An artifact at Kam Wah Chung State Heritage Park.

The Oregon Heritage MentorCorps , the trainings and the website will assist archives, museums and libraries in the state with collections care and emergency management. In addition, the Oregon Heritage Commission is appointing two dozen statewide preservation leaders to an advisory group to plan and strategize on initiatives to preserving heritage collections. 
  
The Connecting to Collections Project planning group had found that more than half of the archives, libraries and museums in Oregon had no paid staff for preservation, and that 25 percent of heritage institutions have no funds allocated to preservation. In addition, 85 percent of the institutions do not have a disaster preparedness plan that is current and ready to be activated.
 
Its final Needs Assessment Report was made following public meetings, an online survey and a summit involving leaders of statewide archive, library and museum organizations.  
 
The group formed to carry out a Connecting to Collections Planning Grant by the federal Institute for Museums and Library Services to the Oregon Museums Association on behalf of archive, library, and museum partners throughout Oregon. It has taken stock of preservation, training, and disaster preparedness needs.

 
In 2006, the Heritage Health Index identified millions of items in the nation's museums, libraries and other cultural institutions that were in danger due to neglect, poor environmental conditions, lack of training, and other causes. 

The Oregon Library Association has devoted an issue of its OLA Quarterly to this Oregon preservation effort.

Progress Reports
March 2013