Sustaining Cultural Heritage Collections

Post Date

September 17th 2015

Application Due Date

December 1st 2015

Funding Opportunity Number

20151201-PF

CFDA Number(s)

45.149

Funding Instrument Type(s)

Grant

Funding Activity Categories

Humanities

Eligibility Categories

State Governments
County Governments
City or Township Governments
Special District Governments
Public and State Controlled Institutions of Higher Education
Federally Recognized Native American Tribal Governments
Non-Profits With 501 (c) (3) Status With The IRS (Except Higher Education Institutions)
Non-Profits Without 501 (c) (3) Status With The IRS (Except Higher Education Institutions)
Private Institutions of Higher Education

Funding

• Award Range:

  $1 - $350000

Grant Description

Sustaining Cultural Heritage Collections (SCHC) helps cultural institutions meet the complex challenge of preserving large and diverse holdings of humanities materials for future generations by supporting sustainable conservation measures that mitigate deterioration and prolong the useful life of collections. Libraries, archives, museums, and historical organizations across the country face an enormous challenge: to preserve collections that facilitate research, strengthen teaching, and provide opportunities for life-long learning in the humanities. Ensuring the preservation of books and manuscripts, photographs, sound recordings and moving images, archaeological and ethnographic artifacts, art, and historical objects requires institutions to implement measures that slow deterioration and prevent catastrophic loss. This work is best accomplished through preventive conservation, which encompasses managing relative humidity, temperature, light, and pollutants in collection spaces; providing protective storage enclosures and systems for collections; and safeguarding collections from theft and from natural and man-made disasters. As museums, libraries, archives, and other collecting institutions strive to be effective stewards of humanities collections, they must find ways to implement preventive conservation measures that are sustainable. This program therefore helps cultural repositories plan and implement preservation strategies that pragmatically balance effectiveness, cost, and environmental impact. Sustainable approaches to preservation can contribute to an institutionмs financial health, reduce its use of fossil fuels, and benefit its green initiatives, while ensuring that collections are well cared for and available for use in humanities programming, education, and research. All applicants, whether applying for planning or implementation projects, are required to focus on sustainable preventive conservation strategies.

Contact Information

• Agency

  National Endowment for the Humanities

• Office:

  None

• Agency Contact:

  Sustaining Cultural Heritage Collections
  Division of Preservation and Access
  National Endowment for the Humanities
  400 Seventh Street, SW
  Washington, DC 20506
  202-606-8570 or preservation@neh.gov
  
  
  preservation@neh.gov
  

• Agency Mailing Address:

  preservation@neh.gov

• Agency Email Address:

  preservation@neh.gov

• More Information:

  http://www.neh.gov/grants/preservation/sustaining-cultural-heritage-collections