Case Study

How the Berlin Wall Foundation is Making its Interview Archive Accessible

Background

The Berlin Wall Foundation is dedicated to preserving the history and memories surrounding the Berlin Wall. Over 500 interviews with people who lived through this decisive period make the Foundation's contemporary witnesses archive a treasure trove for researchers, journalists, students and others. These testimonies offer invaluable insights into the human experiences during the era of the Berlin Wall, making them an essential resource for a thorough understanding of history.

Challenge

Managing their audiovisual archive posed several challenges for the Berlin Wall Foundation:

  1. Enabling a wide use for research and education: Locating specific testimonies or topics within hundreds of hours of recorded interviews was time-consuming.
  2. Increasing the reach of the holdings: Sharing selected recordings with researchers worldwide required a secure and efficient method.

Solution

To address these challenges, the Berlin Wall Foundation partnered with aureka to customize a solution to enhance the management and accessibility of audio and video content. This running project will enable to:

  1. Enhance searchability: aureka’s transcription and AI-search capabilities transform the Foundation’s archive into a searchable database. Foundation’s employees and external researchers can find relevant interviews via semantic similarity using search queries in different languages.
  2. Facilitate access: The platform allows the Foundation to securely share selected recordings with collaborators and external researchers, ensuring a seamless and efficient process.

Results

The integration of aureka is significantly transforming the Berlin Wall Foundation’s archive operations:

  • Wider Access: The ability to share selected recordings with researchers globally can expand the Foundation’s reach and impact.
  • Enhanced Preservation: The Foundation is better equipped to preserve its digital archives, ensuring the testimonies remain accessible for future generations.

Berlin Wall Foundation

Contemporary Witnesses' archive

https://www.stiftung-berliner-mauer.de/de/themen/zeitzeugen
Screenshot 2024-06-06 at 17.35.15