The Dodds Prize recognizes superior research and writing on an archival topic by a student enrolled in a master's level archival studies program at a Canadian university.

To be considered, a faculty member or instructor associated with the program must submit a student paper and verify that it was written within the context of an archival studies program between May 1, 2024 and April 30, 2025. Submissions must be received by June 30, 2025. Papers must be between 5,000 and 8,000 words and written on an archival topic (broadly understood). The submission form and procedures are available here<https://archivists.ca/EmailTracker/LinkTracker.ashx?linkAndRecipientCode=%2fhoyfRD%2bZlXn0yQcnj30IBtrw%2f845Mrz3kB1LiHtm002bXNwzVnDGA6DWpDaoTxlJjtUVHNMmHf09neghno8QQI77mnP8TMEzoOhHVyWUgU%3d>.

Submissions will be judged by the Dodds Prize Adjudication Committee on the quality of their scholarship, creativity, and clarity of writing. The Adjudication Committee comprises the General Editor of Archivaria (or delegate), the ACA Board Liaison to Archivaria (or delegate), and two additional ACA members chosen annually by the General Editor. Delegates will be used in cases where a conflict of interest exists.

Winners will receive a certificate, a cash prize, publication of the winning entry in Archivaria, and a listing on the ACA website.

For more information, click here<https://archivists.ca/EmailTracker/LinkTracker.ashx?linkAndRecipientCode=%2f5hALxkcMbed82yUbnXcaGYxkMZ1EUI2i0sv74yOQ%2bi4vwaFItV750RvNL6Yjwc8I2scjDcA7n3dUsC7Xh15IYwxI6wQTIIMpBTBkyUhYUc%3d%3e> or contact Rebecka Sheffield at managing.editor at archivists.ca<https://mailman.srv.ualberta.ca/mailman/listinfo/arcan-l> with any questions.

Rebecka Sheffield

Managing Editor, Archivaria

The Association of Canadian Archivists (ACA) stands with our colleagues working in archives, libraries, museums, and cultural institutions across the United States of America who are experiencing attacks on their professions by the current administration. We echo the concerns raised by the Society of American Archivists (SAA), the Association of Tribal Archives, Libraries and Museums (ATALM), the American Library Association (ALA) and other related organizations about:

• The widespread firing of archivists and cultural heritage workers across the United States, including the removal of the 11^th Archivist of the United States (AOTUS);
• The large-scale destruction of government documents, including classified records, risking non-compliance with the Federal Records Act, which governs records from executive branch agencies;
• The extensive security breaches due to allowing non-government staff access to sensitive personal information;
• The massive funding cuts to the Institute of Museum and Library Services, and the National Endowment for the Humanities, who fund museums, libraries and Indigenous cultural institutions.

The actions of the current administration jeopardize the accountability, authenticity, integrity, and transparency of decision-making by the federal government and its mandate to safeguard the records of the nation for the people of the United States. We will continue to support our colleagues working in archives, libraries, museums and cultural institutions, and support the mission and work done by the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA). Your Canadian colleagues are standing with you.

For more information, please see:

• SAA Response to AOTUS Removal Urges Advocacy
• SAA Condemns Widespread Firing of Archivists and Cultural Heritage Workers
• SAA Statement on Media Reports Concerning Records Destruction
• Responding to the Loss of Federal Funding to Indigenous Cultural Institutions
• ALA Statement of the White House Assault on the Institute of Museum and Library Services

See our advocacy page: https://archivists.ca/Advocacy

Just a reminder that the room blocks that the ACA negotiated with some downtown Ottawa Hotels have closing dates, and that some will expire next week, and the week afterwards.

Please don't forget to reserve you hotel rooms soon, if you wish to take advantage of these rates.

Thank you

https://archivists.ca/Ottawa-Accommodations

Attend Free SAA Webinar: Raising Your Voice for Archives

On April 21 at 2:00 p.m. CT, SAA is hosting a webinar to discuss how best to practically and effectively address advocacy issues surrounding archives. This free webinar will provide just-in-time training to assist archivists who want to speak up on issues as they emerge. Register here.

English

The Department of Canadian Heritage is once again conducting the Government of Canada Survey of Heritage Institutions. The previous survey, launched in 2021, enquired about the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on Canada’s Heritage Sector.

Canadian Heritage sent out the survey on the week of March 3^rd via email, and the cut-off date to respond is March 21^st. If you haven’t already responded, please check your email for your personalized survey link!

For more information about the survey, please email the Department of Canadian Heritage at PCH.infoegcep-gcshiinfo.PCH@canada.ca

 

French

Le ministère du Patrimoine canadien mène à nouveau l'Enquête du gouvernement du Canada sur les établissements du patrimoine. L'enquête précédente, lancée en 2021, portait sur les répercussions de la pandémie de COVID-19 sur le secteur du patrimoine canadien.

Patrimoine canadien a envoyé l'enquête par courriel dans la semaine du 3 mars, et la date limite pour répondre est le 21 mars. Si vous n'avez pas encore répondu, veuillez vérifier votre courriel pour obtenir votre lien d'enquête personnalisé !

