Fostering a Community of Practice: Software Preservation in Libraries and Archives (FCoP) (subcontract)

Through a cohort of six organizations in the United States representing public libraries, university special collections, historical societies and museums, the Fostering a Community of Practice: Software Preservation and Emulation Experts in Libraries and Archives (FCoP) project, led by CalPoly University, aims to broaden participation in software preservation and to empower librarians, archivists, and curators to address the key challenges to providing long-term access to software-dependent cultural heritage. Projects undertaken by cohort members will advance digital preservation practice and inform field-wide understanding. The activities and documentation produced by cohort members will also serve in parallel efforts to bring software preservation and access into mainstream digital preservation practice (addressing specific legal, metadata and technical preservation and access challenges).

Educopia Institute’s role in the project includes project management and cohort facilitation.

Participation in the FCoP cohort includes:

Community fellowship, sharing and information exchange with members of the FCoP cohort
Crucial contribution to broader national and international software preservation efforts and access strategies, including the Software Preservation Network.
$5,000 financial award to be used for travel and registration costs for conferences and workshops where cohort members will present, facilitate discussion and actively solicit interest from fellow librarians, archivists, and museum conservators and curators
Access to and technical support for a web-based emulation sandbox which requires no local installation
Formal support for problem-based learning and research on the challenges to implementing software preservation and emulation in their local organization
Access to and support for communication tools for the duration of the project in order to encourage the cohort to communicate with one another outside of structured or facilitated interaction

Project Cohort:

University of Virginia
Guggenheim Museum
Georgia Tech
University of Arizona
Living Computers: Museum + Labs
University of Illinois