Ahmad Zainudin, an archivist at Universitas Indonesia (UI), won 3rd place in the Arsiparis Berinovasi (Innovative Archivist) category at the PAPTI Award 2024 held by Perkumpulan Arsip Perguruan Tinggi Indonesia (PAPTI), an institution that oversees universities in Indonesia. In this competition, Zainuddin raised an innovation topic titled “Advokasi Kearsipan di Media Sosial” (Archival Advocacy on Social Media).
The innovation was inspired by his experience in utilizing digital platforms while working at Kantor Arsip UI (UI Archives Office). “The innovation that I raised can be one way for archivists to increase the exposure of the archives unit and the archive collections that are stored,” said Zainudin. The award was announced on Tuesday, October 29, at the University Club Hotel, Universitas Gadjah Mada.
In his paper, Zainudin identified the challenges faced by the archives unit, namely the lack of information and the low public interest in the archives unit. He suggested a solution in the form of utilizing social media as a means of advocacy, considering that more than 139 million users in Indonesia actively use this platform. Content that can be uploaded by the archive unit, such as archival activities and presentations of archive collections, can then be packaged in an attractive digital form, so that it is more easily accessible to the wider community.
According to Zainudin, through these publication activities, the archive unit can introduce the importance of archiving to the public while increasing public trust in archives. Presenting archives through digital content can also attract potential users and expand the benefits of archives. “In addition to simply storing, archives can also be optimized to provide benefits to the community,” said Zainudin.
Head of the UI Archives Office, Wahid Nurfiantara, S.Hum., M.T.I, expressed his appreciation for Ahmad Zainudin’s achievements. “Congratulations on your achievement. Hopefully, this will inspire archivists at UI to continue to be enthusiastic in maintaining the university’s collective memory. This innovation is also expected to be able to increase the bargaining power of the archive unit so that archival issues become a concern for the community and provide broad benefits to the community,” said Wahid.
The PAPTI Award is a program given to encourage innovation to University Archivists. The award is a showcase of work and achievements for the performance and innovation that has been carried out by Archivists/Archive Managers for the organization. In addition to awards for innovation, this event also provides the Anugerah Insan Kearsipan for figures who have dedicated themselves to the world of archiving in Indonesia.
