Miami-dade public library system will facilitate a community memory lab to collect and digitize print, audio and video records of local miami-dade history through the eyes of the local community

The Institute of Museum and Library Services awarded Miami-Dade County Public Library $100,000 on September 1, 2026, under the National Leadership Grants program (CFDA 45.312) to establish a Community Memory Lab that collects and digitizes print, audio, and video records of local Miami-Dade history through resident participation.

The Memory Lab will provide free public access to digitization equipment and expertise, enabling Miami-Dade residents to preserve personal and familial print, audiovisual, and object-based materials. The project leverages the library's established digital infrastructure, experienced digital collections staff, content management system, and digital preservation program. The initiative will demonstrate how removing financial, technological, and knowledge-based barriers through a community-accessible memory lab reduces gaps in institutional digital archives and identifies workflows and support structures that enable users with varying technical proficiency to digitize personal materials successfully.

The award funds work performed in Miami, Florida, with a period of performance from September 1, 2026, through August 31, 2028. Miami-Dade County Public Library is the direct recipient, operating within the administrative structure of Miami-Dade County. The National Leadership Grants program supports projects addressing critical needs in the museum and library fields with potential to advance practice and strengthen services for the American public through widely replicable models, tools, research findings, and practices.

The project will enable free access to digitization equipment and expertise, enabling miami-dade residents to preserve print, audiovisual, and object-based personal and familial memories. This work will be supported by the library's established digital infrastructure, experienced digital collections staff, the digital collections content management system, and the library's digital preservation program. The project will demonstrate how free public access to a memory lab reduces financial, technological, and knowledge-based barriers for documenting local history, how community-led digitization reduces gaps within institutional digital archives, and which workflows and support structures most effectively enable users with varying levels of technical ability to successfully digitize personal materials.