"Assessing and Managing Risks to your Collections"
Canadian Museums Association Pre-conference Workshop

I would like to clear up some confusion about the registration deadlines for
the workshop.  There is a discrepancy between the workshop information sheet
and the announcement in the CMA conference program.  The sheet was printed
later and the dates cited in it were adjusted to be more compatible with the
time the mailing actually came out.

Please note that the correct information is in the announcement herein,
indicating an early bird registration deadline of April 15 and final
registration deadline of May 10.   Depending on the number of registrants,
we may be able to take applications after May 10.  Please contact us before
deciding you are too late to register.

Please also keep in mind that in the days surrounding the workshop, you
might take the opportunity to visit the new storage facility that was
purpose-built to house the Canadian Museum of Nature's 10 million specimens.
 This building project was a success that was, in part, attributable to the
CMN carrying out its own risk assessment for its collections.  This would
also give you an opportunity to see some of the other mitigation methods
such as the new object containers that were designed to move objects and to
manage risks during that phase.  If you wish to visit our new building
before or after the workshop please inform the workshop coordinator.

Hope to see you there.

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ASSESSING AND MANAGING RISKS TO YOUR COLLECTIONS
INTERACTIVE TRAINING WORKSHOP

Canadian Museums Association (CMA) Annual Conference
June 9-10, 1997
Canadian Museum of Nature, Ottawa

PROTECTING AN INVALUABLE HERITAGE
Museum collections continue to grow and their maintenance is
increasingly costly.  These collections often contain
irreplaceable objects and represent centuries of painstaking work
and incalculable monetary investment. Every institution must
invest in preventive conservation to protect this invaluable
heritage for generations to come.  In these challenging times of
public accountability and financial restraint, it is becoming
increasingly important to manage these collections in a cost-
effective manner.  It is critical to establish priorities of
action to ensure their care and safekeeping.

THE WORKSHOP:
This 2-DAY non-technical workshop has been designed for
directors, managers, administrators, curators, collection
managers, researchers, conservators, preparators, volunteers,
indeed any stakeholder in collection preservation.  It will
highlight a methodology developed by the Canadian Museum of
Nature which gives a global framework for establishing priorities
in the area of preventive conservation.  The methodology is based
on risk assessment processes and risk management principles
applied in business and industry.

During the workshop, participants will learn how to:
-  identify all agents of deterioration,
-  identify risk types,
-  estimate magnitudes of risks,
-  rank their relative importance,
-  mitigate risks, and
-  evaluate the relative costs, benefits and collateral risks of
implementing the proposed mitigation measures.

The workshop is a highly interactive training session which
includes both theoretical and practical components in which
participants play an important part. Information is obtained
through lectures, demonstrations, brainstorming in small groups,
assembling of ideas, presentation and discussion.  The teaching
approach fosters team-building and mutual understanding.
Participants will receive different learning tools including the
workshop manual which contains the complete course content,
exercises, references and a glossary of terms.

KEY BENEFITS FOR YOUR STAFF AND INSTITUTIONS
This workshop will enable anyone involved with collections to:
-  communicate clearly preventive conservation issues,
requirements and their relative importance to other staff and
to management and funding bodies,
-  convince management and funding bodies of the importance of
the issues and of the necessity to invest in preventive
measures,
-  consider all issues related to proposed mitigation strategies
from an institutional perspective,
-  compare different risks among different collections,
-  prioritise and identify preventive conservation issues and
mitigation measures,
-  work in teams within their own institution,
-  develop cost-effective plans to reduce overall risks.

The workshop will be presented by Robert Waller (Chief,
Conservation) and Sylvie Marcil (Senior Conservator) of the
Canadian Museum of Nature, at its Victoria Memorial Museum
Building location, McLeod at Metcalfe St., Ottawa.

REGISTRATION INFORMATION
Registration is limited to 60 participants.  Final deadline for
registration is May 10, 1997.  Registration fees are 235$ before April 15, 1997
and 255$ before May 10, 1977, and include lunch both days.  To obtain a registration form or more
details please contact Wilda Corcoran, tel. (613) 566-4771/ 566-4244,
fac. (613) 364-4022, e-mail : [log in to unmask], or write to CMN
Risk Workshop, c/o Wilda Corcoran, P.O. Box 3443, Station D, Ottawa,
ON, K1P 6P4, CANADA.