The Pacific and Regional Archive for Digital Sources in Endangered
Cultures (PARADISEC) has been on the cutting edge of digital archiving,
building a significant historical collection and community of practice
engaged in the preservation and accessibility of research materials. Over
the ten years of PARADISEC’s operation, the repository has grown to
represent over 860 languages from across the world, including cultural
materials from the Pacific region and South-East Asia, North America,
Africa and Europe. With over 5000 hours of audio, the extent of the
archival material, as well as the inclusion of a variety of styles such
as songs, narratives and elicitation, has resulted in an invaluable
resource for researchers and communities alike.

PARADISEC’s innovation in archival practice allows communities to
access original recordings of their own cultural heritage, and provides
fieldworkers with a wealth of primary material. Research, Records and Responsibility
explores developments in collaborative archiving practice between
archives and the communities they serve and represent, incorporating
case studies of historical recordings, visual data and material culture.
It brings together the work of Australian and international scholars,
commemorating ten years of PARADISEC, and reflects on the development and future directions of
research and language archiving.