View this email in your browser

Memory Rising: September 2024

In this month’s edition:

- National Climate Action Strategy For Libraries - Connecting at Council of State Archivists in St. Louis - Registration available: Fun with Archives online workshop on October 29 - Upcoming grant deadlines - This month’s recommendations One of the activities I like to use when I am teaching about archives and climate change is an exercise called “Where is your home?” I ask students to do a little bit of research and personal reflection, and write a brief  environmental and cultural history of wherever they call home to share with the rest of the class. I leave the definition of “home” up to each student – it may be a current place of residence, a nearby intersection or landmark, a place someone used to live in but no longer does, a place with which someone has ancestral ties, or any other construction that is meaningful to the student.




As part of the assignment, I ask students to identify what watersheds they live in, the surrounding soil and geological profiles, the animal and plant neighbors in the area, the history of indigenous land stewardship in their area, existing environmental justice issues, and where their drinking water, energy, and food comes from.




A fundamental part of re-orienting ourselves as stewards of the planet is to unlearn harmful ideas of people vs. nature (including what environmental historians call “declensionist narratives”). Many of us operate without much understanding of the environmental history and characteristics of where we live, making climate change seem like a faraway or abstract problem, instead of something already impacting wherever it is that we call home. -Eira




(Photo above is a children’s sidewalk chalk drawing in my neighborhood as seen on one of my daily walks. I don’t totally understand what vehicle this is, but it looks like pretty cool transportation policy to me. Newsletter content assistance provided by [Jess Farrell](https://facilitator-jess.github.io/RedstartWorks/about/).) # National Climate Action Strategy For Libraries I’m excited to announce a new resource: the [National Climate Action Strategy for Libraries](https://www.sustainablelibrariesinitiative.org/media/document/614) is now available!




A working group including members of the American Library Association and the Sustainable Libraries Initiative co-developed this resource. The report is a great tool for having conversations with leadership about allocating resources to work on climate change in your library or archive. It covers strategies for reducing greenhouse gas emissions, improving climate adaptation and community resilience, and using education and awareness to grow work in these areas. The report is paired with an implementation guide to help you incorporate the strategy into planning, operations, service development, and partnerships. # Going to Council of State Archivists? I’m attending the Council of State Archivists (CoSA) annual meeting next week (September 18-20) in St. Louis! If you’d like to meet up for coffee, [send me an email.](mailto:[email protected]?subject=CoSA%20meetup&body=) # Registration available: Fun with Archives I’m teaching an online workshop on October 29 at 4pm ET focused on navigating the world of archival research! Registration is [now available](https://buy.stripe.com/7sIaFT5e2boE5zi4gi).




Are you curious about using archives in your research or creative projects, but not sure how to go about it or make it a practice? Archival research can be daunting, with decentralized and varied systems of discovery and access. Archives can add rich information and analysis to your activism, art, journalism, writing, and other creative endeavors. Join to be in community with others learning about how to use these valuable and fascinating resources.




(Please note that the workshop will not be recorded.) # Upcoming grant deadlines Thinking about applying for a climate-change related grant? I am here to support your planning, assessment, strategy, and research needs. Check out these upcoming opportunities and reach out if you’d like to work with me!




### National Historical Publications and Records Commission: The final deadline for all of these funding opportunities is November 7. - [Capacity Building for Historically Black Colleges and Universities Archives](https://www.archives.gov/nhprc/announcement/hbcu-archives) funds the development of climate action plans and the creation and implementation of a traveling archivist program. - The [Archival Projects](https://www.archives.gov/nhprc/announcement/archival.html) fund supports inventorying and assessing archival records and collection processing plans. - [Publishing Historical Records in Collaborative Digital Editions](https://www.archives.gov/nhprc/announcement/editions.html) funds research and publishing in social justice movement history.




### Institute for Museum and Library Services:
- [National Leadership Grants for Libraries](https://www.imls.gov/grants/available/national-leadership-grants-libraries) fund projects that support the development of emergency and disaster management plans. Such work will be critical as organizations adapt to climate change. Due September 20, 2024. - [The Laura Bush 21st Century Librarian Program](https://imls.gov/grants/available/laura-bush-21st-century-librarian-program) funds projects that develop professional development and training programs to enable the library and archival workforce to meet the needs of their communities. Due September 20, 2024. - [Inspire! Grants for Small Museums](https://www.imls.gov/grants/available/inspire-grants-small-museums) fund small museums in the areas of collections stewardship and access, institutional capacity, and lifelong learning. Due November 15, 2024. - [The Native American/Native Hawaiian Museum Services Program](https://www.imls.gov/grants/available/native-americannative-hawaiian-museum-services-program) funds collection stewardship, professional development, and other activities. Due November 15, 2024. # This month’s recommendations 🗺️ [Landsat photos word generator](https://landsat.gsfc.nasa.gov/apps/YourNameInLandsat-main/) (webpage) - Have you ever wanted to spell out your name with aerial photos of oxbow lakes and other land and water features? Now you can!




🏀 [Hanif Abdurraqib on what it means to “make it”](https://www.marketplace.org/shows/this-is-uncomfortable-reema-khrais/hanif-abdurraqib-on-what-it-means-to-make-it) (podcast episode) - As a fellow Ohioan who is deeply tied to this state, I’ve always been profoundly moved by listening to poet Hanif Abdurraqib speak about his ongoing commitment to staying in Ohio. This is a great episode that gets at what home means and what it means to invest in your community.




💣 [Why don't I take military funding?](https://web.eecs.umich.edu/~kuipers/opinions/no-military-funding.html) (webpage) - I’m a Quaker and the unceasing march of war and the military-industrial complex horrifies me on a spiritual, political, and environmental level. I periodically revisit this thoughtful essay from a Quaker computer scientist on declining to take research funding from the Department of Defense because it's such a good read on the ethics of funding (plus it’s a real great example of old-school faculty webpages, which are all too rare as university websites continually move towards primarily serving as marketing exercises).

*Copyright (C) 2024 . All rights reserved.*
*|IFNOT:ARCHIVE_PAGE|**|END:IF|*

Our mailing address is:
*|IFNOT:ARCHIVE_PAGE|**|HTML:LIST_ADDRESS|**|END:IF|*

Want to change how you receive these emails?
You can <a href=""><span style="font-size: 12px">update your preferences</span></a> or <a href=""><span style="font-size: 12px">unsubscribe</span></a>