Role Title: Digitisation of Historical Data Intern
Organisation: The Asbestos Diseases Society of Australia Inc.
Internship Period: Semester 2 (July – October)
Location: OSBORNE PARK
The ADSA is rapidly approaching its 50th year of service and during this time has amassed a significant archive with some documents and photos dating back to the early 1900’s. Some used in evidence in landmark West Australian Cases, Government lobbying and various other matters. UWA has assessed the archive and stating, “Many thanks for a deeply inspiring tour of your offices and archives yesterday. I have rarely seen a more significant archive in terms of its social implications and its relevance to ongoing governance issues in Western Australia.” Professor Benjamin Smith Archaeologist and Manager of the Digital Asset Management System. The Collection offers the potential for academic research, online content.
We have had some curating/scoping done assessing what is the collection – but there are still many boxes to open and work through. The collection consists of books, pamphlets, magazines, newspaper articles, bound and unbound papers, legal & political documents, diaries, slides, photos, negatives, VHS tapes, audio tapes, old computer discs, hard drive digital files etc.
The Role would involve working with the CEO to assess boxes and then sorting and filing into files, labelling what’s in each file, and adding to the curators list. Any documents of current interest would be photocopied and scanned into a section on the server and start build a broader picture. Creating some categories of which we would select to start the project.
The ADSA is a caring charitable organisation established in 1979 to save lives from deadly asbestos and dust diseases. A multi-faceted approach is used to address inequities for workers and the public in Western Australia. The ADSA has grown over the years and in May 2025 launched a full-service GP clinic to extend services to the community and workers.