Economic Considerations for Libraries, Archives and Museums: Transitions and the Landscape of the Future

Economic Considerations for Libraries, Archives and Museums provides insight into the economics of collaboration across Libraries, Archives, and Museums (LAMs) and cultural heritage funding.

Drawing together a series of global reflections on the past, present and future of cross-sector approaches to preserving and promoting cultural heritage, this volume examines the economic prospects of LAMs from a variety of facets. Divided into five sections, the book covers the five most important areas in the development and sustainability of collaborative LAM projects: the digital environment; collaborative models; education; funding issues; and alternate sources of funding. Responding directly to the issue of a lack of adequate funding for maintaining and providing access to cultural heritage resources globally, the book argues that cultural heritage institutions must seek creative methods for funding and collaboration at all levels to achieve shared goals.

Economic Considerations for Libraries, Archives and Museums will be of interest to all those engaged in the study of library and information science, archival studies, museum studies and digital preservation. Administrators and practitioners will also find much to interest them within the pages of the book.

Associate Prof. Lorraine A. Stuart is Head of Special Collections/Curator of Historical Manuscripts and Archives at the University of Southern Mississippi. Previously, she directed the archival program at the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston from 1995-2016.

Thomas F. R. Clareson is Senior Consultant for Digital & Preservation Services at LYRASIS, consulting on preservation, disaster preparedness, digitization, funding, strategic planning, and arts and cultural advocacy. He also serves as Director of the Performing Arts Readiness project.

Joyce Ray, Ph.D., is Senior Lecturer and Program Coordinator of the Digital Curation program at Johns Hopkins University’s Division of Advanced Academic Programs, Museum and Heritage Studies.