Benjamin Goldman

Fulbright-British Library Eccles Institute Scholar Award

Ben Goldman is the University Archivist at Penn State University in State College, Pennsylvania, where he stewards primary source research collections documenting the university’s 170-year history. He is especially interested in Penn State’s environmental history and co-teaches an undergraduate course that utilizes primary sources to explore its built environment, the resources that sustain the university, and its intellectual contributions that have had an impact on the natural world. Ben's research explores the intersection of archives and the environment. He has presented and written on topics including the environmental impact of digital preservation, the climate vulnerabilities of US archival repositories, and the carbon footprint of academic libraries. He was recently awarded a grant from the Mellon Foundation to conduct a study on environment and climate-related collections found in academic archives.

Ben will explore climate and sustainability issues at the British Library, where he will seek to engage with their Sustainability and Climate Change Strategy, especially efforts related to reducing greenhouse gas emissions and activating collections to support climate action. He is excited to connect with other cultural heritage professionals in the UK and exchange ideas and strategies for making our shared profession more resilient in the face of environmental changes.