The Monash University Archives has long been facing the challenge of low visibility and awareness of our services and collections as well as low engagement within the University. We are a miniscule piece of Australia’s largest university, with a team of just four people amongst 17,500 staff. In this environment, it is easy to become lost and invisible, and it is a challenge to be heard. Last year, we took the first steps in facing this challenge by launching social media channels. This has made some progress, but only a small amount within the University. This year we are moving beyond social media and looking towards some more proactive approaches. In particular, as part of a wider ongoing project with Records Management, we are beginning to actively reach out to faculties to audit hardcopy legacy records and gain an understanding of existing recordkeeping habits and cultures. This work will inform a set of presentations which will be shown to relevant faculty staff members, demonstrating who we are, what services we provide, and what they need to do to remain compliant with recordkeeping requirements. This process will eventually be operationalised so our challenges can be addressed on a long-term and ongoing basis. Additionally, we are looking to create targeted outreach communications for specific internal faculty channels in an attempt to increase engagement. This paper will be a reflection on the approach we take to rise to our ongoing challenge of low visibility, awareness and engagement. It will outline the proactive activities we undertake and their outcomes, the lessons we learn, and what we plan to do going forward. Ultimately, we want to provide a case study for other small teams in our field who may be facing a similar challenge. This way, we can all rise to our challenges together, and increase visibility and awareness of our archives programs and their importance to our communities.

Exhibitions are a staple of the archivist’s trade; a chance to display content; inviting the public into the deep recesses of the archives. What are the costs and benefits to hosting a physical space versus only providing access to digital content? Should you do both - a virtual and a physical exhibition? How do you plan and manage an exhibition and what could possibly go wrong? Join two archivists arguing the pros and cons with details of their development of a significant exhibition opening in September. Everglades is a late 1930’s art deco heritage property owned by the National Trust.  The house and gardens were built by wealthy Belgian carpet manufacturer Henri Van De Velde. But there are multiple stories and rumours circulating in the community. What role should the archives play in spreading or disproving rumours? Was Everglades his wife Una’s money and design? Was it the unrecognised vision of landscape architect Paul Sorenson?  The archivist’s role is to provide documentary evidence and preserve history, but this could prove an opportunity to engage with audiences and to connect with the community. Join this lively talk as the two archivists nit-pick and bicker.  The discussion will entertain and provide lessons learnt from developing an exhibition from archival material.  Join the recipient of the David Sheedy Foundation Scholarship (Althea Rodricks) and the National Trust’s archivist (James Bosanquet) in conversation.  Providing insights into curating an exhibition, managing archives on display, light levels, along with sifting lurid rumour from authentic history.

Social isolation and loneliness in Australia especially post pandemic is a hot discussion point not just at an individual but also a State and Federal level. The impact of social isolation can be harmful to health including a higher risk of the onset of a disability and the decline in cognitive health. Older people in the community are especially at risk because they may be living alone, have lost friends and family, and may have chronic health conditions. So, can archives and archival records have a place in the current care economy? Can public programs help combat social isolation and loneliness as well as promote better health? At Queensland State Archives we would argue that our Memory Lounge Program is already helping to combat social isolation through social connection. By sharing images from the collection, we can help those living with Dementia and older members of the community to reconnect with their experiences and memories through group conversations. The program has been a success, but it is largely limited to participants coming onsite to QSA. The question we asked ourselves is how could we take the Memory Lounge program and expand it to regional areas of Queensland without relying on QSA running sessions? Could we expand the program to encourage social connection in communities across Queensland? This presentation will provide insights into the Regional Memory Lounge Project, from the early workshopping phase, training packaging development, partnerships with the community and the testing phase of the model out in the community