31 July, 2013

It’s easy to understand what drove people to create a petition against the possible destruction of Barnardo’s considerable film and photography archive (read the Third Sector article here). With space at a premium, shelves and boxes of material that has already been digitised can seem like an easy cost-saving target. But in drawing people together and reigniting passion for a cause, there can be no competition between an emailed link, or Dropbox folder, and the experience of handing someone an old, battered photograph.

We all spend a lot of time trying to persuade others to support our cause, whether they are potential donors, funders, volunteers, policy influencers or media commentators. But perhaps charities with a wealth of history at their fingertips (or, more likely, in their basements) don’t create enough opportunities to put that history out in the public domain, to be seen and held. Touring ‘museum’ style events, and show and tell sessions at key meetings, could provide excellent opportunities to draw people in and get people talking. Let’s not miss out on a great chance to look away from our screens, for a change.

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