It is becoming clear from news both local to Aotearoa NZ (https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/national/516411/archives-nz-shutting-down-digitisation-programme) and internationally (https://www.npr.org/2025/03/31/nx-s1-5334415/doge-institute-of-museum-and-library-services) that cultural heritage funding is precarious. This is particularly the case regionally in Australasia and the Pacific, where term-limited and grant-funded projects are often used to support digitisation of cultural heritage materials but not the long-term preservation of the resulting digital cultural heritage objects.

Is there another way? This birds of a feather session will provide a forum where participants can share experiences of successful funding efforts, brainstorm alternative funding models, and plan for communication and advocacy around sustainable funding for digitisation and digital preservation.

The session will include introductory comments followed by an unconference-style prioritisation and selection of discussion topics. Groups will have opportunities to share the outcomes of their discussion, and this will be used to develop a forward-looking plan of action to support regional collaboration for digital preservation.

Topics of discussion might include:
Successful grant funding experiences - what strategies led to that success?
Identifying opportunities for resource and service sharing in the region
Drafting storage requirements for a regional repository service
Exploring how to turn projects into programmes throughout the region
Advocating for funding to support the digital preservation of digital objects created through digitisation projects

No money, no resources, no time, and no support. This is the daily reality for many working in the GLAM sector who are trying to care for collections in the digital age. While expectations to digitise are increasing, the support to do so is often missing.
Digitisation isn’t just scanning and saving it requires planning, metadata, equipment, staff capability, digital storage, and long-term preservation strategies. Yet many institutions are working with outdated infrastructure, limited budgets, and small teams already stretched across multiple roles.
So how can we make digitisation achievable within our means?
We need practical, scalable solutions designed for smaller teams. Regional collaboration, shared equipment, open-source tools, and cross-training within GLAM networks can help ease the pressure. We must also advocate for more sustained funding and leadership buy-in because digital preservation isn’t a “nice to have,” it’s essential.
Without it, our collections risk being lost to time, decay, and digital obsolescence.
We also need to change the narrative: doing something is better than doing nothing. A small, well-documented digitisation project is still valuable. Let’s celebrate incremental progress and support each other in building sustainable, community-led digital preservation practices.
Our collections and the people they represent deserve to be seen, heard, and remembered in the future. Let’s work together to make that possible.