International experts explore the context of change and the move from analogue to digital

Cultural Heritage (CH) itself, the ways in which it is made, held, collected, curated, exhibited, or simply exists, have completely changed in the 21^st century. This context of change has also transformed the roles and links between memory institutions, CH professionals, citizens, and economic and social actors at all the spheres of society.

In order to understand this context of change, the RICHES project organised a workshop at the Turkish National Library (Ankara, Turkey). Two intense days of discussion allowed the participants to discuss key questions about how these transformations are evolving, and identify the main opportunities and trends for the upcoming years.

After the welcome messages by Zulfi Toman, General Director (National Library, Turkey) and Hamdi Tursucu, General Director (KYGM, Turkey), the RICHES project was presented by the project coordinator Neil Forbes (Coventry University, UK). The first day of the workshop was devoted to explore the move from analogue to digital. The session was opened by Dr. Yasar Tonta (Hacettepe University, Turkey), who presented the Digital Future of the Past. The presentation addressed some of the stewardship challenges such as infrastructure and policy issues to preserve the past in digital form in perpetuity. The Rijksmuseum Volkenkunde-National Museum of Ethnography (Netherlands) explored the impact of the digital on ethnographic museums. Ahmad Lash, from the Department of Antiquities (Jordan), presented MEGA JORDAN, a geographic information system (GIS) to inventory and manage archaeology sites, which constitutes a best practice example on how to exploit digital technologies in the Cultural Heritage field. This session was complemented by the case studies developed within the RICHES project. On that sense, Bahadir Aydinonat (KYGM, Turkey) presented the evaluation of the Turkish National Library Digital Services in terms of user perspective, and Katerina Charatzopoulou (SPK, Germany) the case study on Museum Collections online and their potential for research. This first day was closed by Antonella Fresa (Promoter Srl, Italy), who presented the final conclusions of this session seeking to understand the context of change and the move from analogue to digital.

On the 14th May the workshop explored best practices and trends on Cultural Heritage transmission in a changing world. Amalia Sabiescu (Coventry University, UK) provided insights about this context of change, particularly on the development of new skills and the preservation of traditional skills. Mayor Veysel Tiryaki, from the Ankara Municipality of Altindag (Turkey), presented the experience of Hamamonu and the transformation of physical resources. A guided tour on the afternoon allowed the participants to discover the results of the intervention at Hamamonu, which constitutes a case study in the framework of the RICHES project. Exploring the CH transmission and its impact on education and learning, Prof. Dr. Mehmet Emin Kucuk (Hacettepe Technology Transfer Center, Turkey) presented the Global Libraries Project Turkey. Closing that session, MEMOLA Project presented its activities on Cultural Landscapes as places to get involved.

The final session of the workshop was completely interactive and open to discussion. Participants addressed specific aspects linked to the workshop topics in three parallel discussion groups:

• ​TRANSMITTING CULTURAL HERITAGE: preserve & curate in a context of change


• ​TALKING CULTURAL HERITAGE: communication and connectedness in the digital age, user engagement, mediated and un-mediated culture


• ​THE MOVE FROM ANALOGUE TO DIGITAL: main risks and opportunities

Finally, the findings of the discussion sessions where reported to the global audience, and the RICHES project coordinator, Neil Forbes, concluded the event sharing the closing remarks. The event has been a successful platform to discuss key aspects linked to the RICHES project research, proving insights to continue exploring and understanding the context of change and the move from analogue to digital.

The workshop presentations are online:

Bahadir Aydinonat, Hakan Koray Ozluk (KYGM, Turkey): Evaluation of Turkish National Library Digital Services in terms of user perspective

Monika Hagedorn-Saupe, Katerina Charatzopoulou (SPK, Germany): Museum Collections online and their potential for research

Antonella Fresa (Promoter Srl, Italy): Understanding the context of change and the move from analogue to digital

Amalia Sabiescu (Coventry University, UK): Digital Craft Traditional and New Skills

Prof. Dr. Mehmet Emin Kucuk (Hacettepe Technology Transfer Center, Turkey): Global Libraries Project Turkey_Education-Learning

Lara Delgado Anés, Maurizio Toscano, José María Martín Civantos (MEMOLA Project): Cultural Landscapes Places to get involved