8th BaltHerNet Summer School “Estonian Cultural Heritage Abroad” June 26-29th in Tartu and Koke

March 15, 2017

This year we will be celebrating 10 years since the first BaltHerNet summer school. For this occasion we will be going back to where we started — to the Koke Guesthouse. However, we will spend the first day in Tartu visiting the Estonian National Museum’s new building at Raadi and Noora, the brand new building of the National Archive. The theme for this year’s summer school is photo collections. The summer school will be held in Estonian and is directed toward Estonian archive volunteers abroad and other members of the Estonian communities abroad who are interested in preserving their heritage.

We have discussed our work with photo collections at previous summer schools. However, at the summer school in 2016 it became clear that participants were interested in paying some more attention to photos. On June 26th in Tartu we will be able to see how the Estonian National Museum and National Archive work with their photo collections. Their modern storage and work spaces are suitable for learning practical skills.

On the evening of June 26th, we will travel to Koke where the next two days will be filled with lectures, workshops and discussion groups about collecting, describing, classifying, and digitizing photos and photo databases. The use of photos in printed material, exhibits, documentaries, and associated copyright and privacy questions will also be addressed. We will also be introduced to photo related websites and crowd-sourcing campaigns created to invite large groups of users to collect and describe photos. Representatives of Estonian archives abroad will have the opportunity to introduce their photo collections and associated activities, which will be followed with discussion and analysis. The Annual NGO Meeting will also be held during the summer school.

Similar to previous years, if a prior agreement is made, those who are interested in further study on other topics will have the opportunity to participate in archive and library workshops either before or after the summer school at Estonian memory institutions in Tallinn and Tartu.

Official registration for the summer school begins March 20th at: www.balther.net