This Library Life

From digitised versions of priceless manuscripts to born-digital artefacts created by contemporary depositors, the collections held by University of Cambridge Libraries and Archives increasingly require high-tech knowledge and care. We spoke to Caylin Smith, Head of Digital Preservation, to find out how her team is building a culture of digital stewardship that will safeguard the new frontier of archiving for generations to come.

When people think of preservation, they often picture fragile manuscripts or rare books. Increasingly, though, our collections are born digital. This means the content is created in digital form from the outset and has no physical or print equivalent. These materials depend on a wide variety of hardware and software to remain accessible, some of which may now be obsolete or have complex technical dependencies.

University of Cambridge Libraries and Archives' digital collections are of cultural, historic, and research significance and are used by students, staff, and researchers here in Cambridge and across the world. Without active care, we risk losing not just data or access to data, but also the evidence of how knowledge is created, used, and shared in the present day.

Digital stewardship ensures that future generations can discover, trust, and reuse this data. It is a shared responsibility across the Libraries and Archives that connects people, technology, and policy in support of long-term access.

My role is to lead the Digital Preservation team and a six-year programme that is establishing the services needed to manage digital collection materials. My goal is to put in place the infrastructure, workflows, and processes, along with the skills and confidence, to support everyone who manages digital material across the Libraries & Archives to steward it responsibly for the long term.

Digital Preservation at University of Cambridge Libraries and Archives is a collaborative effort that brings together a wide range of expertise. I work with digital preservation specialists, technical architects, developers, and curatorial staff to design and maintain the systems behind our services, alongside senior colleagues who guide the programme’s vision and long-term strategy.

No two days are the same! One day, I might be reviewing our Digital Preservation Strategy or planning for our long-term service model. Next, I could be working with curators and technical staff to capture requirements and review workflows. The common thread is collaboration and supporting colleagues across the Libraries & Archives to integrate digital stewardship into everyday practice.

My team supports the entire digital collection management lifecycle. Our Deposit Service enables users to securely upload files and metadata online, ensuring that important content is safeguarded. Meanwhile, the Transfer Service supports the seamless transition of digital files from storage carriers, making it easier to manage and preserve valuable information.

Our Workbench tool will empower users to engage in crucial collection management activities. This involves appraising and selecting content, efficiently searching preserved materials, and generating insightful reports from indexed metadata. We also embrace open-source solutions wherever possible, such as Fedora, which we use for our preservation repository

We are working with curatorial colleagues to deliver a service for accessing born-digital special collections. This is a particularly interesting challenge because it involves technical, legal, and security considerations around providing access to this type of material.

It's exciting to see the tools we have implemented take root across the Libraries and Archives, not as a specialist activity, but as part of how we manage collections every day. The Digital Preservation Programme runs until May 2027, and we are now focused on transitioning the services and capabilities we have built into regular, ongoing operations.

We are always keen to connect with colleagues who work with digital material or are interested in learning more. You can follow our progress and read about ongoing projects on the Digital Preservation at Cambridge University Libraries blog.