We should look back to 1988 attempt by the Canadian Council of Archives (CCA) to establish a National Acquisition Strategy when considering the future of archives in Canada. CCA was interested in developing a national acquisition strategy, but this was not generally supported so the committee was scrapped in 1995. Problem in Canada is that most archives are insititutionally based, so they have difficulty participating in collective initiatives. Archive's focus is on serving their institutions first, not the Canadian people. A national acquisition strategy requires that the archival community grow beyond its professional and institutional boundaries. Ultimately, I do not believe Canadian archival repositories can be effective partners in any collective archival initiative, be it acquisition planning or other national priorities, if those initiatives do not first and foremost directly support the sponsor institution’s responsibility to look after its own records. What is missing in this equation is an entity with the mandate and resources to support the overall well-being of Canada’s documentary heritage, irrespective of institutional or professional demands. The solution may be the creation of such an independent entity, with the mandate to promote, support, sustain, and expand Canada’s documentary heritage wherever it is found.
