Topics in this newsletter:

• Berenschot chooses Atlantis for corporate historical collection
• New knowledge document AI and heritage
• Search through all collections
• Give your heritage website a boost with renewed behavior profiles

Berenschot chooses Atlantis for corporate historical collection

Berenschot is an independent Dutch management consultancy based in Utrecht with 500 employees worldwide that provides advice to both the business sector and the public sector. Berenschot has chosen Atlantis for the corporate historical collection. With this choice, Berenschot aims to digitally unlock and preserve its rich history, which dates back to its founding in 1938, for future generations.
Berenschot places great value on its cultural heritage. In 2006, the Berenschot Footprints Foundation was established with the goal of keeping the history of the firm alive and preserving its cultural heritage. By choosing Atlantis, Berenschot takes an important step in the digitization and preservation of its historical documents, allowing employees and interested parties easy access to valuable information about the history of the firm.

As a member of the Association of Business and History (VBH), Berenschot emphasizes the importance of historical awareness within the business sector. This collaboration with Atlantis aligns with the VBH’s objectives to make corporate archives accessible and to utilize historical knowledge for the future.

New Knowledge Document AI and Heritage

KVAN and the Digital Heritage Network have published the knowledge document ‘AI and Heritage’. The document provides heritage professionals with a legal framework for applying artificial intelligence (AI). ‘With this publication, we aim to help professionals leverage the opportunities of AI while respecting the law and the rights of all parties involved,’ say the authors Maarten Zeinstra and Marianne Loef.

AI is rapidly transforming the world, and the heritage sector also faces the challenge of integrating this technology responsibly. From automated tasks to improved accessibility and deeper insights into collections, AI offers countless possibilities for the sector. At the same time, its use raises legal questions about copyright, database rights, privacy, and the AI regulation. Additionally, there is uncertainty surrounding text and data mining of heritage collections for training artificial intelligence.

The Knowledge Document ‘AI and Heritage’ is intended as a reference document for the sector and provides concrete guidelines to address these challenges.

It addresses topics such as:

Practical cases: how do you deal with AI and the discussed laws in practice?

Applications of AI in the heritage sector: digitization, accessibility, and more.

Legal framework: the AI regulation, Archive Act, Copyright Act, Database Act, and the GDPR.

Search through all collections

The public environment of Atlantis not only provides access to collections from the Atlantis management environment. It also offers the possibility to search external systems, such as e-Depots or third-party databases. With one search query, all relevant collections can be searched simultaneously, regardless of where they are stored.
This way, our public environment is also used to bring together collections from external systems. This approach consolidates collections and presents them to the public in a consistent manner. The search forms dynamically adjust based on the selected collections. After a search query across multiple collections, dynamic filter options are provided, and there is the option to pose a deeper search question within the search results.

Additionally, collections, whether from Atlantis or an external system, can utilize extensions such as requests, web shops, annotations, crowdsourcing, and the storytelling module.

As an example, we would like to highlight the website of Kempens Erfgoed. This is a heritage portal initiated by the heritage cells Kempens Karakter, Stuifzand, Erfgoed Voorkempen, and Erfgoed Noorderkempen. Here you can find various information from different databases accessible through one search environment. More than 100,000 local newspaper pages, many thousands of photos, religious collections, posters, and objects.

Give your heritage website a boost with renewed behavior profiles

In the renewed guide Search, Experience, Create, and Admire, eight different behavior profiles are presented, which help heritage institutions better align their websites and apps with the diverse ways users experience digital heritage. These profiles range from people who quickly seek specific information to users who prefer to discover and create something with the heritage. By applying these insights, heritage websites can not only become more user-friendly but also better meet the needs of different target groups.

In the latest NDE podcast, Mirjam Verloop and Erica van Doorn discuss how heritage institutions can implement these profiles in practice. Erica talks about the approach of the University Library Utrecht, which has optimized its website based on these behavior profiles. This helps them better respond to user expectations, improving the accessibility and usability of their digital platforms and increasing visitor engagement.

In addition to the practical tips in the guide, Atlantis offers the possibility to create a public environment or heritage website that aligns with these renewed behavior profiles. With Atlantis, you can set up your heritage website to match the search needs of your users.

Whether you are a smaller institution looking to present your collection online or a larger organization wanting to stimulate more interaction, Atlantis provides the tools to enhance the digital experience and strengthen the connection with your audience.