The Collections Council of Australia plans to develop and promote a new model for sustainable scientific and cultural collections in Australia.

The Council’s Chair, Noel Turnbull, said today that such a model is an urgent national priority for nation-wide benchmarks, policy development and funding of the collections sector.

He said the Council plans to consult with the sector and look at a variety of international models which could be adapted to Australian needs.

“Many Australian collections are in a perilous state. The sector lacks integrated support outside capital cities; there is no over-arching framework to guide the creation and management of digital heritage collections; and there is inadequate resourcing to meet the needs of collections and their communities,” he said.

“We aim to achieve better alignment with other major sectors and policy platforms so that Australia’s collections in the arts, culture, environment, heritage, information and science fields are seen as active contributors to a national sustainable future.

“The model will provide a platform for future policy development by governments, a blueprint for planning, and new benchmarks for the sector. This will contribute to a host of areas including productivity and international competitiveness, education, research, innovation, economic development including cultural tourism, community connectedness, social inclusion and global recognition,” Mr Turnbull said.

The Council has circulated a position paper on the proposed new model to Australia’s collections sector which includes approximately 5,000 collecting organisations.

Click HERE to read the related media release and position paper.