Heritage Advantage CoLab Episode 002 highlights the emotional work, unseen care, and lasting human expertise that shape archival work. The episode shows why people remain essential to the field's future.

While many professional spaces are focused on artificial intelligence (AI), Episode 002 of the Heritage Advantage CoLab took a different approach by focusing on the human side of archival work.

Moderated by Megan O’Hern - History Associates, the discussion brought together experts from heritage and digitization: Brandon

Werts - History Associates, Casper Smithson - PastView, Danny Harbison - CloudTide, and Anders Sjöman - Center for Business

History in Stockholm, to discuss the emotional, intellectual, and physical effort required to preserve history.

The result was an honest and often moving conversation about why this work is important, how it impacts those who do it, and what

the future of the profession might look like.

Let’s take a look at the highlights and insights shared through the conversation.

When Archives Move Us: The Emotional Impact of Stewardship

The episode opened with a simple but powerful question: When has archival work emotionally affected you or your team?

The responses showed a common truth: archival work is never just technical. It is truly human.

Brandon described working on the 75th anniversary of Pearl Harbor in Long Beach, California, where the city’s naval history intersects

with the painful legacy of Japanese American incarceration. The stories he encountered ranged from heartbreaking to unexpectedly

hopeful, prompting him to reflect on the role of preserving community memory.

Danny shared a moment of personal resonance from digitizing the Air and Space Forces Association collection. Watching a former Air

Force colleague reconnect with photographs and documents from his own service made clear how archives can restore access to memories that matter deeply to people and communities.

Casper reflected on the National Holocaust Center’s interactive survivor testimonies — a project that uses technology to preserve voices that will one day no longer be with us. For him, it was one of the most beautiful examples of how innovation can extend human presence.

Anders shared a quieter but just as powerful story about a post-war letter from a Swedish manager in Germany. The letter described the emotional strain of leading in a country recovering from devastation. He pointed out that even corporate archives contain deeply human stories.

These stories together set the tone for the episode:

Archives contain lives, not just records.

Caring for the Caretakers: Preventing Emotional Burnout

The conversation then turned to the emotional toll of working with difficult or traumatic collections.

Casper pointed out a reality that is often overlooked: many archivists work alone. This isolation can increase emotional strain, especially when handling sensitive material.

Brandon stressed the importance of perspective. He said that remembering the purpose of the work and the people behind the records

can help archivists deal with emotionally difficult histories.

Anders added that emotional challenges can appear without warning, even in corporate archives. He also said it is important for

archivists to be able to turn down assignments that go against their values or emotional limits.

Megan shared a strong example of an archivist on her team who spent weeks alone in a basement transcribing police files about suicides. Her story showed the need for open communication, transparency, and allowing people to step away when the work becomes too much.

The takeaway was clear:

Heritage work takes emotional strength, and that strength needs support rather than being taken for granted.

Building Trust: With Communities, Corporations, and Creators

Trust emerged as one of the episode's strongest themes.

Brandon talked about building trust with communities whose histories are different from his own. He said that being present,

patient, and honest, rather than just taking information, is what helps build real connections.

Danny echoed this from the corporate perspective. Clients often fear losing control of their records. Transparency, expectation setting,

and engaging them in the process help build confidence.

Anders offered a fascinating look at trust inside corporate archives, where dynamics vary dramatically depending on ownership structure. Family-run businesses blur the line between personal and institutional history; publicly traded companies introduce legal and

cultural complexities. Knowing these contexts is essential to earning trust.

Across all perspectives, the message was consistent:

Trust is not just a transaction; it is a relationship.

The Invisible Labor Behind Access

When asked what non-archivists often misunderstand about archival work, the panelists talked about the vast amount of invisible labor

behind every accessible collection.

Casper pointed out that digitization produces a huge amount of data, and it takes a lot of intellectual effort to create useful metadata.

Danny highlighted the human effort behind digitization: the technicians, reviewers, and project teams whose meticulous work makes

access possible.

Brandon added that archivists put emotional, intellectual, and physical effort into every collection. The work is demanding, but it

is also a labor of love.

The public may see the polished exhibit or searchable database, but behind it lies countless hours of unseen care.

Why Access Matters: Education, Literacy, and Impact

The panelists also explored how accessible archives shape understanding.

Anders described working with Swedish secondary school students, beginning each session with the question: How do we know

what we know? In an era of misinformation, teaching young people to question sources is more important than ever.

Casper raised the challenge of supporting organizations where archives are managed by volunteers or non-specialists. Promoting

archival professionalism — especially in corporate and military contexts — is essential to ensuring collections are preserved responsibly.

Anders added that proving the practical value of archives (for HR, marketing, culture building, and brand identity) helps secure

long-term investment.

The message was clear:

Access is not only about making things available; it is also about nuance and understanding.

The Human Future of Heritage Work

Toward the end of the conversation, the panel looked ahead. What role will humans play in a field increasingly defined by AI?

Anders said that AI will be important for handling the huge amount of digital information, but people will still be needed for

interpretation, context, and finding what is missing.

Danny predicted a shift toward judgment-driven roles, where archivists oversee and refine AI outputs rather than perform every

manual task.

Brandon stressed that the relationship side of heritage work, like building trust, shaping future practitioners, and connecting with

communities, cannot be automated.

As long as history is about people, he posited, people will remain at the center of how we preserve and share it.

Closing Reflection: A Profession With Deep Roots

In the final moments of the conversation, Anders offered a story that captured the essence of the episode:

Alexander the Great traveled with a historian at his side, recording events as they happened. For as long as humans have made history, someone has preserved it.

He reminded us that archivists have always been there and will always be.

Watch Episode 002 now.