iPRES 2025 August Newsletter
Steven Gentry
Kia ora iPRES Enthusiasts!
Message from the Conference Chairs - Introducing the iPRES 2025 Programme!
We know you’ve all been eagerly awaiting the official iPRES 2025 programme - it is no small feat to coordinate and schedule the array of sessions that make iPRES conferences so special, and we appreciate your patience. Ngā mihi nui - a massive thank you as well to all of our authors, presenters, committee members, reviewers, and volunteers for your dedication and support for the iPRES programme each year.
We are delighted to release the programme for the 21st International Conference on Digital Preservation Programme, iPRES 2025 in Wellington!
Monday 3 November is Workshop & Tutorial Day. Be sure to arrive early - you won’t want to miss the opening Pōwhiri (cultural welcome) first thing, and the official start of the conference!
Our core conference days from Tuesday to Thursday, each highlight one of the iPRES 2025 themes, and Friday caps it off with Professional Visits to cultural heritage organisations across Wellington.
This year, the programme has seven dynamic parallel tracks:
3 Hybrid Tracks – Real-time and recorded sessions for both in-person and remote attendees, including the opening and closing ceremonies, three keynotes, six panels, two tutorials, the ever-popular Bake-off tool demo, and many papers, lightning talks, and poster previews.
3 In-Person Tracks – Face-to-face sessions including eight workshops, three tutorials, 16 Birds of a Feather discussions, five games, additional papers, lightning talks, poster sessions, and of course, social events.
1 Virtual Track – Live and recorded virtual presentations of papers, a workshop and tutorial, five Birds of a Feather sessions, pre-recorded lightning talks, and the return of iPRES Radio.
Learn more about iPRES 2025 programme and conference’s structure here.
Whether you’re joining us in Wellington or tuning in online, we can’t wait to welcome you to iPRES 2025 this November.
And don’t forget: August is your last chance to register at early bird rates. If you haven’t already secured your spot, now’s the time—join us in Wellington (or online) this November and be part of the global digital preservation community.
– Andrea Goethals (Conference Chair); Valerie Love, Jan Hutař, and Martin Gengenbach (Conference Vice-Chairs)
Paper and Poster Submissions - Last Call for Revisions!
This one is for iPRES 2025 Authors! If you would like to provide an updated version of your Paper/Poster to incorporate feedback from the reviewers, add latest developments, update endnotes, or just to correct any lingering typos, now is the time!
We encourage all authors to double check their submissions in the portal to ensure they are satisfied with the version supplied. Please make sure your submission uses the iPRES 2025 template and is in Microsoft Word Document (.DOCX) format.
You can email your updated paper to us at in...@ipres2025.nz and we will upload it to the submission portal on your behalf. Revised/updated papers must be received before 1 September 2025.
Visas and New Zealand travel requirements
Don’t delay in getting your travel to Aotearoa New Zealand sorted if you haven’t already. We have lots of travel information available on the iPRES website, but if you have questions we haven’t answered, just ask!
Immigration New Zealand have advised that due to high demand, visa applications should be submitted at least five weeks in advance of expected travel. We recommend submitting visa applications by Monday, 22 September 2025 to ensure they are processed in time.
Read more about Visas and other New Zealand travel requirements here. If you require a letter of invitation to support your visa application, please email eve...@twelveconferences.nz.
You can also check out the official New Zealand Tourism website, 100% Pure New Zealand, for sample itineraries and things to do across Aotearoa before or after the conference.
Travel tips for your journey
For folks based outside of the South Pacific, the journey to Aotearoa New Zealand can be quite long. Local Organising Committee member and athlete, Carly Lenz, recently traveled from Wellington to Innsbruck, Austria and back after competing with Team New Zealand in the 2025 Roller Derby World Cup in July.
Carly has shared her best long-haul travel tips in a new blog post – knee high compression socks and a high quality travel pillow are game changers in terms of keeping comfortable on long flights! Read Carly’s travel tips and more on the iPRES website.
Early Bird Registration - This Month Only!
Early Bird registration is open until 1 September 2025. Please note that all presenters must be registered. We have special rates available for the full conference, as well as 1-day passes, and student discounts. There are in-person and virtual options available. Get your tickets now to make sure you don't miss out! For more details about registration, including costs, please visit our website.
Register now to secure your place and benefit from the early bird rate.
Wellington’s Architectural Icons
We were delighted to see our iPRES 2025 venue, Tākina Wellington Convention & Exhibition Centre, has been shortlisted for a 2025 Te Kāhui Whaihanga NZ Institute of Architects New Zealand Architecture Award in the Public Architecture category.
Designed by Studio Pacific for Wellington City Council, and developed by Willis Bond, Tākina responds to its local context on Wellington’s waterfront. Its flowing glass form was shaped by the harbour, wind, and surrounding landforms, and draws on the Māori creation story of Te Ūpoko-o-te-Ika-a-Māui. Read more about this one-of-a-kind conference facility and iPRES 2025 venue here.
In other architecture news, The World Architecture Festival (WAF) awards programme released its shortlist for 2025, including the brand new Archives New Zealand facility, Te Rua, which opened to Archives Library New Zealand (ALNZ) staff last month, and opens to the public in 2026.
Sponsor Spotlight
This month, we highlight the sponsors of some of the annual awards at iPRES!
Best Paper Award, sponsored by nestor
The Best Paper Award is based on a shortlist of papers that were either nominated by reviewers or received high overall scores during the pre-conference peer-review process because of their originality, relevance, clarity and organisation of ideas.Best Poster Award, sponsored by Infotel
The Best Poster Award is an audience choice award. iPRES 2025 attendees will have the opportunity to vote for the Best Poster during the poster session at the conference.
Angela Dappert Memorial Award, sponsored by Digital Lifecycle Management
The Angela Dappert Memorial recognizes outstanding work in digital preservation that has both strong theoretical underpinnings and a clear impact on practice. The Prize is awarded by Adam Farquhar, based on a short list of papers with high-scoring reviews that meet this criteria.Best Contribution from a First-Time Attendee, sponsored by the Digital Preservation Coalition (DPC)
The award aims to encourage and celebrate new entrants into the digital preservation field, by recognising the contributions of first-time attendees to the iPRES community.
Would your organisation like to partner with iPRES 2025? We have a variety of both in-person and virtual sponsorship options. More information about these and other sponsorship opportunities is available on the conference website.
Stay up to date with iPRES!
Make sure to check out our website for up-to-date conference information, https://www.ipres2025.nz/
If you have been forwarded this email, do subscribe to the iPRES Interest mailing list. Have a read through our previous newsletters on the website, or check out the news section of the website with latest blog posts as well.
You can also follow official iPRES 2025 accounts on social media on LinkedIn, Bluesky, Mastodon, Instagram, and YouTube, or follow the hashtag, #iPRES2025.
Look out for the September newsletter, which will provide more details on our keynote speakers, professional visits, and social activities.
Whakatauki / Māori proverb
Nā tō rourou, nā taku rourou
ka ora ai te iwi
With your food basket and my food basket, the people will thrive.
Ngā manaakitanga / With best wishes,
The Wellington Local Organising Committee
Andrea Goethals, Blanche Joslin, Carly Lenz, Cynthia Wu, Dale Cousens, Jan Hutař, Martin Gengenbach, and Valerie Love
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