Policies

To locate, acquire, arrange, describe, preserve, and make available all original records pertaining to the life and teaching of the founder of Shambhala, the Vidyadhara the Venerable Chögyam Trungpa, Rinpoche, and of the Sakyong Mipham Rinpoche(Ösel Rangdrol Mukpo) and of the Mukpo family.

To locate, acquire, arrange, describe, preserve, and make available selected records pertaining to the life and teaching of the teachers, colleagues, family, heirs, successors, and students of the Vidyadhara the Venerable Chögyam Trungpa, Rinpoche, including but not limited to: the Vajra Regent Ösel Tendzin, His Holiness the 16th Gyalwa Karmapa, His Holiness Dilgo Khyentse Rinpoche, and His Eminence Jamgon Kongtrul Rinpoche.

To locate, acquire, arrange, describe, preserve and make available selected records of Vajradhatu, Nalanda, Shambhala, and other organizations founded by the Vidyadhara the Venerable Chögyam Trungpa, Rinpoche, or his family, heirs and successors. The Shambhala Archives will be the repository for all institutional records of Vajradhatu, Nalanda, and Shambhala deemed to have international significance, regardless of their country of origin. Institutional records of regional interest may be stored in other regional repositories, except that the Shambhala Archives itself will be the regional repository for records created in Nova Scotia. The Shambhala Archives will assist regional archives in establishing and maintaining archival collections, based on archival principles and practice. The Shambhala Archive will consult with the Boards of Directors of organizations founded by the Vidyadhara the Venerable Chögyam Trungpa, Rinpoche, or his family, heirs, and successors, on the establishment of records management policies, including the transfer of archival documents to the Archives.

To assist in the arrangement, description, and preservation of records pertaining to the development of the Buddhist and Shambhala teachings in North America, Europe and throughout the world. If there is no adequate alternate facility, the Shambhala Archives, may at the discretion of the Director, include such records in the repository of the Shambhala Archives.

To assist in the arrangement, description, and preservation of records pertaining to the Buddhist religion, particularly those pertaining to the Kagyü and Nyingma schools of Tibetan Buddhism, that may be endangered, wherever they are stored. If there is no adequate alternate facility, the Shambhala Archives, may, at the discretion of the Director, include such records in the repository of the Shambhala Archives.

To assist in the arrangement, description, and preservation of records pertaining to the Shambhala arts or to the traditional arts and culture of Nova Scotia, if these records are determined to be at risk and help is requested. If there is no adequate alternate facility, the Shambhala Archives, may, at the discretion of the Director, include such records in the repository of the Shambhala Archives.

II. The acquisition, arrangement, description and preservation of the records in any media pertaining to the life and teachings of the Vidyadhara the Venerable Chögyam Trungpa, Rinpoche, shall take precedence over any other activities.

III. Notwithstanding number II above, preservation shall be given the highest priority of the activities of the Shambhala Archives.

IV. Funding and staff will be allocated to reflect the mandate and the priorities of the Shambhala Archives as outlined in this statement of purpose.

The statement of purpose of the Shambhala Archives was approved by the Shambhala International Board of Directors in January 1996 at their quarterly meeting in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada.

Access Policy of the Shambhala Archives

Purpose

This document is designed to articulate the access policy of the Shambhala Archives, to outline its principles, goals, and areas of specialization, and to define the procedures involved in providing access.

Definition of terms

Access — An archival term for the authority to obtain information from or perform research with archival materials.

Open Access – Records, groups of records and fonds that are available for any member of the public, with no restrictions.

Restricted Access – Restrictions are of different types. For some records, groups of records and fonds, written permission is required from the Director of the Archives, a member of the Board or an Officer of Shambhala, or the creator of the records. Access to some records may also be restricted because of preservation concerns. Access to some records is restricted based on Buddhist practice or study pre-requisites. These restrictions are generally set by the creator of the records or the copyright holder.

Closed Access – Records, groups of records and fonds that are not available. In general, there is a time limit on closed access, and in the future these records may be available, either for restricted or open access.

Mandate

The mandate of the Shambhala Archives is attached. The Access Policy of the Archives has been formulated on the basis of the mandate and its application.

