Island Cultural Archives: Knowledge Transfer Opportunities in the Hebrides.

最近在外赫布里底群岛发生的历史性事件为与社区文化保管人合作解决知识转让和档案研究潜力的学术问题提供了一个前所未有的新背景。根据苏格兰议会的土地法，南尤斯特庄园(苏格兰最大的庄园)的土地和资产被成功地“社区买断”，南尤斯特、本贝库拉和埃里斯凯的岛屿社区通过其社区公司Stóras Uibhist进入2007年，其岛屿的所有物质和文化资源都归社区所有。社区领导层已经认识到，物质和文化资源的所有权转移需要战略发展，这既是必要的，也是对“增长”财富的潜力的回应。文化资源可以说只是“借给”给任何一代人，一个民族有责任履行他们的监护权。当地历史协会、岛屿文化组织和文化企业家都敏锐地意识到他们所信任的东西的价值。然而，随着新的所有权地位的出现，社区正在展示自己对协作的开放态度，以确保这一价值不仅得到更充分的认识，而且在当前的数字时代更容易获得(和可持续)。拟在南乌伊斯特举办三次讲习班活动。中心主题是岛屿文化档案馆的知识转让机会。将就三个主题活动(口头传统、废弃聚落、视觉遗产)分别发表主旨演讲，并重点介绍各种社区档案。工作坊的参加者来自博物馆和档案馆人员及保管人、社区文化组织和来自不同学科领域的学者。在讲习班一中，与会者将审查“口头传统”的研究潜力，特别是关于岛屿的盖尔音乐和歌曲遗产。这可能是这个地方最“成熟”的文化资源竞技场，因此它呈现了丰富的活动、辩论和实践。其中一个探索领域涉及捕捉当代创造性活动和利用数字媒体为“正在形成的遗产”创造可能性。在第二期研讨会中，重点将转移到“定居”这一关键的社会政治领域。“荒废的居民点”这一主题提供了一个将档案记录和博物馆文物与活着的记忆联系起来的机会。这是一个特别令人兴奋的发展领域，因为数字媒体技术为社区提供了识别、记录和反思其历史和文化的新机会。这一议程隐含着当前小岛屿和偏远社区在留住和欢迎居民方面面临的“定居”挑战，并提出了一些有趣的问题，即学术和媒体实践方面的专门知识如何有助于关于农村和岛屿生活的更广泛辩论。就有关岛屿的“新社区所有权”地位而言，这一点特别重要。研讨会三，“视觉遗产”，探索外赫布里底群岛的视觉档案：绘画、静止摄影、创意和纪录片以及社区活动记录。这一主题汇聚了这一领域的领导者学术伙伴，并为持续的和新的伙伴关系提供了一个高度吸引人的舞台。作为该领域社区和学术关系性质的创新发展，该项目可以为在类似情况下的进一步应用提供一个模板。具体地说，如果调查结果表明需要通过遗产文件和视觉文本等档案加强高等教育社区的接口(所有初步迹象都是好的)，则设想对南乌伊斯特和类似的岛屿社区进行进一步的研究项目。

Recent historic events in the Outer Hebrides have provided a new and hitherto unparalleled context to address the academic issue of knowledge transfer and archival research potential in partnership with community cultural custodians. As the result of a successfully negotiated 'community buyout' of the lands and assets of South Uist Estates (the biggest in Scotland under the Scottish Parliament's land legislation), the island communities of South Uist, Benbecula and Eriskay, through Stòras Uibhist, their community company, entered 2007 with all the physical and cultural resources of their islands in community ownership. Community leadership has identified that transfer of ownership of both the physical and cultural resources requires strategic development both by way of necessity, as well as in response to the potential to 'grow' the wealth.Culture resources are arguably only ever 'on loan' to any generation and it is incumbent on a people to make good their custodianship. Local historical societies, island cultural organisations, and cultural entrepreneurs are acutely aware of the value of what they hold in trust. With the new ownership status, however, the community is presenting itself as open to collaboration to ensure this worth is not only more fully appreciated but also made more accessible (and sustainable) in a current digital age. Three workshop events held on South Uist are proposed. The central theme is of knowledge transfer opportunities for Island Cultural Archives. Keynote addresses will be made on each of the three themed events (Oral Tradition; Deserted Settlement; Visual Legacies), and offer focus for the various community archives. The workshops participants are drawn from museums and archive staff and custodians, community cultural organisations and academics from a range of disciplinary fields. In Workshop One the participants will examine the research potential of the 'Oral Tradition' with particular reference to the Gaelic music and song heritage of the islands. This is perhaps the most 'established' cultural resource arena for the place and as such it presents a rich seam of activity, debate and practice. One area for exploration relates to the capturing of contemporary creative activity and working with digital media possibilities for a 'heritage in the making'.In Workshop Two, the focus will shift to the crucial socio-political arena of 'settlement'. The theme of 'Deserted Settlement' presents an opportunity to relate archival records, and museum artefacts, to living memories. This is a particularly exciting area for development as the digital media technologies offer new opportunities to the community to identify, record, and reflect on their history and culture. Implicit in this agenda is the current 'settlement' challenges to small island and remote communities in retaining, and welcoming, residents and raises interesting questions for how academic and media practice expertise can contribute to the wider debate on rural and island life. This is of special importance in terms of the 'new community ownership' status of the islands in question.Workshop Three, 'Visual Legacies', explores visual archives within the Outer Hebrides: paintings, still photography, creative and documentary film, and community activity recordings. This theme brings together academic partners who are leaders in this field and offers a highly engaging arena for ongoing and new partnership.As an innovative development in the nature of community and academic relations for the area this project could provide a template for further application in similar situations. Specifically, should the findings suggest a demand for greater HEI community interface (and all preliminary indications are good) via archives such as estate papers and visual texts, further research projects on South Uist and similar island communities are envisaged.