Last week at Hyatt Place too-long speeches, all government ministers, and lots of fanfare celebrated Coleccion.aw, our digital archives.
(Why so many ministers? They are campaigning, they want to claim some of the credit).
Started in 2019 with a few hundred documents, the collection today includes more than 80.000 historical documents, big and small, on a variety of subjects, 1M pages, 35.000 pictures, 550 online videos, preserving our communal heritage, and it is accessible 24/7/365.
The project was undertaken and is still managed by Dr. Peter Scholling, a very diligent, unassuming man, who was destined to guide the initiative and make the impossible happen.
Anyone familiar with our National Archive knows that it’s not easy to navigate it, but with things now digitized and catalogued, information may be located and shared, much more easily.
Peter reports that the oldest document in the collection dates back to 1577, a French book about the Spanish conquest of the Americas.
The newest piece of digital information is today’s newspaper.
I first met Peter at exercise, we were exercise-buddies and that is how I found out that his office-scanner can take an old yellowing newspaper clipping and at the touch of a button, convert it into an editable Word file.
How magical.
All my old newspaper clippings from the time of The NEWS, the fondly remembered English language newspaper, were then turned into Word files, and found themselves in my book, Island Life, by creative publisher/editor Karin Swiers, in collaboration with UNOCA.
I almost threw the fat files of clippings out. I was not going to retype anything. Then Peter introduced me to technology.
Peter considers it his mission, to facilitate universal access to information, and is proud of a platform of 11 partners recently created with Biblioteca Nacional Aruba (BNA), Archivo Nacional Aruba (ANA), UNOCA , Museo Arkeologico Nacional Aruba, Stichting Monumentenfonds Aruba, Bureau Plantage Zorg en Hoop, Monumenten Bureau Aruba, Universidad di Aruba, Telearuba, and Directie Cultuur Aruba.
The new platform was warmly praised by UNESCO representative, Hector Paul.
The event at Hyatt Place unfolded symbolically on September 28th. United Nations General Assembly proclaimed that day as the International Day for Universal Access to Information – recognizing its important role in development, democracy and equality.
The event also coincided with TeleAruba’s 60th anniversary, six decades of dissemination information and entertainment and streaming it to homes all over the island. Pa Bien.
Thank you, generous supporters: Setar, Gobierno di Aruba, DIA, Internet Archive y Fundacion Amigonan di Archivo.
Thank you, generous sponsors: Mondriaan Fonds, Prins Bernhard Cutluurfonds Caribisch Gebied and Vertegenwoordiging van Nederland in Aruba.
https://coleccion.aw – Visit the unique portal and explore our culture and history.
