AAO News

The Archives Association of Ontario has designated April 7-10, 2026 as Archives Awareness Week (AAW) with the theme "Archives Activism: Advocating for Archives Survival."

As our province and our country faces tough financial times and a shift towards austerity, there is an increasing need to show the vital role that archives play in preserving our history and protecting democracy. Now is the time to collectively raise our voices and advocate for archives. This week is your opportunity to celebrate the creative ways you speak up and out for your repository and for archives in general.

We received a record-breaking 12 submissions this year! Stories will be added throughout the week, check back every day of Archives Awareness Week to read them all: https://aao-archivists.ca/2026-Story-submissions.

The Toronto Area Archivists' Group is looking for new members to join our board. TAAG is the Toronto chapter of the Archives Association of Ontario. We are volunteer run and regularly organize tours, workshops, and social events for archival professionals to learn from each other. Our Annual General Meeting will be held in person on Friday April 17 at 6pm. Members of AAO and those interested in joining are encouraged to sign up via our Eventbrite page.  

We will be voting for new executives at our AGM. This is a great opportunity to join the archival community in Toronto. TAAG executives meet virtually about 6 times a year to plan events. Joining TAAG is a low barrier way to meet fellow archival professionals and plan professional events you are interested in. We are currently looking to fill the following positions for the upcoming 2026/2027 year. Please note that positions are usually held for a 2 year term. 

Member-at-Large 

The Member at Large position is a flexible position that provides extra resources and assistance to the Executive. They may take on specific tasks, such as managing the Chapter’s social media presence, or help on projects such as coordinating workshops or other Chapter events. There is no limit on the number of Member-at-Large positions.

If any of these roles are of interest to you, please reach out to taag.chapter@gmail.com. Please also reach out if you would like further information about TAAG, the positions, or the AGM.  

Best wishes

Elizabeth Carroll

TAAG President

The Archives Association of Ontario has designated April 7th to 10th as Archives Awareness Week!

As our province and our country faces tough financial times and a shift towards austerity, there is an increasing need to show the vital role that archives play in preserving our history and protecting democracy. Now is the time to collectively raise our voices and advocate for archives. Therefore, our theme for 2026 is: “Archives Activism: Advocating for Archives Survival.” This week is your opportunity to celebrate the creative ways you speak up and out for your repository and for archives in general.

Share your story of resistance and advocacy! Your submissions can be personal stories about your work as an archivist, descriptions of advocacy initiatives within your organization, or brief highlights of archival fonds related to activism.

No submission is too short or too long - archives have always been political and now, more than ever, we need to engage with activism in our professional practice.

Stories will be collected and posted to the AAO's 2026 Archives Awareness Week page to celebrate archives activism during 2026's Archives Awareness Week. Images will also be compiled and shared on our social media accounts throughout the week!

We kindly ask that stories be submitted by Thursday, April 2, 2026 by filling out this form. The form collects your email as the point of contact for posting your story to the AAO website. If you are not the point of contact for your story, please include the relevant email.

If you have any issues using the form to submit you can email your submission to the Communications and Advocacy Committee Chair at communications@aao-archivists.ca. If submitting via email, together with your submission please include your name and/or name of your institution, a title, any image captions and alt-text, any citations or resources, and indicate if we have your permission to post the images you provide onto our social media pages.

Reach out to the Communications and Advocacy Committee Chair with any questions at communications@aao-archivists.ca.

Archival students, recent graduates, and archivists in financial need who wish to attend the 2026 AAO Conference in Toronto are encouraged to apply for the Shirley Spragge Bursary.

Up to $700 will be provided to cover conference registration fees and travel expenses for this year’s conference, which is being held in person at St. Michael’s College, University of Toronto, 6-8 May.

Applications are due March 25th.

More details on the bursary and information on how to apply can be found at https://aao-archivists.ca/shirley-spragge-bursary

Registration is now OPEN for the 2026 AAO Conference on Object Lessons: Continuing Care for the Physical in a Digital World! Join us this spring from May 6-8 at St. Michael’s College, University of Toronto.

This return to a physical space invites us to reflect on the heart of the archival tradition: the stewardship of physical objects for the long term in an increasingly digital society. This conference will explore the enduring importance, practical challenges, and profound joys of caring for physical collections.

AAO Members have access to Early Bird pricing until March 31, 2026.

Secure your spot today for:

- The Conference

- Pre-Conference Workshops

- Conference Events

- Safe Spaces Sessions

Register now on our website: https://aao-archivists.ca/conference-2026-registration.

Having trouble with registration? Contact us at aao@aao-archivists.ca.

Be sure to check out the Program-at-a-Glance on our website to see the exciting lineup of speakers and events waiting for you at the 2026 AAO Conference!

Nominations for the AAO 2026 Awards are now OPEN! 

