About
The Association of
Israeli Archivists (AIA) was established in 1950 following an invitation to
attend the first meeting of the ICA - International Council on Archives - and it
began its work in 1956. The AIA is a non-profit organization with a membership
of about 400 archivists and records managers from archives in a variety of settings:
government ministries, municipalities, small towns and villages, universities,
colleges, research institutions, health institutions, the private sector, and
of course other cultural heritage organizations. The AIA includes members of all religions:
Jews, Christians, Muslims and Druze.
The AIA is run by a board
consisting of 11 elected members and by various Working Committees: The Committee
for Professional Training and Development, The Archival Ethics Committee, the Committee
for Equipment, Buildings, Conservation and Restoration of Archival Material, The
Committee for Computerizing Archives, The Membership Committee, The International
Relations Committee, and Finance Committee.
In addition, there are
ad-hoc committees, such as the committee working on changes to the Israeli
Archives Law, and the committee working on a dictionary of archival
terminology. The AIA has a secretary, treasurer and auditor.
The AIA does not employ
paid workers and all activity is voluntary.
The AIA's budget
includes membership fees and financial support given by the Ministry of Culture
for professional training.
AIA members are
encouraged to improve their professional knowledge by attending seminars,
conferences, courses and workshops. The association holds six seminars a year
and an annual three day conference. It also runs courses on the legal aspects of archival work, specific archival
computer applications, and developing archival management skills. Once a year, the
AIA commemorates its founder, George Herlitz, and gives prizes to outstanding
archivists or to those who have contributed in an exceptional way to the world
of archives during that year. The AIA promotes post-graduate academic studies
at Bar-Ilan University, and certified diploma studies at academic colleges.
The association publishes
an annual periodical called "Archion", which includes articles on
professional issues, translated abstracts of articles published in other
languages in the world press, and from time to time translations of complete
articles.
The AIA works in
cooperation with the State Archives, and is active in the ICA. Some of its
representatives participate in international committees (Professional Training
Committee, the Committee of Municipal Association, the General Assembly of the
Professional Associations, the Committee of Religious Institutions and the
Committee of the Universities).
There are two other archives
associations in Israel: "The Association of Archives Managers in Local
Authorities", and "The Organization of Archivists in Small
Communities".