The Digital Preservation Coalition’s quest to find and celebrate the very best work in digital preservation across all sectors has begun again this year, with today’s launch of the 2016 Digital Preservation Awards.

The prestigious Digital Preservation Awards is the most prominent celebration of achievement for those people and organisations who have made significant and innovative contributions to maintaining a digital legacy, and will culminate in a glittering awards ceremony on Wednesday 30th November 2016.

Last year big winners on the night included the University of Freiburg and partners for their ‘bwFLA Functional Long Term Archiving and Access’ project; Alasdair Bachell from the University of Glasgow with his work on Game Preservation in the UK; Adrian Brown for his book ‘Practical Digital Preservation: a how to guide for organizations of any size;’ and the University of Manchester for their ‘Carcanet Press Email Archive.’

It was a tremendous honour to receive the Teaching and Communication Award in 2014, alongside such an impressive array of other winners and finalists,” says Adrian Brown, winner of the Award for Teaching and Communications. “It is, of course, deeply gratifying to have one’s work recognised, but I also hope that, by raising awareness of the book, the award may have helped to inspire and empower organizations of all sizes to begin tackling digital preservation in a practical way.”

The finalists and winners will attract significant publicity and a deserved career boost, both at organisational and individual level. Those who walk away with a Digital Preservation Award on the night can be proud to claim to be amongst the best projects and practitioners within a rapidly growing and international field.

Winning the award has certainly raised the profile of digital preservation within our institution and has brought us recognition within the archival and digital preservation communities,” agrees 2014 award winner Fran Baker of the University of Manchester. “The work we did has subsequently fed directly into a Library-wide strategy project aimed at transforming the way we manage and preserve digital content, and deliver digital services to our customers.”

2016 sees the addition of a new award, creating six as follows:

• The Award for Research and Innovation recognises excellence in practical research and  innovation activities. The award includes a cash prize of £1000, a trophy and certificates.
• The Award for Teaching and Communications, recognising excellence in outreach, training and advocacy. The award includes a cash prize of £1000, a trophy and certificates.
• The Award for the Most Distinguished Student Work in Digital Preservation, encourages and recognises student work in digital preservation. The prize includes attendance at an international conference, a trophy and a certificate.
• The Award for the Most Outstanding Digital Preservation Initiative in Industry, encourages and recognises the adoption of digital preservation tools and approaches in a commercial environment. The award includes a cash prize of £1000, a trophy and certificates.
• The Award for Safeguarding the Digital Legacy, celebrates the practical application of preservation tools to protect at-risk digital objects. The award includes a cash prize of £1000, a trophy and certificates.
• The Digital Preservation Coalition Fellowship, this new award will be presented to an individual, recognising a sustained and impactful contribution to the digital preservation community.  The award includes a trophy, certificate and honorary personal membership of the DPC.

I would really encourage anyone who feels they would be eligible to apply for the 2016 awards,” says Alasdair Bachell, winner of the 2014 Award for the Most Distinguished Student Work. “The process is straightforward, and it’s a wonderful opportunity to showcase your work and be part of a fantastic celebration of the richness and diversity of our digital preservation community.”

The Digital Preservation Awards are open to all. There is no restriction on public or private sector and there is no restriction to whether the applicant is a member of the DPC or where they are based.

The Digital Preservation Awards are supported by leading organisations in this specialist field, including the Nationale Coalitie Digitale Duurzaamheid (NCDD) and National Records of Scotland.

Once again kindly hosted by the Wellcome Trust, their London premises on Euston Road will add to the glamour of the awards ceremony on Wednesday 30 th November 2016.

Full criteria for each category and the rules of entry are provided on the DPC website: http://www.dpconline.org/advocacy/awards/2016-digital- preservation-awards

The deadline for entries is 12 noon Tuesday 26th July 2016, so to be in with a chance of gaining recognition for your hard work, enter the Digital Preservation Awards 2016 today.