Projects

Endangered Archives

Preserving Collective Knowledge at Risk

Cultural heritage and historical records worldwide face ever growing threats from conflict, instability, and natural disasters. To prevent the loss of this collective memory, Internet Archive Switzerland seeks to establish an initiative called Endangered Archives.

In cooperation with UNESCO and other well established organisations we aim to rescue vulnerable materials by providing a secure digital haven. Our strategy involves:

Global Partnerships: Collaborating with public and private institutions to identify at-risk records. With a UNESCO conference planned for November 2026 in Paris, we are taking a concrete step in this direction.

Secure Preservation: Preserving copies in Switzerland, utilizing within the Swiss legal boundaries the nation’s neutrality, stability, and advanced infrastructure to shield threatened archives from harm.

Legal Accessibility: We reject the concept of "dark archives", because history should not be hidden. To ensure these collections remain vital we will work with Internet Archives around the world.

The Endangered Archives initiative seeks to ensure that humanity’s historical legacy is both protected and remains a resource for future generations.