TheĀ Japan Disasters Digital ArchiveĀ (JDA) is an advanced search engine for materials “from all over the web, individualsā testimonials, tweets, prominently including content from international partners who are building digital repositories about the disasters” of 2011. In addition to facilitating searching through the archive’s materials, users can also use the site to create their own curated collections and interactive presentations. These collections can be shared with other users of the site, contributing to the collaborative, user-powered aspect of the site and its resources.
The site also contains a mapping feature, visualizing all materials tagged with geographic metadata in real time. The site’s documentation and tutorials are all very detailed, and provide solid background for anyone interested in taking advantage of the archive’s capabilities. All content on the site is available in both English and Japanese.
The archive provides an important digital space to collect materials from around the web on the disasters of 2011 in Japan, and will hopefully allow for the creation of additional content through its user-centered features.
