Created by Anne Kenney and Nancy McGovern for the Digital Preservation Management Workshops in 2003-2006, this stool represents the three aspects of a successful and sustainable digital preservation programme:
What the model demonstrates, is that without considering and maintaining each of these components (or "legs"), a digital preservation programme will ultimately collapse. These three components need to be considered together in order to sustain digital preservation activity.
It is important that a programme does not consider technology as the only solution and that a balance is struck between the technology, the people, the funding and the organizational policies.
Technology
The technology leg represents the necessary hardware, software and secure environments required to sustain a digital preservation programme. The technology leg also acknowledges changing technology and is prepared to respond accordingly.
The areas the technology leg covers in digital preservation includes:
Organisation
The organization leg of the stool looks at the elements required to address the organizational needs and practices of a digital preservation programme. This leg not only maps the parameters of a programme, but helps drive the organizational change required for a successful digital preservation programme.
The organizational components include:
Resources
The resources leg looks at the time, money and people requirements of a digital preservation programme. These are the resources required create and maintain a sustainable programme.
The resources required include: