Preservation as access: Digital preservation evaluation and the pre-ingest workflow at Library and Archives Canada
Abstract
Digital preservation evaluation is central to Library and Archives Canada’s (LAC) strategic objective of enabling greater access to its collections. While all of LAC’s digital processing and preservation functions support and enable access, pre-ingest, a preservation evaluation workflow that entails the staging and review of transferred digital records — allows LAC to proactively identify preservation issues and is central to navigating and mitigating downstream access difficulties. This paper situates pre-ingest within the policy context of LAC and the Government of Canada, describes the main tasks of the pre-ingest workflow, and discusses how and why these activities are important for both long-term preservation and access. Specifically, it details the main tasks of pre-ingest analysis and triage, as well as the adoption of LAC’s Local Digital Format Registry tool, which automates the application of LAC’s policy registry on file formats to potential acquisitions. This article is also included in The Business & Management Collection which can be accessed at https://hstalks.com/business/
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Author's Biography
Emily Monks-Leeson is a digital archivist at Library and Archives Canada, where she performs pre-ingest preservation evaluation, delivers advice and guidance for digital transfers and processing, and leads strategic research projects to support digital preservation capacity-building. She is a member of the Digital Preservation Coalition Workforce Development Subcommittee and the Archives Association of Ontario’s Digital Access and Preservation Committee. She holds a master of information studies (archives) from the University of Toronto and a master of arts (English literature) from McGill University.
Heather Tompkins is Senior Project Officer at Library and Archives Canada (LAC). For 17 years, she has been working on the digital preservation of archival records, including on the establishment of LAC’s pre-ingest workflow and its continuing development. She also provides strategic advice and guidance on the transfer and processing of digital records and develops digital preservation policies. Heather has been a member of the Digital Preservation Coalitions’ Good Practice Subcommittee and a judge in the 2024 Digital Preservation Awards.
