17 May 2007
Monash is the first Australian university, and second outside the US, to gain access to the University of Southern California (USC) Shoah Foundation Institute Visual History Archive, the largest visual history archive in the world.
Monash has partnered with USC in presenting the archive for research and teaching purposes within Australia.
The Archive was set up by internationally acclaimed film maker Steven Spielberg after he completed Schindler's List in 1994 to document experiences of Holocaust survivors and other witnesses.
With a collection of nearly 52,000 video testimonies collected in 32 languages from 56 countries, it is a remarkable collection that has been digitised and indexed, making it an excellent example of e-research.
Vice-Chancellor Professor Richard Larkins said the University was honoured to host the archive's launch.
"Monash takes great pride in its partnership with the USC Shoah Foundation Institute," Professor Larkins said.
"In addition to the valuable teaching and research opportunities across the University, Monash is able to use the archive to reach out into the Australian community."
Associate Professor Mark Baker, from Monash University's Australian Centre for Jewish Civilisation, said Australia was home to the highest per capita proportion of Holocaust survivors outside Israel.
"The preservation of their voices in this archive is central to guiding future generations to be vigilant against other genocides," he said.
Professor of History and USC Shoah Foundation Institute Executive Director Douglas Greenberg said the Institute conducted nearly 2500 interviews with survivors and other witnesses of the Holocaust in Australia.
"These testimonies, which include stories of life after the war, are part of Australia's history," he said.
"We are thrilled to partner with Monash University to bring these, and all of the testimonies in the archive, to Australia."
Access to the Archive at Monash University is being funded by Ms Lee Liberman and the Pratt Family Foundation.
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