Jen Shannon, Jerry K. Jacka, and Paige West
The ASAO GRIKPIC award for 2019 supported the printing and shipping of 4 copies of a bound book (633 pages) of copies of primary source materials collected from Bougainville Island by a US soldier in 1949. These materials (photos of over 300 items, their associated documentation, and other photos and letters from the collector, Conrad “Bud” Johnson) are housed in the University of Colorado Museum of Natural History’s 1949 Bougainville Collection of Objects and Archival Letters, and in the Denver Museum of Nature and Science. The bound book was sent to members of the Kainake Project, a sustainable development organization based in the Autonomous Region of Bougainville, PNG. Dr. Jeffrey Noro, Executive Director of the Kainake Project, said that historical information like this “is critical…to create systems and processes for digital and print repatriation of collections back to Bougainville.”
The book itself was created through the efforts of several people over a number of years. The GRIKPIC application, submitted by Jen Shannon, Jerry K. Jacka, and Paige West, requested $763.24 for the printing and shipping costs, and was approved by the ASAO Board at their 2019 annual meeting. The printed copies were received in Bougainville in June 2019, and a digital copy has been submitted for the ASAO Archives. The digital version of the Primary Source Book can also be downloaded from the UC Museum of Natural History’s website.
The book itself was created through the efforts of several people over a number of years. The GRIKPIC application, submitted by Jen Shannon, Jerry K. Jacka, and Paige West, requested $763.24 for the printing and shipping costs, and was approved by the ASAO Board at their 2019 annual meeting. The printed copies were received in Bougainville in June 2019, and a digital copy has been submitted for the ASAO Archives. The digital version of the Primary Source Book can also be downloaded from the UC Museum of Natural History’s website.
Jeffrey Noro (third from left) presented the Bougainville Collection book to the Curator of War History at the Papua New Guinea National Museum and Art Gallery and other museum staff. The museum director, Dr. Andrew Moutu, is second from left. (June 2019)