In order to nominate someone for one of the awards, please review the nomination criteria and procedures before completing and submitting the nomination form. The form, which should be used for all five awards, along with the criteria and procedures can be found on the AAO's Awards page: https://aao-archivists.ca/awards.

An AAO member in good standing must sign the nomination form. It must be accompanied by a narrative (maximum one thousand words) explaining the reasons for the nomination. Additional documentation—including résumé, clippings, publications, etc.—is strongly encouraged but not required. An electronic version of the nomination package must be received by the chair prior to the deadline, with original documentation mailed upon request.

Nominations are being accepted for the following awards:

- Alexander Fraser Award
- James J. Talman Award
- AAO Emerging Leader Award
- AAO Corporate Award
- AAO Institutional Award

Nominations should be submitted to the chair of the Awards Committee, Rodney Carter, via email at awards@aao-archivists.ca by March 13, 2026.

Hello AAO,

Please take a break from shoveling snow find a cozy place to sit and peruse our newest issue of Off the Record! 

Members can access the issue here. 

First off, welcome to guest editor Jocelyn Oprzedek, who will be replacing Simon Vickers as co-editor following the Spring 2026 issue. Off the Record is in good hands!

The excellent submissions have continued to flow in over the past months, with several articles connecting how archiving the past shapes our present and future. Both Elsbeth Brown and Corey Orszak reflect on the relationship between activism and archives, though from vastly different contexts with Orszak sorting through CUPE 3903's mountain of records and Brown foregrounding ephemeral histories of the 1998 Pussy Palace raids. Stephanie Martin and Syriah Bailey in turn reflect on their efforts to open the Arquives to more Queer and Trans Black, Indigenous, and People of Colour (QTBIPOC) engagement through their series of Archiving Our Stories workshops designed to share archival knowledge and practice. Maddy Bognar then goes into detail about processing a fascinatingly unique (and somewhat challenging) collection of student publications from the Ontario College of Art and Design (OCAD) University. Finally, our student spotlight section features Avory Capes, a recent graduate from University of Toronto's Masters of Museum Studies program. 

See you in the Spring 

Happy reading!

Isobel, Jocelyn, and Simon

Below is a list of all available Board positions that will be elected at the AAO’s Annual General Meeting (AGM) on May 8 2026, during the 2026 AAO conference. For detailed descriptions of each position, please see the Board of Director's webpage.

• Vice-President/President Elect: Three-year term (May 2026 - May 2029)
• • 5-10 hours a week / 20-40 hours a month
• Director Without Portfolio (2 positions): Two-year term (May 2026 - May 2028)
• • 2-3 hours a week / 8-12 hours a month
• Chapter and Special Interest Group Stakeholder: One-year term (May 2026 - May 2027)
• • 2-3 hours a week / 8-12 hours a month
• Chair, Institutional Development Committee (IDC): Two-year term (May 2026 - May 2028)
• • 2-3 hours a week / 8-12 hours a month

To learn more, please register to attend a 30 minute Zoom online drop-in information session on Monday, March 2, 2026 from 12:00pm - 12:30pm by contacting the AAO office, aao@aao-archivists.ca.

Nominations can be submitted by downloading and sending the nomination form along with a short bio, via email, to the AAO Office at aao@aao-archivists.ca using the subject line "Nominations 2026", and direct your message to the attention of the Nominations Committee. Nominations must be received by the AAO Office by close of business on Thursday, April, 9, 2026.

You are invited to contact the following current Board members with any questions about the available positions: 

• Shelley Respondek, President president@aao-archivists.ca

• Christopher Hogendoorn, Director Without Portfolio director2@aao-archivists.ca

• Holly Barclay, Vice President/President Elect vp@aao-archivists.ca  

Sincerely,

Shelley Respondek

President, 2024-2026

Are you a student enrolled in a post-secondary archival or related programme? Please consider presenting about your research, projects, or experience at a special students session at the Archives Association of Ontario's 2026 Annual Conference.

The Conference will be held at St. Michael's College, University of Toronto from May 6-8, 2026.

We invite you to send in your proposal related to the conference theme "Object Lessons: Continuing Care for the Physical in a Digital World." The planned student paper session will be in a traditional format, with individual speakers each presenting a short paper. Proposals for presentations in different formats can be made under the main Call for Papers (due January 23, 2026). We especially welcome and encourage papers by and from students who identify as part of equity-deserving communities, and those associated with under-represented institutions or collections. 

Visit our Conference page for the full Call for Student Papers.

The deadline for student papers will be February 13, 2026. 

Questions? Please contact the Conference Committee at conference@aao-archivists.ca

Please note that the deadline for the Call for Papers for the AAO's upcoming conference, "Object Lessons," has been extended. Proposals will be accepted until January 23, 2026.

Visit the Conference page for the full Call for Papers.