24 March 2009
(updated 13 January 2010)

Download a MayDay 2009 flier HERE and post it to your notice board!

MayDay is a campaign by Blue Shield Australia to raise awareness about disaster preparedness.

Blue Shield Australia urges all Australian archives, galleries, libraries, museums, cultural heritage sites and organisations to perform at least one disaster-preparedness task during the month of May.

Australia's cultural heritage is under threat from both 'man-made' and natural disasters. For example:

• Poor maintenance regimes can have catastrophic effects on cultural heritage  Faulty electrical wiring in a neighbour's building may cause a fire that engulfs adjacent heritage buildings and significant collections. Burst water pipes can flood a basement storage area.

• Natural disasters present serious risks to cultural heritage. Although Australia is a geologically stable continent, it is no stranger to environmental emergencies. Already in 2009 we've witnessed the impact of extreme bushfires in Victoria, and of severe flooding in northern Queensland. Cyclone Larry in 2006 affected heritage places and many collections in Queensland. Freak weather events (such as summer hailstorms over Canberra) test the ability of buildings to withstand the elements, and to protect the collections housed in them.

Australians seem to specialise in the "she'll be right" form of procrastination, but preparing to respond to a future disaster is not something that should be ignored, put off or sidelined. In May 2009, people in cultural heritage organisations are encouraged to act upon one or more of these suggested activities:

• If you have a disaster plan, dust it off and make sure it’s up to date or make a timeline for developing one.
• Get to know your local firefighters and police, and invite them to tour your organisation and give you pointers on safety and preparedness.
• Identify the three biggest risks to your collection or heritage site.
• Meet with the people working in the other cultural organisations in your area and find out how you can share resources in the event of a disaster

Further ideas for activities are listed on the MayDay 2009 flier.

Promote your MayDay 2009 activities

Tell your local communities what you're doing to ensure that your cultural heritage organisation is well prepared for disaster.

In collaboration with the Collections Council, Blue Shield Australia offers a free kit to assist you in contacting your local media about MayDay in 2009.  With the media's help, you can reassure your communities that you are serious about caring for cultural heritage.

Request your media kit from mid-April 2009, by email or telephone: (08) 8207 7280.

Share your stories

After May 2009, please let Blue Shield Australia know what you did for MayDay 2009. News of your activity may contribute to the "ideas bank" for future MayDay campaigns, and will inspire others to take part.

Please share your story by email or telephone: (08) 8207 7280.

If your MayDay event involved collaboration with other cultural heritage organisations, please also consider submitting a report for inclusion in the Collections Council's Collaborative Projects Showcase.

Acknowledging the Society of American Archivists

The MayDay concept originated with the Society of American Archivists (SAA) in 2006. Heritage Preservation partners with the SAA to promote MayDay and to provide some useful learning resources for American organisations.

With kind permission from the SAA, Blue Shield Australia has coordinated MayDay in Australia since 2007.

The meaning of "MayDay"

According to Wikipedia (viewed on 24 March 2009), Mayday is an emergency code word used internationally as a distress signal in voice procedure radio communications. It derives from the French venez m'aider, meaning 'come help me'.

MayDay for cultural heritage fuses two concepts - the distress signal, and the first day of May - so as to create a memorable calendar date for events that improve disaster preparedness in cultural heritage organisations.