-------- Original Message --------
Subject: NEW CONSERVATION/PRESERVATION WEB SITE
Date: Wed, 20 Dec 2000 10:38:34 -0500
From: Jamie Doyle <jdoyle@nedcc.org>

New RAP Web Site
Provides Information from
 Conservation, Preservation Centers

The Regional Alliance for Preservation (RAP) announces a new centralized
source for information and education on collections conservation and
preservation, now available on the Web.  The start-up of the Web site is
funded by the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS), a federal
grant-making agency that fosters leadership and innovation by supporting
museums and libraries.  Museums, libraries, archives, and other
repositories
of cultural heritage are invited to visit the joint Web site, at
<www.rap-arcc.org>, for comprehensive access to the publications and
services of the nation's nonprofit regional conservation centers and
preservation field services.  The site is geared to support training of
staff and to provide a ready reference for conservation and preservation
professionals.

        The Web site provides a guide to the Regional Alliance for
Preservation
(RAP), 15 nonprofit centers located throughout the United States.  It
includes a bibliography of hundreds of technical publications created by
the
participating centers with links to the online text or to the creating
center.  Some of the centers have received support from the National
Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) to create individual technical
leaflets
that appear or are referenced on the site.

        Users can search the site for information about their specific
conservation
and preservation needs.  Disaster response, pest management,
environmental
control, and staff training are only a few of the topics.  Site users
can
locate educational leaflets on conservation treatment of a wide variety
of
media, including ethnographic objects, paintings, books, furniture,
textile,
and photographic materials.

The site features:
7       an extensive annotated bibliography of publications
7       a starter kit for collections managers,  containing  how-to
technical
leaflets, many of which were previously unavailable to the public
7       geographical locations and contact points for all RAP
participants,
including email
7       listings of centers' specialties to help guide users to
appropriate
centers, and
7       a list of links to key Web resources.

The joint Web site is the most recent project of RAP, a national
alliance
whose members include all members of the Association of Regional
Conservation Centers (ARCC) and all preservation field service programs
funded by NEH.  RAP serves as an allied force to assist a wide variety
of
cultural institutions with collections care activities.

The Northeast Document Conservation Center spearheaded the site's
development.  Further information is available from the Web site itself,
<www.rap-arcc.org>, or from Steve Dalton, Northeast Document
Conservation
Center, by email at <dalton@nedcc.org>.