Safeguarding Research & Culture

Safeguarding Research & Culture (SRC) is creating an alternative infrastructure for archiving and disseminating of cultural heritage and scientific knowledge. It seeks to preserve cultural memory in a way that traditional archives cannot. Together, they plan to ensure that cultural, intellectual and scientific heritage exists in multiple copies, in multiple places, and that no single entity or group of entities can make it all disappear.

Its archive is built according to the principles of FAIR and CARE, based on open technologies and standards, and resilient against loss via meaningfully distributed storage.

SRC focuses on publicly available material, like websites, datasets and other media, that are being altered or deleted. Collective memory manifests in different amplitudes and digital-born artefacts — from large datasets, spanning decades of research on society, to personal wikis and blogs on and by marginalized people. No matter its scope or origin, all of this knowledge was valuable to someone, somewhen, and carries with it a potential to be so again. SRC are equally interested in archiving ‘big’ as well as ‘small’ data.

Everyone, from individuals to institutions, can participate by accessing, contributing, and supporting these archival infrastructures. Our work also includes documenting and providing resources and knowledge to enable participation in different aspects of this endeavor.