Pour plus d'informations sur l’Enquête, veuillez communiquer avec le ministère du Patrimoine canadien, par courriel à l’adresse  PCH.infoegcep-gcshiinfo.PCH@canada.ca

On behalf of the 2025 Library Research Forum Committee,   

Tomasz Neugebauer, Kate Ripley, Pat Riva, Ellen Wright (Chair)  

lib-forum@concordia.ca  

 
******************************************************************  

 

You are cordially invited to register to attend Concordia University's 23rd annual Library Research Forum. Registration is free and all are welcome. 
 
This year’s Research Forum will be a one day in-person event, at Concordia University’s Loyola Campus on Friday, April 25, 2025. 
 
The annual Research Forum provides an opportunity for librarians, archivists, graduate students, teaching faculty, and information professionals to describe and promote their completed or in-progress research, or practical case studies. The Forum also provides a venue for researchers to seek suggestions for enhancing their research interests, to identify potential new partners for projects, to test the effectiveness of their undertakings, and to promote research in academic libraries.  

This year’s Keynote speaker will be Sophie Montreuil – Executive Director of Acfas. 
 
The Forum is free to attend, but registration is required for planning purposes. 

Deadline for registration is April 11, 2025.  
 
To register and for more details about the event, including a full schedule, please visit https://library.concordia.ca/about/staff/forum/ 

Questions? Please contact the Forum Committee at lib-forum@concordia.ca   

Letter sent to Ministers Anandasangaree and Hadju:

On behalf of the Association of Canadian Archivists (ACA) and the Association des Archivistes du Québec (AAQ), we are writing to express our concerns about the reports of cuts in funding to support the investigation into missing children and unmarked burials associated with Indian Residential Schools across Canada.

Letters.

The Workshop Accessibility Strategies for a more inclusive Canadian Archive has sold out.

If some places become free closer to the date, anyone on the waiting list will be contacted.

You are cordially invited to a free online lecture (27 February 2025 at 12 p.m. EST): “Usurpers of the Delphic Name: Dolphin Imposters in the Long Eighteenth Century.” 

Join Dr. David Hou for an exploration of eighteenth-century conceptions of the dolphin. Dolphins are deeply embedded in classical mythologies, appearing as messengers of the gods, oceanic saviors, or sometimes even as the gods themselves in disguise. Furthermore, dolphins frequently appeared in art and literature, responding to and reflecting the numerous real encounters those ancient cultures had with this friendly oceanic mammal. 

Despite all of that, knowledge about the dolphin seemed to have slowly faded from the public memory – by the late sixteenth century, naturalists bemoaned the state of popular conceptions of the dolphin, a creature that had increasingly become more of a reference to a symbol than a real living animal. The advent of more formalized branches of biological study in the eighteenth century did surprisingly little to halt the cultural effacement of the dolphin we know today. This degradation reached its peak in this period, culminating in the name fracturing into the ‘dolphin of the ancients’ and the ‘dolphin of the moderns’. In this talk, Dr. David Hou traces the development of this taxonomic instability and proposes that it can be best understood through the era’s particular blend of utilitarian and aesthetic values. 

This lecture is hosted by McMaster University Library’s Archives Alive program in partnership with McMaster University Alumni.   

Register using this link: https://zoom.us/webinar/register/8017380031200/WN_SDub1TQkSGyy9tQr_k8paA#/registration 

Please feel free to share this invitation with other interested parties. 

We are a group of researchers who hope to provide training regarding research in archives concerning Missing children, unmarked graves and burial sites associated with Indian Residential Schools. We are fortunate enough to have received a grant to develop and offer basic training with little or no cost. Before creating this training, we will consult and establish relationships with different groups of interest, including research teams, archivists, and translators, to hear about their experiences and the needs they observe. We see this as a collaborative effort and value your input. 

On October 23rd, we hosted our first online forum, where we heard from IRS research teams across the prairie provinces. This time, we are hoping to engage with archivists who collaborate directly and indirectly with IRS research teams.

This will be an opportunity for you to share about your own needs regarding training and learning regarding the history of residential schools, and the needs you have seen in IRS research teams. The forum will include presentations from panelists and will leave plenty of room for you to share your experiences, needs, and thoughts as well. 

The Speakers will include:

Sarah Story, Archives Advisor and Office Manager for the Association of Manitoba Archives (AMA)

Heather Bidzinski, archivist for the University of Manitoba

We now hope to hear from archivists. We invite you to join us on Tuesday, January 28 2024, from 9-11:30 (SK time), through Zoom:

https://uregina-ca.zoom.us/j/92735915102?pwd=ZWTC7HIqblIjCCBeDNCO9zwg1OxNMj.1 

Your participation would be greatly appreciated and we look forward to the possibility of working together. If you have any questions, we will be happy to discuss this project further with you. Please feel free to share this invitation with everyone who might be interested. Thank you in advance for your collaboration.

Best,

Véronique Mireault

On behalf of Jérôme Melançon (U of R),  Emily Grafton (U of R), Winona Wheeler (U of S), Anne-Marie Wheeler (U of S), and the Office of the Treaty Commissioner.