Introduction to the Agents of Deterioration is a free course developed to help you learn or review the causes of damage to our collections, the 10 Agents of Deterioration, as defined by the Canadian Conservation Institute. We will cover why understanding the causes of damage are important, what risks they pose, and importantly how they relate to each other. You will be challenged to look closely at objects from your collection and determine how the Agents could affect them.

Course Objectives:
 

• Learn the 10 Agents of Deterioration
• Understand how the Agents are related
• Discover how the Agents affect objects in the collection
• Identify risks to collection
• Learn what the next step is to preserve our collection

Why should you take this course?

Introduction to the Agents of Deterioration will help you understand all of the factors that can cause damage to collections and then inform the next step to develop strategies to preserve collections.

Who is this course for?

Any one who works with a cultural heritage collection or site from historic homes to museums to archives to symphonies. Preservation is the responsibility of all who work with the institution so they should all understand the basic building blocks of preservation.

You can start this self-study course any time and complete this self-paced course at your own speed. Feedback will be provided on your analysis of the risks to your collection. You can even earn an electronic badge of completion to display on your LinkedIn and other profiles.

Understanding what damages our collections is essential to collection preservation & care, collections management, exhibition, facility management and in many case may be part of your institution's official Mission Statement. An understanding of the Agents of Deterioration will aide you in many of our other courses.