While the archive, filled with paper documentation and other memorabilia, is traditionally considered to be museum material, the other two sections exemplify more accurately the direction CFCH is headed, with a "shift from reified and ossified discourses of 'preservation' to more dynamic and ecological models of sustainability".
In concatenated form, it documents the shift from folklore to cultural heritage that has taken place in academics and in fieldwork within the last 15 years.
This eclectic collection of artifacts and activities came together at the Center for Folklife & Cultural Heritage through a series of fortuitous and unplanned events.
In 1964 the new Smithsonian secretary, S. Dillon Ripley, arrived in Washington with an innovative museum concept: he challenged curators to "take the objects out of their cases and make them sing".
Nevertheless, he proposed to stage an outdoor festival on the National Mall during the summer, building on his previous career as both performer and manager in the music industry.
The first Festival of American Folklife, with a budget of $4,900 and showcasing 84 participants, took place over the Fourth of July weekend 1967 on the National Mall and on the plaza of the Museum of History and Technology.
Rinzler continued in the Festival organization, originally as part of the Smithsonian's Division of Performing Arts until a separate Office of Folklife Programs was created in 1980.
Now that the festival organization and model were well established, Rinzler began to explore other varieties of folklife productions appropriate for a national museum.
He spearheaded the protracted negotiations to purchase the Folkways music collection from Moe Asch, including both recordings and business files.
Since 1967 the Smithsonian Folklife Festival has taken place at the National Mall and featured ongoing performances and demonstrations of contemporary cultural traditions.
[8] The Smithsonian Folkways Recordings has as its stated mission to curate and provide public access to each item in their collection of folk music, spoken word, instruction, and sounds from around the world.
The archive continues to grow in tandem with both the annual Folklife Festival, and the Folkways record label; it serves as the documentation and research foundation for the activities of these other two units of the CFCH.
[10] In alignment with the mission of the Smithsonian Institution,[11] the Center for Folklife & Cultural Heritage is actively promoting and supporting research in fields under its purview.
Introduced as a concept in the Brundtland Report published in 1987, sustainable development was originally defined as encompassing three domains: environmental, economic, and social.
[note 3] In the practical implementation of cultural sustainability, CFCH also manages three different projects where the theoretical finding of this research can be put to test in the field.
Spotlighting these questions also brings into sharp relief the shadow side of minority language communities, which are characteristically marked by poverty, isolation, segregation, travel restrictions, and censorship.
This research group brings together thought leaders, both digitally and in person, to explore some of the critical issues facing our nation and the world.
This new platform is one of the ways in which the center is working to implement a strategic plan goal of convening conversations on topics of importance.