How did we get here? Present state of Advocacy and Education for Library Preservation in Japan.

Preservation is the primary mission of the library. Librarians must think of preserving all formats of library resources for future generations. New technology should be developed and informed to librarians. In addition, traditional conservation techniques are to be maintained and known by librarians. I would like to introduce several aspects of preservation and conservation in Japan, such as advocacy of acid-free paper achieved 96% use for published books, the campaign of "preventive conservation" after the Great Hanshin-Awaji Earthquake (1995). In addition, universities have increased conservation courses for cultural property since Japan ratified the convention of World Heritage. Library preservation has many aspects from repairing books to binding, microfilming, mass deacidification, digitizing library materials, disaster planning and so on. Librarians should know all countermeasures in an integrated manner in order to select adequate alternatives. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]