Title: John Hocking’s Keynote Speech at the ICA International Congress 2016
Authors: John Hocking
Date: September 2023
Resource Summary
Why have we selected it?
With the ICA Abu Dhabi Congress 2023 just around the corner, we have been reflecting on past Congresses and Conferences. In 2016, the ICA International Congress was held in Seoul, South Korea, with a theme of “Archives, Harmony & Friendship”. We had no idea that it would be another 7 years until the international archival community gathered once again at a Congress, with our typical four-year interval being disrupted by COVID. Even though much has happened in those 7 years, including the impact of emerging technologies and climate change, John Hocking’s words are still incredibly relevant to us today.
“As you preserve the past, you are, at the same time, protecting the present and the future. As you appraise records inside a box, you may discover a solution outside the box.”
What will you find in this resource?
This resource contains a speech given by John Hocking, who at the time of giving the speech was a senior official of the United Nations, and an Assistant Secretary-General and Registrar of both the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia (ICTY) since 2009, and the Mechanism for International Criminal Tribunals (MICT) since 2012.
His speech, titled “Out of the Box, Into the World”, was the keynote speech at the ICA International Congress 2016 held in Seoul, South Korea. His speech is an inspiring address to the entire archival community and contains rich imagery and powerful examples. His call to action still resonates today: “The possibilities are endless when you bring the archives out of the box and into the world.”
Discover the resource here