Goals

In order to achieve its mandate, the Shambhala Archives has set the following goals, relevant to access:

  1.  To provide appropriate access in a systematic fashion to the records contained within the Shambhala Archives, while at the same time respecting the restrictions set by the organization, the creators of the records, or the copyright holders.
  1. Please also see the “Activities and Goals” listed on the website of the Archives: www.shambhalashop.com/archives

Principles

  1. As stated in the mandate:  The acquisition, arrangement, description, preservation of and access to the records in any media pertaining to the life and teachings of the Vidyadhara the Venerable Chögyam Trungpa, Rinpoche, takes precedence over other activities. Notwithstanding this, preservation shall be given the highest priority of the activities of the Shambhala Archives.   Funding and staff are allocated to reflect the mandate and the priorities of the Shambhala Archives.
  1. The Archives strives to provide equal access to all interested persons.
  2. The Archives recognizes that certain types of records are created under the assumption of privacy and this must be respected. The Archives will strive to strike a balance between researchers’ need to know and the records creators’ expectation of confidentiality.
  3. If, due to limitations in funding and staff, the Archives has to prioritize the order in which it will provide access and how promptly it can respond to requests, decisions will be made on the basis of several factors:

        — the order in which requests are received will generally be an important deciding factor in when requests are fulfilled.

        — the complexity of the request, the number of records requested and complications in obtaining permission to use or access a record may affect how quickly a request is filled.

        — requests to use material in a format that will reach a number of people (such as inclusion of a photograph in a book or a clip used in a broadcast)  will, in some instances, take precedence over requests for individual study or use.

  1. If providing access to a record will endanger it from a preservation standpoint, access may be denied. The Archives will strive to remedy the preservation issue and then make the record available. In some instances, users will be asked to pay a fee for a conservation treatment, such as a digital transfer, if they desire immediate access.
  2. Access is provided in conformity with the capabilities of the Shambhala Archives to manage acquired material; these capabilities depend on the physical condition and volume of documents under consideration, the mode of acquisition and the financial, human, and material resources available for arrangement, description, preservation, and access.
  3. The Archives recognizes that its ability to provide access is related to the level of arrangement and description of its records. Therefore, the Archives places a high priority on arrangement and description, eliminating or lessening its accession backlog, and continued development of databases to provide both on site and remote access to descriptions of records.
  4. There is a difference between providing access to a record and providing permission for reproduction, exhibition or performance based on the record. It is the responsibility of the Archives to inform users of possible restrictions based on copyright etc. It is the responsibility of the user to obtain permission prior to reproduction or use of the material.
  5. Access may be restricted due to preservation concerns.
  6. Access to material in the Shambhala Archives is also provided through publications and recordings based on material in the Archives collection.

Access to Specific Fonds

  1. For information about specific fonds or individual records and record groups within the Shambhala Archives, please see the following finding aids, based on RAD descriptions:

1) The Vajradhatu and Nalanda Foundation Information Office Photographic Fonds Finding Aid

2) Guide to the Video Recovery Project of the Shambhala Archives

3) Guide to the Sound Recordings of Vajradhatu Recordings, Volumes One – Three.

4) The Chögyam Trungpa Rinpoche Manuscript Fonds Finding Aid

These finding aids are available in the office of the Shambhala Archives. Fonds level descriptions from several of these finding aids are also available on line, under “Facilities and Holdings” at www.shambhalashop.com/archives.

  1. The Shambhala Archives also has a number of databases that contain information on individual audio recordings, transcripts, poems, and other records. Access to these databases is currently available only through the office of the Archives.

Access Procedures

  1. Requests for access to material in the Shambhala Archives will in general be made in writing. The user will fill out a form provided by the Archives if the request is made on site. Requests by e-mail will be considered written requests.
  2. In the case of a phone request or a request in person not made in writing, the Archives will fill out the online or written request and keep a record of that request.
  3. The Archives and the various staff members fulfilling requests will keep a written or online record of all requests received and fulfilled.
  4. Routine requests for access to open records may be fulfilled by any qualified staff member of the Archives.
  5. Requests for access to restricted records must be approved by the director of the Archives, the director of the Department within which the Archives falls, or those appointed by the Archives to make these decisions, in consultation with the creators of the records or other copyright holders.
  6. The Archives will provide to all users a schedule of fees and time required for various services and items provided, such as duplication of photographs, audio tapes, transcripts, etc.
  7. The director of the Archives, the director of the department within which the Archives falls, officers of Shambhala, and those appointed by the Archives to make such decisions may reduce or waive fees and may “fast track” requests.

