Gradual Revolutions: the case of the South Asian Cooperative Collection Development Workshops

A presentation using the lens of one area studies discipline—South Asian Studies—to explore how the practices of developing cultural heritage collections influence the use of them which in turn impacts understandings of the world around us. The talk uses the example of the South Asian Cooperative Collection Development Workshops (SACOOP) as a case study for broader cooperative collection debates of distinction, efficiency, and access and explores how iterative and ongoing collaborative efforts can transform thinking about collection development, about workflow practices, and about the enduring need for interconnecting support.