Community archives

This Student Research Hub focuses on community archives as simple, participatory practices through which communities document, preserve, and share their own knowledge, experiences, and memories. Community archives are approached as practical, community-led initiatives that often emerge within civil society, local groups, and everyday cultural practices.

The project introduces students to basic concepts of community and participatory archives through clear definitions and concrete examples. Rather than focusing on abstract theory, students learn by examining how different communities decide what is worth preserving, who the archive is for, and how materials can be organized and accessed in ways that reflect community values and needs.

Through guided and mentored activities, students work individually or in small groups to review relevant literature and online examples of existing community archives. They then select a real group or practice from their local environment (e.g. cultural groups, crafts, everyday practices, local initiatives) and explore whether any form of archive already exists. Where appropriate, students may conduct a short interview or collect a story (oral history), including basic question design and transcription.

Based on this work, students develop a simple prototype of a community archive, defining what would be collected, why it matters, who it serves, and how materials could be organized and accessed. The emphasis is on practical thinking, ethical awareness, and feasibility rather than technical complexity.

The Student Research Hub culminates in a short written report and an oral presentation of results. At the end of the Student Research Hub, students present their work during an online workshop on undergraduate research activities. Selected student teams may be supported in further developing their projects and presenting their results at an academic conference, in line with the Student Research Hub framework. The project provides students with introductory research experience and an applied understanding of community archives as socially embedded practices that contribute to cultural and social sustainability.

General learning outcomes

• Explain key concepts and models of community and participatory archives.
• Understand the social, cultural, and ethical dimensions of archiving practices in community contexts.
• Analyze and compare community archive initiatives using the literature and existing examples.
• Apply basic qualitative research methods in community-based contexts, including simple interviews and the collection of stories, documents, or images.
• Design a simple community archive prototype by defining what should be collected, for whom, and how materials could be organized and accessed.
• Present research findings clearly in written form, using appropriate academic and professional terminology.
• Present research findings clearly in oral form.