Implementation and Review of the Policy

The Shambhala Archives will develop and document specific practices to implement the access policy. The forms that support implementation of this policy will be reviewed for conformity with the policy and also to help in revising the policy as necessary. The policy will be reviewed on a regular basis, at least once every three years, to update it and to update practices that arise from the policy.

Statement of Responsibility

This policy has been created in consultation with the staff of the Shambhala Archives and the Department of Media and Communications of Shambhala International.  The staff of the Shambhala Archives are responsible for implementing the policy and enforcing it.

Approved on September 6, 2006.

 

Preservation Policy of the Shambhala Archives

October 2006

Purpose

This document is designed to articulate the preservation policy of the Shambhala Archives, to outline its principles, goals, and areas of specialization and to define the roles and responsibilities of those involved in the acquisition process.

Mandate

The mandate of the Shambhala Archives is attached. The Preservation Policy of the Archives has been formulated on the basis of the policy and its application. In particular, the policy reflects the following points in the Mandate:

II.The acquisition, arrangement, description and preservation of the records in any media pertaining to the life and teachings of the Vidyadhara the Venerable Chögyam Trungpa, Rinpoche, shall take precedence over any other activities.

III.  Notwithstanding number II above, preservation shall be given the highest priority of the activities of the Shambhala Archives.

IV.Funding and staff will be allocated to reflect the mandate and the priorities of the Shambhala Archives as outlined in this statement of purpose.

Scope

The Archives preserves records in the following media and formats:

  • textual
  • photographs
  • graphic materials, including original artwork, posters, stationery, and brochures
  • moving images, including film and video
  • cartographic
  • sound recordings
  • architectural records
  • electronic records
  • books that accompany or complement acquired archival records or that document persons, events and activities relevant to the mandate.
  • Newspapers and newspaper clippings that accompany or complement acquired archival records or that document persons, events and activities relevant to the mandate.
  • Artefacts documenting the person, events and activities relevant to the mandate.

The archives does not acquire:

  • Copies of any of the above, unless originals are not available or are damaged.

Principles

  1. Financial and human resources available to the Shambhala Archives are limited. Therefore, low cost but effective preservation measures for large groups of records are preferable, except in exceptional cases, to high cost expensive conservation treatments of individual items.
  2. Control of temperature and humidity is the most efficient and effective tool in preserving records.
  3. The decision to adopt a new technology must be based on the archival longevity of the format as well as any other factors. Digital is not always the archival solution. The latest technological advance is not always the best. The Shambhala Archives is in general a late adopter of new technologies, by design.
  4. Each medium presents unique preservation challenges. In particular, the audio and moving image records in the Archive require extensive conservation initiatives if they are to be preserved.
  5. It is less time consuming and more cost effective to combine simple conservation tasks with accessioning, arrangement, and other archival tasks. When accessioning and/or arrangement of records takes place, for example, this is an opportunity to rehouse media and remove things like paperclips and staples from records.
  6. Handling of records is one of the main causes of damage to them. Therefore, proper handling procedures by archives’ staff and users is of great importance. Educating staff and users in these procedures is a high priority.
  7. Preservation priorities are set by the staff of the Archives and should be reviewed systematically and periodically, in consultation with archival experts. Priorities must reflect the budget and sources of funds available to the Archives.

Goals

In order to achieve its mandate, the Shambhala Archives has set the following goals, relevant to preservation:

  1. The provision of environmentally appropriate storage in archival containers for all media.
  2. Training in and implementation of proper care and handling of all archival media.
  3. Digital remastering of all analogue audio records deemed to have sufficient value for future research/use.
  4. Digital remastering of all analogue video records deemed to have sufficient value for future research/use.
  5. Completion of transcription of contents of selected audio recordings, as a form of preservation of the content of the recording.
  6. Copying of endangered photographic records in whatever formats are deemed most archival at the time of copying.
  7. Off site duplicate storage of all records deemed to have sufficient value for future research/use.
  8. Provision of appropriate access to copies or originals of records, while respecting the unique preservation needs of each record.
  9. Training in and implementation of disaster planning and prevention.

