What is Aluka

Building a of scholarly resources from

Aluka is an international, collaborative ini- histories, plant specimens, photographs, African Cultural Heritage Sites and Landscapes tiative building an online digital library of and slides. By aggregating these materials Photographs, three-dimensional models, scholarly resources from and about Africa. online, the Aluka collections link materi- GIS data, and rock art images linked to con- Our name, ‘Aluka,’ is derived from a Zulu als that are widely dispersed and difficult to textual materials such as excavation reports, word meaning ‘to weave’, reflecting Aluka’s access, opening up new opportunities for manuscripts, travelogues, maps, site plans, mission to connect resources and scholars research, teaching, and broader public dis- and scholarly research. from around the world. cussion. One of Aluka’s primary objectives African Plants is to provide African scholars and students Aluka seeks to attract high-quality schol- Type specimens of African plants linked to with access to scholarly materials originally arly content, from all academic disciplines, a wide range of related images and data, in- from Africa, but now out of their reach. about Africa from institutions and individ- cluding photographs, drawings, botanical art, uals across the globe. By contributing their Aluka also works closely with partner or- field notes, published flora, and other refer- collections to the Aluka platform, content ganisations in Africa to build capacity in ence works covering botany, ethnobotany, owners will have a means of offering access digitisation and the use of online materials and traditional uses of plants. to their collections to an international au- for teaching and research. In some cases this Struggles for Freedom in Southern Africa dience—without having to develop and includes setting up digital labs and providing Documentation of the liberation struggles support their own technology platforms. technical training in scanning and creating in southern Africa, initially focussing on Aluka’s web-based platform provides pow- metadata records; in others, Aluka convenes , , , , erful tools for research, teaching, collabora- training workshops for librarians, archivists, , and , including ar- tion, and knowledge exchange. faculty, and heritage professionals on topics chival materials, periodicals, oral histories, related to digital imaging, preservation, and The Aluka website includes a wide variety books, posters, and photographs that ex- the use of online tools in the classroom. of high-quality scholarly materials con- plore this critical historical moment from tributed by Aluka’s partners, ranging from To demonstrate the potential of Aluka as a local, regional, and global perspectives. archival documents, periodicals, books, re- scholarly resource, three content areas are cur- ports, manuscripts, and reference works, rently under development. New materials are to three-dimensional models, maps, oral added to the collections on an ongoing basis:

From top left: “Drosanthemum speciosum (Haw.) Schwantes.” South African National Biodiversity Institute, National Herbarium, Pretoria, South Africa; “A view of the Gereza at Kilwa Kisiwani.” Photograph by Heinz Rüther, Depart- ment of Geomatics, University of Cape Town. Location: Kilwa Kisiwani, Tanzania; “[A NOSSA CAPA: Samora Machel, Presidente de Frelimo].” Tempo 201 (1974): front cover. January 2007

For more information: www.aluka.org If you have questions: [email protected]