Paper short abstract:

Evaluating my experiences as an ethnographic researcher and a research assistant in archives, in this paper I reflect on how digital technologies allow for adapting established rules about our research to contemporary global challenges like the Covid-19-pandemic.

Paper long abstract:

The Covid-19-pandemic has disrupted our research routines. Long scheduled time tables had to be modified, meetings postponed and methods reconsidered. Drawing from my own experience, I want to examine approaches to digital ethnographic and historical research from different perspectives:

One is the perspective of the researcher herself, working on contemporary craftsmanship and intensively engaging in Oral History. Both fields require – as established rules would suggest – a severe commitment and presence on-site. Can we think of new ways to engage in the same way digitally? Which are the limits or even prospects in this?

The other perspective is the one of the research assistant working in archives, facilitating access to material relevant for other researchers. The pandemic limited access to and availability in archives. A distress for many researchers, this has also been an opportunity to reflect on ways of accessibility to archival material. With more and more digital files being archived every year, the discussions about archival digitalisation projects are already on the agenda. Therefore, the current situation encourages to think about short-term digitalisation projects to prepare material that otherwise would be inaccessible for years.

In reflecting on these two aspects of my work, I want to discuss how we can bring closer our established rules about ethnographic and historical research to the realities we are facing with different global challenges that will have long-lasting effects on our research.