IPEAFRO Collection - Abdias do Nascimento Archives, 1926-2010
The archive comprises historical documents generated or received by Abdias do Nascimento (1914-2011) or by the organization he founded in 1926 (IPEAFRO: Instituto de Pesquisas e Estudos Afro Brasileiros). The collection reflects lesser-known aspects of the history and culture of Brazil, Latin America, and the Caribbean in the 20th and 21st century, especially in relation to Afro-descendant communities and their cultural and social initiatives in favor of civil and human rights, in their dialogue with global, national and Latin American and the Caribbean society.
It consists of about 25 linear meters of text documents, 223 cassettes, 64 vinyl records, 267 audio-visual documents on analogue media (VHS tapes, Beta Cam, U-Matic), 150 audio-visual records in digital format (mini-dv videos, DVD and external hard drives), 20,693 iconographic elements (6,123 photographs on paper; 13,528 negatives and positives in color and black and white). The collection includes essays, reports, annotations, manuscripts, interviews, correspondence, magazines, theatre programs, scripts, newspaper articles, speeches and laws, posters, and other historical records.
Risks encountered
Environmental issues
| Identified risks | Level of risk |
|---|---|
Moisture | High |
Temperature | High |
Light (visible light, ultraviolet radiation, etc.) | Moderate |
Dust | High |
Pollution | Moderate |
Pests (rodents, animals, insects, etc.) | Low |
Microorganisms (bacteria, mould, etc.) | High |
Management or organizational issues
| Identified risks | Level of risk |
|---|---|
Lack of maintenance, including cleaning | Moderate |
Inadequate building | High |
Building with structural damage | Low |
Lack of an adequate warehouse | Moderate |
Lack of boxes and/or archive materials | Moderate |
Lack of human resources | Moderate |
Lack of security measures | Low |
Insufficient budget to operate | High |
The institution´s low resources for the acquisition of suitable packaging items and for hiring more trained professionals may compromise the maintenance of the preservation work and the continuous management of the document heritage.
Natural disaster risks
| Identified risks | Level of risk |
|---|---|
Fires | Moderate |
Rains | Low |
Mudslides or landslides | None |
Floods | Low |
Hurricanes, cyclones, storms | None |
Earthquakes | None |
Tsunamis | None |
Volcanic eruptions | None |
Temperature increase | Moderate |
From the natural disasters point of view, the main risk factor is temperature increase, especially in the summer period, since the institution is located in a hot and humid city (Rio de Janeiro, Brazil).
Political and/or social risks
| Identified risks | Level of risk |
|---|---|
Armed conflicts | Low |
Illegal trafficking of documents | Low |
Thefts or robberies | Moderate |
Vandalism | Low |
Threatening socio-cultural environment | Moderate |
Lack of support/public policies | High |
The preservation of the black memory in Brazil is directly related to the way the state has been treating the black population, who endured more than 300 years of slavery and, also, its consequences in the post-abolition period. This context entails racism, violence and exclusion. Therefore, this systematic erasing of the black populations histories and experiences reveals the need of reparation-aimed public policies and actions, in order to guarantee the preservation of these historical records.
Environment (location) issues
| Identified risks | Level of risk |
|---|---|
Material/storage units | Moderate |
Furniture | Moderate |
Room or warehouse | High |
Building | Low |
Site or neighbourhood | Low |
Area or region, beyond the neighbourhood | Low |
The greatest challenge for the preservation of IPEAFRO´s heritage documents is the inadequacy of its current storage facility, as well as the need of proper materials for treatment, storage, packaging and maintenance of the collection.
Indicators
| Identified risks | |
|---|---|
Management Plan | Partially |
A conservation plan is being developed by IPEAFRO, involving archival and conservation professionals linked to the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro. The plan will be ready by the end of 2023 and will be implemented in 2024. | |
Response Protocol | Partially |
This response protocol is being developed alongside the conservation plan, and will also be ready by the end of 2023. | |
Documentary heritage digitization | Yes, partially |
Documentary heritage availability on the internet | Yes, partially |
The collection requires managing the exposure to light, heat and dust, since its current storage facility was not originally designed to store collections. Therefore, to guarantee the documents preservation, we use fans and air conditioning, as well as other adaptations to overcome temperature changes and the proliferation of microorganisms.