Leveraging Local Networks and International Partnerships in Japanese Collection Development

This chapter details the development of the Penn Libraries’ Japanese Naval Collection, from its inception in our student’s scrapbook discovery to the iterative process of searching for and purchasing other Imperial Japanese Navy Training Fleet materials and related items, and encompasses promotion of the collection online by making digital facsimiles available and posting about its context and import on social media. Here, we re-envision the acquisitions, cataloging, digitization, and promotion process as the result of a network of individuals (both inside and outside the library) collaborating toward a shared vision of special collections. We have been integrating processes rather than functioning as a unidirectional assembly line in which component parts can be passed down a pipeline. Through this network of individuals, who share their complementary but unique skills and knowledge, formerly compartmentalized area studies materials can be more cohesively unified into a global collection and can enhance the value of the library’s distinctive special and research collections in an increasingly international context.