Implementation and Review of the Policy

The Shambhala Archives will develop and document specific practices to implement the preservation policy. The forms that support implementation of this policy will be reviewed for conformity with the policy and also to help in revising the policy as necessary. The policy will be reviewed on a regular basis, at least once every three years, to update it and to update practices that arise from the policy.

Documents on the digitization and copying of audio and video records in the Archives have been created as part of the Video Recovery Project and the Audio Recovery Project of the Archives. These are available from the Technical Director of the Archives, Gordon Kidd. They outline a number of policies and procedures for care and handling, as well as conservation of these media.

Statement of Responsibility

This policy has been created in consultation with the staff of the Shambhala Archives and the Department of Media and Communications of Shambhala International.  The staff of the Shambhala Archives is responsible for implementing the policy and enforcing it.

First approved on October 4, 2006.

Acquisition Policy of the Shambhala Archives

16 May 2006

Purpose

This document is designed to articulate the acquisition policy of the Shambhala Archives, to outline its principles, goals, and areas of specialization and to define the roles and responsibilities of those involved in the acquisition process.

Definition of terms

Acquisition — An addition to the holdings of the Shambhala Archives.  The most common modes of acquisition are through deposit, gift, bequest, loan, purchase and/or transfer.

Bequest — Transfer of custody and title to documents by last will and testament.

Deposit — The mode of acquisition by which an individual or corporate body temporarily places records in the custody of the Archives without transfer of ownership rights and titles. A deposit may become a loan or a gift.

Gift — The mode of acquisition by which an individual or corporate body transfers, freely and without charge, the full ownership of records to the Archives.

Loan — Temporary acquisition that can be renewed or converted into a gift.

Transfer – Transfer of custody and responsibility for records generated within or belonging to the organization Shambhala or its affiliates. Transfers are made when active records become archival.

Provenance — Archival principles which stipulate that the records of a person or corporate body should be kept together in their original order in the fonds in which they were created.

Territoriality — Archival principle which stipulates that archives should be preserved within the territory in which they were created.

Mandate

The mandate of the Shambhala Archives is attached. The Acquisition Policy of the Archives has been formulated on the basis of the policy and its application.

The Archives may also acquire and provides access to records deemed by recognized officials of Shambhala to be necessary for the organization to preserve, whether or not these are covered in the Mandate. In an instance where the Archives is asked to retain such records, the decision to do so will be made by the Director of the Archives, or in the absence of a Director, by the head of the department under which the Archives falls.

Scope of the mandate

The Archives acquires records in the following forms:

v  textual       

v  photographs

v  graphic materials, including original artwork, posters, stationery, and brochures

v  moving images, including film and video

v  cartographic

v  sound recordings

v  architectural records

v  electronic records

v  books that accompany or complement acquired archival records or that document persons, events and activities relevant to the mandate.

v  Newspapers and newspaper clippings that accompany or complement acquired archival records or that document persons, events and activities relevant to the mandate.

v  Artefacts documenting the person, events and activities relevant to the mandate.

The archives does not acquire:

v    Copies of any of the above, unless originals are not available or are damaged.

Goals

In order to achieve its mandate, the Shambhala Archives has set the following goals, relevant to acquisition:

  1. To systematically contact all of the Shambhala centers to: a) work with them on developing their own programs for archival preservation, b) to acquire documentation of the archival materials in their centers, and c) to arrange for transfer of important records they are unable to preserve or which are central to the mandate of the Archives.
  1.   To review and improve the accessioning procedures and forms of the Archives.
  1. Development of a records management program for Shambhala International and its affiliates.
  1. To review the records in the Shambhala Archives and to make a plan to preserve significant records as well as to determine what records should be deaccessioned.
  1. Please also see the Goals listed on the website of the Archives: www.shambhalashop.com/archives

