Last weekend I went to see Al Gore’s documentary An Inconvenient Truth. Even though I felt well informed going in, the presentation here was sobering. Now, I feel that I’ve been a pretty responsible citizen when it comes to the issue of climate change – I don’t drive my low emission vehicle very much, I choose to live in places where I can rely on public transportation, I walk alot, I try to make the older homes I live in at least somehwat efficient, I support candidates that are environmentally aware. But An Inconvenient Truth left me wondering “What is my role is as a cultural heritage professional?” We’ve already seen some of the effects of climate change on the historical record – from flooding in Europe, the effects of massive hurricanes like Katrina, and even the recent flooding in the Northeast that even the National Archives couldn’t escape.
Sadly I couldn’t find much from U.S. organizations (if you know of something, please add a comment), however the European heritage community is at least aware that climate change will have an impact on the cultural heritage environment in the decades ahead. In addition to the reports listed below, they have sponsored UNESCO meetings discussing the impact of climate change on world heritage sites.
If the predictions are correct, climate change will be a growing issue for historic and cultural sites. It suggests the need for disaster plans that go beyond immediate and localized collections. Many of the places I’ve worked had limited plans in place for technology disaster planning. Katrina demonstrated that even off-site backups stored within a region may not be enough. In order to preserve what we’ve invested in digitization projects cultural heritage institutions need to think as a community how we can protect those investments. A shared network, along the lines of the LOCKSS project, could be one solution.
It would also be nice to see a coalition of U.S. cultural organizations join together to advocate for adoption of the Kyoto treaties and encourage institutions to adopt practices that reduce their impact on global climate change. Local institutions also need to be aware of thier risks that may surpass recent historical trends and prepare to address them effectively.
