Australian library experts are warning that Trove, the Australian government’s digital archives website, could be lost due to funding cuts.
Trove allows researchers to view over six billion digital objects from the National Library of Australia and hundreds of other Australian archives, including books, journals, maps, archives, photographs and old newspapers. It is a major resource for people around the world with Australian ancestry or family history connections.
In its recently published Trove Strategy, the Australian government said that Trove’s funding will run out in July 2023 and noted: “Without any additional funds, the Library will need to cease offering the Trove service entirely.”
The Australian Library and Information Association said Trove was “an invaluable resource for Australia and Australians” and urged Trove users to “come together as a community to support Trove and advocate for the funding it needs to continue its work”.
A petition on the Parliament of Australia website calling for Parliament to provide full funding for Trove currently has 5013 signatures.
On Twitter, historians called for Trove to be saved using the hashtag #SaveTrove.
