Apply Today to Join the Community Webs New York Cohort! 
The Internet Archive’s Community Webs program is partnering with DHPSNY to provide tools, support, training, mentorship, and professional development opportunities to public libraries, historical societies, museums, community archives, and other cultural heritage organizations across New York State.
Learn more about the program below and apply to participate.
About the Community Webs New York Cohort Project
DHPSNY, with support from the New York State Archives and New York State Library, is developing a cohort of representatives from cultural heritage organizations across New York state to participate in the Internet Archive’s Community Webs program. This cohort will complete a training and professional development program focused on preserving and providing access to local history through web archiving, digital preservation, and community archiving.
The program will include asynchronous training and virtual cohort meetings. At the end of the training, participants will begin a web archiving, digital preservation, and/or community archiving project that they intend to work on for the remainder of the program. They will receive free access to the Archive-It web archiving service and Vault digital preservation service, as well as technical support, and mentorship over the course of the project period. The program will culminate in a virtual presentation of the projects.
Eligibility
Any non-profit organization engaged in preserving and providing access to New York State's historical records or library research materials is eligible to participate. This may include public libraries, historical societies, history museums, community archives, and other cultural heritage organizations.
Benefits
This program is free for participating organizations. Participating organizations also receive:
- Access to Archive-It, Internet Archive’s web archiving tool and discovery platform
- 1/2 TB of storage in Vault, Internet Archive’s digital preservation system
- Collections access in archive.org, a digital library with over 2 million visitors per day
- In-person and online training and technical support to expand your organization’s capacity for web archiving, digital preservation, or community archiving work
- Discount on Internet Archive’s digitization services
- The opportunity to be a part of national digitization initiatives
- Opportunities for networking and professional development
Program Timeline
- November-December: Open application period
- January: Application review and applicant notification
- February: Cohort Kickoff Meeting and Digital Preservation Training
- March: Web Archiving Training
- April: Community Archiving Training
- May-June: Cohort members begin working on their individual projects with support from Internet Archive and DHPSNY staff
- July: Project showcase, date TBD
What are some example projects that might be undertaken as part of this program?
Participants will have access to the Archive-It web archiving service and Vault digital preservation service at no cost to their institution and will also receive training in community archiving. They will each undertake a project based within one of the key training areas of digital preservation, web archiving, or community archives. Some example projects include:
- Developing a web archive collection focused on documenting local news sites, neighborhood blogs, local business web pages, etc.
- Migrating born digital files from CDs, floppy discs, and other media to the Vault digital preservation system for long term preservation.
- Hosting a community scanning day or other community memory event.
About Internet Archive
Internet Archive is a non-profit digital library with the mission of providing “Universal Access to All Knowledge.” The organization began in 1996 by archiving the Internet itself, a medium that was just beginning to grow in use. Today, the Internet Archive makes nearly 30 years of web history accessible through the Wayback Machine. In addition to preserved web pages, the Internet Archive’s digital library also provides access to millions of books, audio recording, videos, images, and software programs.
About Community Webs
Launched in 2017, the Internet Archive’s Community Webs program advances the capacity for public libraries and other cultural heritage organizations to document the digital heritage of their communities through web archiving, digital preservation, and community archiving. The program provides professional training, technology services, and support for networking and multi-institutional collaboration. There are currently over 250 member organizations from across the US, Canada, and beyond.
Application
To apply, complete this short application by December 31, 2025. Applications will be reviewed and participants notified in early January 2026. Cohort training and discussion groups will begin in February 2026.
More Information
For more information, contact communitywebs@archive.org.