The European Commission on Preservation and Access ECPA was established in 1994 to promote activities aimed at keeping collections in European archives and libraries accessible over time. Books, documents, photographs, films, tapes and disks are all subject to decay. The digital revolution has introduced new problems of obsolescence of soft- and hardware. In order to keep our documentary heritage available for future generations of users, large-scale programmes must be developed for its preservation. The ECPA acted as a European platform for discussion and cooperation of heritage organizations in areas of preservation and access.
This project ended in July 2008. The project website is available thanks to the InternetArchive. It includes informations on important projects:
– SEPIA – Safeguarding European Photographic Images for Access
– The Preservation Map of Europe
– GRIP – Gateway for Resources and Information on Preservation
http://web.archive.org/web/20080607140452/http://www.knaw.nl/ecpa/