Working Group 5
Sustainability and the Preservation of Media Artworks
Eduardo Kac, Teleporting an Unknown State, 1994-6
To preserve media art is, by definition, an act for the future. Every decision we make, from how we store a digital file to how we power a server or care for a piece of hardware, shapes what the next generation will be able to experience and build upon. WG5 asks us to sit with a harder version of that question: can we be good ancestors to human culture while also being good ancestors to the planet?
At the very moment Europe's media art heritage is most at risk and most urgently needs attention, the climate emergency is asking all of us — institutions, practitioners and researchers alike — to reconsider the cost of what we do. WG5 exists to hold both imperatives at once: to preserve what matters, and to do so in ways we are not ashamed to leave behind.
What we're working on
Preserving media art with sustainable approaches.
WG5 examines the environmental and economic impact of current media conservation and digital preservation practices across the full lifecycle of media art collections: loans, exhibitions, preservation treatments, digital storage and access. We work to understand these impacts, to document and share tools that already exist, and to develop new frameworks and guidance.
For GAP1 we are pursuing three objectives: reaching a common understanding of sustainability and how it shapes national frameworks for cultural heritage and media art preservation; taking effective near-term action by documenting and implementing current tools and approaches; and preparing for the longer horizon by identifying gaps in policy and practice.
Focus
Three WG5 subgroups
Subgroup 5.1
Scoping Sustainability
Builds a common understanding of what sustainability and digital preservation mean for media art preservation.
Coordinators
Dr Annet Dekker
Work packages
WP 5.1.1 · Frameworks for sustainability
Identifies the UN SDGs and their (inter)national adoption to guide heritage collections and preservation practice.
WP 5.1.2 · Gathering resources
Develops a shared view of cultural, social, ecological and financial sustainability through scientific production.
WP 5.1.3 · Articulating a common vision
Shares WG5's insights through content creation.
WP 5.1.4 · Shared view on digital preservation
Builds a common understanding of digital preservation through a Training School (18 Jun – 2 Jul).
Subgroup 5.2
State of the Art
Identifies current barriers, shares good practices and develops practical resources to lower the threshold for action.
Coordinators
To be confirmed
Work packages
WP 5.2.1 · Evaluation of self-assessment tools
Gathers and deploys self-assessment tools, comparing experience and setting attainable goals.
WP 5.2.2 · Current practice across regions
Shares and showcases current work, addressing mutual challenges and assessing emerging solutions.
WP 5.2.3 · What is the conservation object?
Describes media art collections, their significance and the preservation challenges that arise.
Subgroup 5.3
Sustainable Futures
Plans for the future and develops new tools, resources and ideas — exploring policy gaps and making new works preservation-ready from the outset.
Coordinators
Ms Sonia Milewska
Work packages
WP 5.3.1 · Campaign strategy
Identifies gaps in policy and practice, making the case for why and how we invest in sustainability.
Activities
What's on from WG5
18 Jun – 2 Jul 2026
Training School
Digital Preservation Training School
Programme · WG5
upcoming
Monthly
Showcase
Current & emerging good practice across regions
Online · WG5 monthly meetings
open
GAP1
Report
Status quo on the UN Sustainable Development Goals
WG5 · internal
upcoming
TBC
Campaign
Reaching decision-makers on sustainable digital preservation
WG5 · advocacy
upcoming
Outputs
From WG5, in the Knowledge hub
Recording
Digital Preservation for Media Art Conservation: the same but different
Forthcoming · open access
Open in Knowledge hub
Explore the other Working Groups
Get involved
Contribute to WG5.
Conservators, digital preservationists, researchers and policy voices working on the environmental and economic sustainability of preservation are welcome to join. New to EMBARK? See how membership works, then reach out to the leads.