Cultural Memory Lab Showcase: Permanent, Censorship-Resistant, Community-Controlled Archives

Four community archives show how they use decentralized tools like IPFS and Filecoin to preserve vulnerable history with community control.

Produced by TechSoup in partnership with Gray Area and supported by the Filecoin Foundation for the Decentralized Web.

WHAT YOU’LL LEARN
• Why decentralized storage reduces censorship risk and single points of failure
• How community licensing and data sovereignty keep contributors in control
• Practical paths to launch using mentorship and IPFS uploads
SPEAKERS AND PROJECTS
• {B/qKC}: A Black Queer Archive — founder Nasir Anthony Montalvo. Cooperative licensing that compensates elders and resists extractive practices
• Mobility Independence Foundation — VP Matthew Lacey. Open-source wheelchair and power chair designs plus manuals and schematics for global access
• Digital Memory Keepers: Zapotec Biocultural Knowledge — led by Kiado Cruz. Community-controlled preservation of language, agriculture, and oral histories with a bilingual interface
• Archiving Myanmar’s Digital Landscape — Myanmar Internet Project team. Preserving evidence of digital repression and resistance using IPFS


CHAPTERS
00:00 Introduction to Cultural Memory Lab Showcase
07:44 Demo 1: {B qKC} A Black Queer Archive
20:16 Demo 2: Mobility Independence Foundation - Open Source Medical Equipment
28:52 Demo 3: Digital Memory Keepers - Zapotec Biocultural Knowledge
39:56 Demo 4: Myanmar Internet Project - Documenting Digital Resistance
44:54 Q&A Session with Audience
51:53 Closing Remarks and Acknowledgments


The Cultural Memory Lab is supported by the Filecoin Foundation for the Decentralized Web.
Public Good App House is a project of TechSoup’s Caravan Studios.