Questionnaire on disaster planning

How well prepared are you for a disaster?

The United Kingdom and Ireland Blue Shield Organisation (UKIRB) is
seeking to assess the level of disaster preparedness in the cultural
heritage institutions of the UK and Ireland. In order to gather
information, it has mounted a Disaster Contingency Plan
questionnaire on its web site, for completion by museums, libraries,
archives, galleries and institutions from the built heritage. The
results of the questionnaire will enable the UKIRB to target its
work over the next three years, ensuring that the disaster planning
needs of the cultural heritage sector are met. If you would like to
take part, please go to <URL:http://www.bl.uk/blueshield/> and fill
in the Disaster Contingency Plan questionnaire. The questionnaire
will be available from 3 October. The deadline for completion is 31
December 2001.

The Blue Shield is the cultural equivalent of the Red Cross. It is
the symbol specified in the 1954 Hague Convention for marking
cultural sites to give them protection from attack in the event of
armed conflict. The International Committee of the Blue Shield
exists to work to protect the world's cultural heritage threatened
by wars and natural disasters. The UKIRB has been set up to support
the international initiative and to raise national awareness of
threats, both man-made and natural, to the cultural heritage. It is
a cross-sectoral body covering archives, libraries, museums,
galleries and the built heritage in the UK and Ireland. It brings
together the knowledge, experience and networks of the UK and
Ireland representatives of the International Council on Archives
(ICA), the International Council of Museums (ICOM), the
International Council on Monuments and Sites (ICOMOS), and the
International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions
(IFLA), and is administered by the National Preservation Office.

Further information is available at
<URL:http://www.bl.uk/blueshield/> and from

    The National Preservation Office
    The British Library, 96 Euston Road
    London NW1 2DB
    +44 207 412 7048,
    Fax: +44 207 412 7796
    npo [at] bl__uk


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                  Conservation DistList Instance 15:28
                 Distributed: Tuesday, October 2, 2001
                       Message Id: cdl-15-28-002
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