Smithsonian Cultural Rescue Initiative

Last month, I had the privilege of attending the Heritage Emergency and Response Training (HEART) hosted by FEMA and the Smithsonian Cultural Rescue Initiative. It was a great hands-on experience on preparing and responding to hazards that threaten heritage. The training helped me to be a better steward of our museum’s collection, improve my leadership skills, and build a strong network of museum and emergency mangerment professionals. They are currently accepting applications for a new HEART course focused on Indigenous communities, and professionals working with Tribes. Check Smithsonian Cultural Rescue Initiative for more information.

Hats off to the twenty-five participants hailing from 19 states, 2 territories, and Washington DC who completed the Heritage Emergency And Response Training (HEART) in December 2024! We look forward to hearing about your cultural heritage protection work when you return home. The Smithsonian Cultural Rescue Initiative of the Smithsonian Museum Conservation Institute, the Heritage Emergency National Task Force (HENTF), and FEMA offer the HEART training on an annual basis at the Smithsonian. More information about HEART: https://s.si.edu/3VpRagQ #HEARTraining #HEART2024

📢 Attention cultural heritage professionals! The Council on Library and Information Resources (CLIR) is now accepting applications for the Recordings at Risk grant program, funded by the Mellon Foundation. This initiative offers grants of $10,000–$50,000 to U.S.-based nonprofits to digitally preserve “at-risk” audio and audiovisual materials of critical scholarly and public significance. Key Dates: Applications open: January 14, 2025 Webinar: February 12, 2025, 2 PM EST Application deadline: April 14, 2025 📚 Projects should focus on preserving diverse and underrepresented collections. To learn more, register for the webinar, or explore previous successes, visit: https://hubs.li/Q032w6-F0 Let’s work together to preserve history for future generations! 🌍 #Preservation #CulturalHeritage #DigitalPreservation #RecordingsAtRisk #Grants

The Smithsonian Cultural Rescue Initiative and the National Museum of the American Indian are excited to announce a new training opportunity aimed to help cultural heritage professionals and emergency management professionals who work with cultural collections in tribal nations. Heritage Emergency and Response Training (HEART) for Native Communities builds on the existing HEART curriculum and blends the expertise of SCRI, and it’s home unit, the Smithsonian Museum Conservation Institute, with the knowledge and experience of our NMAI colleagues. Training will focus on emergency preparedness and response for cultural institutions, specifically Native museums, communities, and heritage. The training will take place April 7-11, 2025 in Washington, D.C. All information about the program, including application instructions, can be found here: https://s.si.edu/4j4eV9f. Applications are due by February 5, 11:59 p.m. EST

Together with our research partners, НеМо: Ukrainian Heritage Monitoring Lab, Penn Cultural Heritage Center, Cultural Heritage Monitoring Lab (CHML) at the Virginia Museum of Natural History, and University of Maryland, SCRI has published a new rapid report documenting damage to Kharkiv Freedom Square (also known as Svobody Square) and the adjacent historic building housing Kharkiv’s Regional State Administration in March 2022. This review was undertaken after this first attack on Freedom Square was reported by news outlets. https://bit.ly/402uFlz

I have been incredibly fortunate to be able to be part of the #Heartraining2024 with the Smithsonian Cultural Rescue Initiative The SCRI team has built one of the most useful, informative, and dare I say fun training events I've ever been part of. I am walking away from this week with a better understanding of how to effectively respond to a variety of disasters that could befall our institution, and not just theory but actionable steps that we practiced. I'm also leaving this week with a new network of Cultural Heritage professionals from across the Nation that I can rely on for assistance in a time of need. We have built an amazing team here this week and I am so excited to see what our cohort will accomplish going forward. I encourage any of my peers who have an interest in disaster preparedness, or who know nothing about it to seek out an application for next year (applications usually start being accepted in September). I am more than happy to answer questions about the program and application process. Thank you again to the SCRI Leadership for this amazing opportunity!

This past week I had an incredible opportunity to be selected to participate in a Heritage and Culture Preservation training at the Smithsonian Institution in Washington D.C. which has provided resources that will help create plans and training for insitutions. The class was an initiative through FEMA and the Smithsonian Cultural Rescue Initiative. Throughout the week, we got to to see many behind the scenes of a few places to include the Library of Congress and the Smithsonian's Museum Conservation Institute where we received hands on training. The week ended with an exercise on evacuating museum artifacts and relocating due to an impending “wildfire” #heartraining2024

I truly had a career enriching and inspiring training with Smithsonian Cultural Rescue Initiative. I learned how to respond and protect heritage and cultural resources during disasters! A free and absolutely incredible training. This team is filled with experts who sincerely enhanced my understanding of such an important issue.

I've been very fortunate to participate in this meaningful program this week. The HEART program, a signature program of the Smithsonian Cultural Rescue Initiative and FEMA has provided invaluable training in cultural heritage emergency and response training. I'm looking forward to sharing this knowledge with colleagues in Southern California and beyond.

It's the final day of #HEARTraining2024! On day Five we invited our participants to turn their eyes to the future. Today’s sessions provided them with valuable insights and practical information they will be able to apply directly to their goals upon return to their home organizations. The morning commenced with a resources for recovery panel. We would like to extend our sincere appreciation to the National Endowment for the Humanities, National Endowment for the Arts, Institute of Museum and Library Services, Smithsonian Museum Conservation Institute, and our FEMA HENTF colleagues. The combined knowledge and expertise of this panel made them the perfect guides for the discussion on resources and capacity building. In the afternoon, the group participated in a workshop to develop and practice crisis communication skills. This HEART 2024 program will culminate with a graduation celebration this evening. We would like to thank our participants for attending the program and for their commitment to cultural heritage and its care. Smithsonian Institution