Earlier this month Piers Higgs, Sarah Aldrich and I took a trip to Melbourne to attend the Australian Society of Archivists (ASA) 2023 conference at the Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG). With a sense of enthusiasm on the flight over I was keen to get down into the details about archives and solve some challenges with my fellow conference participants.

My trip started Monday at Perth airport grabbing a coffee with Piers before our flight to the great city of Melbourne. Upon arrival in Melbourne we met up with Sarah, one of Gaia Resources’ Collection Analysts based in Canberra, and headed to our hotel located near the MCG. After a social dinner we cracked down on what our plan for ASA 2023 was, who is attending each session and what we wanted to learn. A screenshot of the event agenda can be seen below.

DAY 1:

An early morning run was the start of the day for Sarah, Piers and I decided to keep it a bit more relaxed… We met Sarah for coffees and breakfast at a local cafe then got ready to attend ASA 2023 – Rising to our Challenges. Upon arrival I was amazed to see the variety of archivists from all over Australia and even from Singapore, archivists representing the state archives around Australia but also archivists from local historical societies and schools. Day one had a focus on first nations archives and living history, as well as discussions on the use of AI in archives and the challenge for institutions in archiving big data. 

Day 1 Pre-conference selfie L-R Piers Higgs, Luke Connelly and Sarah Aldrich

Day one went by in a flash, there was a flurry of activities, plenty of notes and a new perspective on the challenges that archives are facing. After wrapping up the day the Gaia Resources fly-in team caught up with some of our Melbourne based team members. An interesting dinner in Federation Square was followed up by some ‘team-building’ at a few bars in the Melbourne CBD. Although Gaia Resources is an online based company it is great to meet co-workers in person and learn more about their lived experiences.

L-R, Sally O’Callaghan (Past Gaia Resources Employee, now working for the NAA), Drew Robinson, Sarah Aldrich, Luke Connelly, Piers Higgs

Day 2:

After a relaxed morning and breakfast, day two of the conference began with a panel discussion from the Queer Archives of Victoria. Then we began our sessions for the day covering digital preservation and digital transformation, with sessions hosted by the National Archives of Australia and the Public Records Office Victoria. It was great to see how archives benefit from technology like the ones developed by Gaia Resources. At the conclusion of the conference we heard from two industry experts, Pia Andrews and Barbara Reed, discussing governance in record keeping and how to personally stand out in archives. The launch of the 2024 ASA Conference wrapped up the final day and Gaia Resources may be heading off to Auckland next year…

Each of us also tried to put together a short summary of our conference highlights, including:

“It’s been 8 years since my first archives conference, and as an IT professional I find that I’m still learning more about how archives undertake their practice – but I’m glad to keep learning from them and trying to make sure we can deliver even better solutions for their problems.”

• Piers Higgs

“Having worked as an archivist prior to pivoting into tech, attending the ASA conference gives me the chance to act like a kid in a candy shop. It’s always a pleasure to connect with archivists, hear about their wins over the past year, talk shop, and discuss how tech can work to their advantage. I enjoy learning and keeping up with the current practices.”

• Sarah Aldrich

“The ASA Conference gave me insight into the challenges that archives are facing and how Gaia Resources can help these organisations grow through custom technological solutions.”

• Luke Connelly

In wrapping up my brief conference breakdown here are some key learnings highlighted by the Gaia Resources team from the 2023 ASA Conference:

1. Archives are essential to preserving our history both personally and on a government level: each record has at least one person attached to it, we must remember the importance of each record and the personal value attributed to it.
2. Conversations around digital preservation and technology such as AI are progressing. 
3. There’s still work to do around bridging the gap between Collecting organisations and technology solution providers. 
4. Gaia’s work and with our clients has demonstrated innovative solutions in the forefront of the field, notably our implementation of the archival management and digital preservation system for QSA and our work on Clio.

If you would like to know more about our digital preservation services and archival storage solutions please don’t hesitate to contact me or start a conversation with us on one of our social media platforms Twitter, LinkedIn or Facebook

Luke

The post Rising to the challenge: Recap of the 2023 Australian Society of Archivists Conference appeared first on Gaia Resources.

I am just approaching the end of my third month at Gaia Resources and I feel like I have been here a lot longer than that. Starting in May, Gaia Resources welcomed me with open arms into the role of Business Development Coordinator. My role has me working closely with Piers Higgs, the Gaia Resources CEO. Piers from day one made it abundantly clear what my role was and how we would work together. He cleared his schedule for my first days to assist in situating myself at Gaia Resources. Each morning in the office we would take a walk down to the local café and I would be given the opportunity to ask any questions as needed. This initial first week ensured that I knew what was expected of me and how I could best spend my time.

Team Lunch at Samuels on Mill – would recommend the Steak Sandwich

Gaia Resources is a company with offices all over Australia and staff dotted around the major cities and this results in online communication becoming the new normal. Coming from an industry where face to face is the norm this was a change, it developed my communication skills and taught me that you have to be patient and succinct in getting your key points across. You may think that working in this virtual world would induce a sense of aloneness but Gaia Resources has successfully combated this through multiple activities. 

To start, the daily coffee catch-ups. When you are working in an office, many parts of your day are engaged in small talk and informal conversations between co-workers whereas working in a virtual office is where this becomes a challenge. The team at Gaia Resources has dedicated daily times daily for coffee catch-ups, and they are open to anyone and the start times vary to cater to the offices around Australia. The best part of these calls is getting a glimpse into other people’s lives, their pets and their hobbies, it is always a great way to spend some time between client meetings.

Waiting for the Culture Coffee Catch-up whilst working from home

Secondly, I have noticed at Gaia Resources how passionate the team is about their work and their hobbies. There is nothing better than having a company and it’s employees who have values that align with your own. I have noticed in my first months that the team always put a focus on ‘is this the right thing to do?’ both from a business and environmental perspective. It’s nice to see and helps to push me to do the best thing in my daily tasks.

Last but not least, Gaia Resources has good vibes (I’m gen Z, so this is my standard vernacular). What I mean by this is the Gaia Resources team is encouraged to grow and learn everyday or as much as they would like and if there is something that will help us in our role we are encouraged to go for it and enhance our skills. Everyone in the company is also only a message away, so if I can’t figure out the difference between Drupal and WordPress it’s only a few minutes before I have a full explanation. Moving forward with Gaia I am excited to expand my knowledge and learn more about each person in the company.

Starting this role at Gaia Resources has pushed me to learn new things, develop my online communication skills and refine my gif and meme crafting. Without the strong foundation I received in my early months and the support of my colleagues from coast to coast, I would not have the same level of confidence in my position that I currently do.

I have included some tips that I have gleaned from my time at Gaia Resources so far:

If you are looking for a company that will support you and provide you with the necessary tools to further your career please don’t hesitate to contact me or check our current job opportunities on LinkedIn.

Luke

The post Settling into my role at Gaia Resources appeared first on Gaia Resources.