On February 23, the first of several planned roundtables was hosted by the Department of Canadian Heritage in support of the renewal of Canada's Museum Policy. Attendees included archival colleagues representing the territorial and provincial archival associations and councils, as well as representatives from the ACA, AAQ and CCA.

During this 2-1/2 hour meeting, all participants were invited to speak to the following five themes identified by the Department in their "Discussion Guide" (please see - https://www.canada.ca/en/canadian-heritage/campaigns/renewal-museum-policy/guidelines.html

1) The role of museums in society;

2) Resilience and sustainability in the museum sector;

3) Advancing reconciliation with First Nations, Inuit, and Métis Peoples;

4) Embracing equity, diversity, and inclusion; and

5) Preservation and access as core museum functions.

Unsurprisingly, the first point of discussion raised by archival colleagues was the need to remove the word "museum" from the conversation and instead replace it with the terms "heritage" and "heritage institutions" in the interests of both inclusivity and appropriate representation.

Overall, this meeting went very well. The tone was respectful, and all were given time to express their concerns and provide their input into the identified themes. And while it appeared that the six Department representatives in attendance "heard" our concerns, we as a community have not done all we can do to ensure our input is actually incorporated into the new "Museum" policy. Far from it, in fact, our work has just begun.

*** YOUR INPUT MATTERS ***

As mentioned, the Department has outlined five distinct themes in its "Discussion Guide" (see: https://www.canada.ca/en/canadian-heritage/campaigns/renewal-museum-policy/guidelines.html ). Under each of these themes is a series of questions (see: https://www.canada.ca/en/canadian-heritage/campaigns/renewal-museum-policy/guidelines.html#a8 ) and according to their website, the Department is "interested in your views and welcome(s) detailed responses regarding the questions set out in this discussion guide."

Therefore, it is IMPERATIVE that each of us takes time to read this "Discussion Guide" and formulate and send our responses, ideas, and suggestions to the Department as soon as possible. Their email is politiquemuseale-museumpolicy@pch.gc.ca .

As archivists, archival practitioners, and record keepers, we need to state and restate en masse our shared concerns to this Department, to actively demonstrate our community's requirement for change to a policy and federal funding framework that has never fully supported our professional obligations. So, no matter what stage you are at in your career, please share your input now so together we can lobby for the policy changes we so desperately need!

 

Erica Hernández-Read, President

Association of Canadian Archivists

 

Julien Bréard, President

Association des archivistes du Québec

Yves A. Lapointe, Chair

Canadian Council of Archives