Custody of the institutional, historical and spiritual memory in the América Sur Region
The objective of the Network of Marist Memory Centres of the South American Region is to promote the articulation of Marist Memory Centres, as stated in their official documents, encouraging the registration and the preservation of the historical-cultural-spiritual patrimony by means of cooperation, exchange, formation and the integration of services.
The Network – which is strengthened from the search for the regionalisation of the Marist Institute – is composed of a group of professionals with different experiences and knowledge, made up of Brothers, managers and collaborators of the Provincial archives, historical archives, libraries and museums located in Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Peru, Paraguay and Uruguay.
In 2019, during the team meeting in Lujan, reference groups were created – mixed in relation to languages, Provinces, knowledge, functions – with the aim of promoting the development of relevant themes for the Network.
The history of the Network
In 2015, UMBRASIL included in its strategic objectives the need to build and make effective a network for the preservation of the historical, cultural and spiritual Marist patrimony, articulating initiatives already existing in the three Brazilian Provinces. In a very natural and organic way, the initiative reached the regional level, incorporating the existing Centres of Memory in the Provinces of Cruz del Sur and Santa María de Los Andes. From this step, the Network of Memory Centres emerged with a proactive nature, articulating dialogues, reflections, exchanges of experiences, formative moments and support, in a way that is committed to the memory of the past, present and future. Before the foundation of the Marist Region of South America, the Network of Memory Centres already existed.
Memory and the present
The contributions of the expert group respond to different needs of the Marist mission, not only in the Region, but also for the Institute. The Network seeks a professionalisation of the processes, the quality of the assets, the optimisation of the resources (physical, digital and human), the dissemination of the Marist memory and spirituality, subsidies for the production of knowledge and sources of administrative, school and emotional information, among others. In addition, in the current scenario, the Network is an initiative that emphasizes the need to value institutional memory. In the crisis, it is necessary to rescue what connects people and what is part of their stories.