Preservation Services has existed in some form at Harvard Library for over 300 years; its staff work to maintain, protect, and repair library collections, as well as develop and share best practices for preservation and conservation.

2020 has been a tumultuous year globally and at Harvard, as staff transitioned to remote work last spring and some returned to campus over the summer. Preservation Services has seen some especially emotional ups and downs, from celebrating two decades of the Weissman Preservation Center to mourning the passing of the center’s founding donor Paul Weissman ’52, who passed away at the beginning of October.

Paul Weissman and his wife, Harriet, said last spring they were honored to be associated with preservation staff’s work “to preserve countless treasures for use, both now and in the days to come.” In this forward-looking spirit, Preservation Services Director and Malloy-Rabinowitz Preservation Librarian Brenda Bernier sat down (virtually) with Harvard Library Communications to talk about preservation during a pandemic—and what comes next.

Continue reading : Preservation in a Pandemic – and Beyond By Harvard Library Communications Office October 29, 2020