Preventive conservation—more than ‘dusting objects’? An overview of the development of the preventive conservation profession

Abstract

AbstractThis article revisits our concept of preventive conservation and how we define and practise it given the context of those present day challenges to both environmental and financial sustainability. In an attempt to get a better understanding of the role, scope and position of preventive conservation within the conservation profession, the author explores how the concept was first introduced within professional associations, and how it has subsequently found its way into conservation education. A snapshot of the development of preventive conservation in the job market in the English-speaking world (specifically in the UK and the US) over the last two decades was created. It is concluded that even though preventive conservation is now integrated into the profession, the opportunities for conservators to specialise in preventive conservation are limited. The current debate on sustainability demands conservators rise to the challenge and actively claim their role as a key stakeholder in decision making...