Collecting Canberra: issues in collecting the documentary heritage of Canberra

At least twenty cultural institutions located in Canberra accept archives into their collections. "Collecting Canberra" involves a complex web of legislative responsibilities and institutional collecting policies which overlap and evolve. Where the archives of particular Canberra people or organisations might be found depends on when those archives became available for collection, the prevailing policies at the time, and the judgement, if not the whim, of individuals. It is not uncommon for Canberra people with "many hats" to be represented in a number of archives as a result of their multi-faceted roles and the overlapping collecting policies of institutions, but of more concern are the gaps between those collecting policies.At least twenty cultural institutions located in Canberra accept archives into their collections. ‘Collecting Canberra’ involves a complex web of legislative responsibilities and institutional collecting policies which overlap and evolve. Where the archives of particular Canberra people or organisations might be found depends on when those archives became available for collection, the prevailing policies at the time, and the judgement, if not the whim, of individuals. It is not uncommon for Canberra people with ‘many hats’ to be represented in a number of archives as a result of their multi-faceted roles and the overlapping collecting policies of institutions, but of more concern are the gaps between those collecting policies