from Library and Archives Canada regarding Acquisitions

MESSAGE TO STAKEHOLDERS – ACQUISITIONS

In May 2009, Library and Archives Canada (LAC) wrote to inform you of a short-term moratorium on purchased acquisitions. Then, in August 2009, we sent another message to advise you that we are in the process of reviewing our approach to the management of Canada’s documentary heritage in order to better meet the needs of today’s society and to remain relevant, trusted, and valued by the Canadian public.

As you know, the information environment has been profoundly transformed with new forms of digital information that challenge all memory institutions to adapt what and how they collect. Due to the overwhelming digital production and the use of social technologies by organizations and individuals, new expectations among users have arisen. That said, LAC must ensure that the documentary heritage the institution acquires and preserves today, whether it is rare books, electronic publications or other essential materials, truly contributes in providing the most accurate picture of Canadian life and that its content is of value to Canadian society in the future.

Therefore, over the past few months, we have been developing a Documentary Heritage Management Framework (DHMF) based on three pillars of documentary heritage: acquisition, preservation and resource discovery. The DHMF will be based on four guiding principles designed to assess the value of acquisitions: Significance, Sufficiency, Sustainability, and Society and on key roles: foundation building, collaboration, program, and transfer.

A preliminary Acquisition Orientation Instrument was developed, to guide our decision making by using standardized criteria and understandings. The purpose of this instrument is to institute a systematic approach to the professional justification of the acquisitions of documentary heritage. At the same time, the intent is to be open to new approaches with other memory institutions. The feedback we have received to date from our stakeholders were factored into the Acquisition Orientation Instrument.

We invite you to consult the Documentary Heritage Management Framework and the Acquisitions Orientation discussion documents at www.collectionscanada.gc.ca and encourage you to provide feedback and comments. Stakeholder consultations are being prepared and your input is needed to further develop this acquisitions approach. Also, please consider either making a link to our website or posting the contents of our discussion documents on your website.

As part of the ongoing exercise of considering new approaches to the management of Canada’s documentary heritage and evaluating the way acquisitions are carried out at LAC, we implemented a short-term moratorium, which will be lifted, effective January 30, 2010. This is allowing us the time to evaluate business practices within LAC’s collections and to fine-tune and prepare the implementation of the new Framework and Orientation.

We would like to thank you for your collaboration during this phase of modernization. LAC values the relationship it has established over the years with you, our stakeholders, clients and suppliers, in providing the most accurate representation of Canadian life for the benefit of present and future generations.

For more information, or if you wish to consult with us on the discussion documents, please contact Chantal Marin-Comeau, Director of Acquisitions at chantal.marin-comeau@lac-bac.gc.ca or 819-997-7003, or with me at doug.rimmer@lac-bac.gc.ca or 819-934-5790.

Doug Rimmer
Assistant Deputy Minister
Documentary Heritage Collection Sector
Library and Archives Canada