Principles

  1. As stated in the mandate:  The acquisition, arrangement, description and preservation of the records in any media pertaining to the life and teachings of the Vidyadhara the Venerable Chögyam Trungpa, Rinpoche, takes precedence over any other activities. Notwithstanding this, preservation shall be given the highest priority of the activities of the Shambhala Archives.   Funding and staff are allocated to reflect the mandate and the priorities of the Shambhala Archives.
  1. An accession record of all archival acquisitions will be kept and made available to archival staff, donors, depositors and other users of the Archives.
  2. The Archives will re-evaluate periodically all acquisitions in order to either preserve or deaccession them as the case may be.  Deaccessioned material may be returned to its owner or to other repositories. Records of deaccessioned materials will be kept by the administration of the Archives.
  3. All material is acquired in conformity with recognized archival principles such as provenance and territoriality in order to avoid the mutilation of fonds.
  4. All material is acquired with consideration for the acquisition mandates and best practices of other institutions and archival repositories, namely those mentioned in the mandate of the Archives and archival institutions within Nova Scotia and Canada as a whole.
  5. Acquisitions are made in conformity with the capabilities of the Shambhala Archives to manage acquired material; these capabilities depend on the physical condition and volume of documents under consideration, the mode of acquisition and the financial, human, and material resources available for arrangement, description, preservation, and access.

Areas of specialization and priorities

Sound and Moving Image Recordings for documenting  Dharma Talks. These are described in the Shambhala International Policy Handbook for Documenting Dharma Talks, attached.

Records relevant to the mandate generated from sources other than those already mentioned, such as oral history interviews related to the Archives mandate, conducted by researchers, journalists, historians, and others.

Photographs and other archival materials created by private individuals, relevant to the mandate of the Archives and its priorities.

The Shambhala Archives needs to establish procedures and forms for regular transfers of published materials, relevant to its mandate, from Kalapa Recordings, Vajradhatu Publications, and published and unpublished materials from the Nalanda Translation Committee, all of whom acquire, preserve and produce materials relevant to the mandate of the Archives.

Records related to the functions of the departments of Shambhala International and its affiliates.

Priorities: In particular, the Archives wishes to acquire records related to the life and teachings of Chogyam Trungpa Rinpoche, his family, heirs and successors as outlined in the mandate.

Modes and mechanisms of acquisition

The preferred modes of acquisition are by:

v    Transfer of original recordings, administrative records, and other records from Kalapa Recordings, Shambhala International, its centers and other affiliates

v    Gift/donation

All acquisitions, other than the transfer of sound and video recordings from Kalapa Recordings, must include a written legal agreement or an exchange of correspondence specifying the rights and obligations of each party.

At the request of a donor, a monetary appraisal of the fonds or collection may be obtained for material donated.  The cost of the monetary appraisal is the responsibility of the donor. The appraisal and any accompanying receipt cannot be issued prior to the signing of a written agreement respecting the gift.

Implementation and Review of the Policy

The Shambhala Archives will develop and document specific practices to implement the acquisition policy. The forms that support implementation of this policy will be reviewed for conformity with the policy and also to help in revising the policy as necessary. The policy will be reviewed on a regular basis, at least once every three years, to update it and to update practices that arise from the policy.

Statement of Responsibility

This policy has been created in consultation with the staff of the Shambhala Archives and the Department of Media and Communications of Shambhala International.  The staff of the Shambhala Archives are responsible for implementing the policy and enforcing it.

First approved on May 16, 2006.

 

All documentation relative to the acquisition will be placed in an acquisition file.

Procedures, standards, criteria and other records relative to acquisition

  1. Acquisition activities will occur in accordance with the principles outlined in the Council of Nova Scotia Archives’ Cooperative Acquisition Strategy.

Roles and responsibilities

Archivist:

Archives/Acquisitions Committee:

Supervisors:

Conflict of interest guidelines

Members of the staff of ________________________________ wishing to acquire archival material which falls within the acquisition policy through trade or purchase for their own personal use, enjoyment or profit, require permission from ___________________________.

Approval of policy

This policy was approved on _____________ by_______________________.

Distribution of policy

This policy will be distributed to:

 staff

 members of the Council of Nova Scotia Archives

 Public Archives of Nova Scotia

 to other interested organizations and individuals

Review of policy

This policy will be reviewed every _______ years.

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