Get Help From the SAA Crisis Collecting Assistance Team

February 10, 2022—Available now! The SAA Crisis Collecting Assistance Team (CCAT) stands ready as a resource for archives workers, archival and cultural heritage institutions, and community members documenting or experiencing a crisis, disaster, or tragedy in their community or the community they serve.

This new remote assistance team can help with identifying best practices, logistical support for documentation, support for staff and volunteers, and referrals to appropriate allied organizations. Resources provided by CCAT center on documentation, collection management, administration, digital content, oral histories, and more. Coordinated by the SAA Crisis, Disaster, and Tragedy Response Working Group (CDTRWG), CCAT volunteers include expert archivists who have all faced similar situations in leading and supporting their staff through processing and documenting tragedies great and small.

To request help, send a message via the form below. The CCAT team will respond within 72 business hours via phone or email. Currently, CCAT support is only available in English to those based in the United States.

In addition to direct support from CCAT, individuals and organizations can utilize the resources in the Documenting in Times of Crisis: A Resource Kit, which provides templates and documents to assist archivists in collecting materials on tragedies within their communities.

Kara M. McClurken, CDTRWG co-chair, shares: “Many members of the Working Group have found themselves in a situation where they had to document and respond to a tragedy or crisis in their community. We called upon our informal network of colleagues to assist us, but having an official one, supported by the Society of American Archivists, means that all communities will have a place to turn when they are trying to document crises in their communities.”

Resources and support related to disaster response and recovery pertaining to physical damage to collections or facilities are outside the scope of the CCAT and CDTRWG. For resources and recommendations regarding damage sustained as a result of floods, fires, weather disasters, or other emergencies, the Assistance Team and CDTRWG recommend consulting SAA’s Disaster Planning and Response Resources and/or contacting organizations such as the National Heritage Responders.

Questions about the Crisis, Disaster, and Tragedy Response Working Group or the Crisis Collecting Assistance Team can be directed to saahq@archivists.org.