Sustaining Digital Heritage

We live in a digital world in which we increasingly use technology to connect for personal and business reasons and everything in between.

The creative, media, arts, and culture sectors also use and produce a growing array of digital materials. Yet it seems we do not currently have sufficient capacities to preserve and access this important part of the modern-day cultural record.

An estimated 463 exabytes of data will be produced globally each day by 2025 –  the equivalent of 212 765 957 DVDs per day. While a large portion of this may never be treated as digital heritage, it highlights the immense scale of the preservation challenge ahead.

Preserving and curating digital heritage is further complicated by the dependence on technologies that can become obsolete and the complexity of rights holders.

ICCROM’s Sustaining Digital Heritage is a prospective initiative that seeks to collect and disseminate strategies and tools for the preservation and creative use of digital heritage. The overall aim is to enhance the storytelling potential of digital heritage, as well as connect people, bridge divides, spark creativity and promote development.