Last month, CBRL took part in The British Academy’s Ideas Festival in London (18–20 June), sharing work from the British International Research Institutes (BIRI) Digital Coordination and Strategy Project.
The Ideas Festival is the British Academy’s flagship public engagement event, opening its doors over three days to showcase humanities and social science research. CBRL had a spot in the ballroom upstairs, with flyers from each BIRI, and copies of our journal Levant for visitors.
Our archivists, Eman Shahin and Alice Lubbock, have been actively involved in this collaborative project. Alongside colleagues from the other BIRIs, they have gathered CBRL archival records: photographs, correspondence, notes and official documents; to explore the interconnected history of our institutes. The BIRI Project Coordinator, Eleanor Careless, and colleagues from the British School at Rome collated everything together into a rich digital StoryMap titled “A History of the British International Research Institutes,” which you can explore here.
The StoryMap traces the BIRIs’ establishment, from the British School at Athens in the late 19th century to the newer institutes formed in the latter half of the 20th century. It reveals how older institutes influenced newer ones in style, structure and scholarly focus, often through shared individuals and overlapping interests. By bringing together documents from different repositories, the team uncovered fascinating stories reflecting world events from wars to regional conflicts, told from each BIRI’s perspective. These combined records reveal a bigger picture of politics, cultural heritage, and colonial attitudes, while also highlighting women’s underrepresented contributions to the BIRIs and archaeology (also explored in our earlier StoryMap, Women Transcending Boundaries).
The StoryMap was displayed on two screens: a large, tall screen, and an iPad; allowing visitors to interact with the narrative and discover the BIRIs’ rich history.
Having the StoryMap at such a prominent event was invaluable for spreading the word about the BIRIs and their archives. It engaged a diverse audience and demonstrated the power of inter-institutional collaboration. The StoryMap also showcases how Linked Open Data can reveal previously unknown connections between institutes and the scholars who built them. It’s the culmination of four years’ work, and we’re thrilled to see it reach such a wide audience.
