The Infinite North Holland Foundation immediately takes over the platform innl.nl of the National Historical Museum. This digital legacy consists mainly of images and stories that together tell the history of all Dutch people. Because innl.nl was no longer updated, the platform would disappear as of 2014. This would result in the loss of a large and beautiful virtual collection. That's not happening right now. In fact, together with its partners, Oneindig Noord-Holland develops the platform into a national heritage page. This gives the Dutch public a more complete picture of the country's history and of all the beauty that there is in cultural and heritage. The new platform will go live no later than the third quarter of 2014. Until then, the website www.onh.nl mentions the content of innl.nl.
National culture page
Oneindig Noord-Holland is developing a new heritage homepage that creates a digital connection between all local and regional portals of the Netherlands. This homepage presents Dutch history and its cultural heritage. In addition, it bridges the gap between the supply of heritage institutions and the public's demand for relaxation with content. Experience and providing a context are central to this.
The legacy of the National Historical Museum and the heritage collections that are being opened up through digital collection – a collaboration between the National Cultural Heritage Service, the National Archives, Digital Heritage Netherlands and the Royal Library under the foundation of the Netherlands Institute for Sound and Vision – form the basis of the renewed innl.nl. The platforms 'The Story of Groningen' and 'Zeeland Ankers' are also founding partners. Thanks to this joining forces with local and regional platforms, the national heritage page makes the history of the Netherlands and cultural heritage digitally accessible. The Infinite North Holland Foundation warmly invites other regions and similar public initiatives to participate in the development of the national culture page.
"I am very happy that Oneindig Noord-Holland will manage and unlock the many good digital products of the National Historical Museum. After the huge investments, it is very important that this information remains available to everyone. Infinite North Holland has the knowledge and ambition to do this," responds Erik Schilp, former director of the National Historical Museum.
Jan Auke Brink, Director of the Groningen Story Foundation, is happy with the collaboration: "The Story of Groningen will get a facelift this year. Cooperation with national partners such as Oneindig Noord-Holland and Zeeland Ankers is important to us. In terms of content, we complement each other and through cooperation we save costs. With the development of this national culture page we tell the story of the Netherlands bottom-up. Therein lies a great power."
Encouraging cooperation
The aim is to provide all available digital information in a clear and accessible way. The Netherlands has dozens of local and regional initiatives to keep our country's cultural heritage alive. Much of that digital information is still being offered to the public in a very fragmented way. This is a great pity, especially since culture does not stop at a municipal or provincial border. "The aim of this initiative is to stimulate cooperation between local and regional initiatives, to make use of existing rural infrastructure and to prevent fragmentation", explains Sarah Thurlings-Heijse, director of the Infinite North Holland Foundation.
