Roberto Santos, archives manager at the Humanities Council, photographs a document from World War II to preserve in the council’s digital archives.
PART of Executive Director Leo Pangelinan’s legacy and vision, the Northern Marianas Humanities Council has officially announced its Digital Archive in celebration of Humanities Month in the CNMI.
The website at archives.nmhcouncil.org allows access to tens of thousands of various types of records the council has accumulated through all the research, programming, events and publications that are part of its mission to navigate the human experience of the diverse and indigenous peoples of the Marianas. Archive content is organized into collections according to their origin which may include military archives, the National Archive, the Micronesian Area Research Center, the CNMI Archives, or any number of private contributions, such as the collections of archaeologist Alexander Spoehr or retired Peace Corps volunteer Kit Porter Van Meter.
The council’s Archives & Records Team continues to research and confirm any data missing from records, as many records were acquired without accompanying information. But archive visitors are encouraged to become registered users for free, which will enable them to share any information they can confirm about each record. Another advantage of becoming a registered user is the ability to upload your own digitized content.
Several private collections have already been inaugurated by images and artifacts commemorating historic moments in Marianas history including the Pangelinan Obo Collection, the Påndan Collection, and the Pride Marianas Collection. The public is invited to participate in the ART’s Digital Preservation Labs to be held on Saipan, Luta and Tinian where tools and technology are provided to digitize content to be uploaded into the Digital Archive.
The first Digital Preservation Lab will be held at the council office in Springs Plaza on Saturday, Oct. 19 from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Interested participants should call (670) 235-4788 or email info@nmh cou nc il.org for a 30-minute appointment and prepare several items they wish to create digital records of to be available on the Digital Archive.
More information and demonstrations of the Digital Archive are available on the council’s YouTube channel, social media and web page, nmhcouncil.org/.