The future of the equestrian sector is uncertain
The equestrian sector is on the eve of a major transformation. Will we still be able to ride horses in ten or twenty years? Scientists and researchers who are concerned with the future of the Netherlands outline various scenarios. For example, professor at Erasmus University Jan Rotmans states in his book 'Embrace the Chaos' that the Netherlands will change more in the next 100 years than in the past 1000 years.
For the equestrian sector, the social support and the available space for equestrian sports, recreation and husbandry will determine whether we can keep the horse in our society.
Fortunately, more and more parties are realizing that we have to take action . Not only to improve the welfare of horses, but also to make the horse sector sustainable and future-proof . This will require a lot of commitment, innovation and creativity. Not only from entrepreneurs, studbooks, and sports associations. But from all horse lovers and professionals. Organized or disorganized, traditional or alternative.
No future without a past
With all the uncertainty that comes our way in the horse world, we tend to only look ahead . Yet it is also important to look at where we came from . The historical relationship between humans and horses goes back at least 6000 years and is symbiotic and unique. The horse has played an essential role in the development of our human civilization.
This is due to his ability and willingness to constantly adapt to changing circumstances. Because of this unique historical bond, we have acquired an enormous amount of knowledge about and around the horse in the Netherlands. The horse has taught us many lessons throughout the different eras and made us experience wonderful moments.
Those memories live on in the hearts of many. Or in attics where they slowly gather dust. With uncertain times and a double aging population on the horizon, there is a risk that our collective equestrian memory will be lost . Including all lessons learned.
We must prevent that!
The goal: To safeguard, digitize and make accessible our equestrian collective memory
Although we can hardly imagine a world without the internet and social media, most of equestrian history has taken place in the pre-digital era.
For centuries, knowledge transfer and current affairs only took place through books and publications in newspapers and magazines. A large part of them have never been digitized. A lot ofknowledge is now in danger of being lost. It is important that we preserve them and pass them on to the next generation.
With this project, we want to safeguard, digitize and make accessible the history of the horse in our society, which is confined to the attics and archives of the older generation.
The next step is that we will keep these archives up to date . A grand project that will only succeed with the help of the equestrian community.
To get this project off to a good start, we have raised an amount of €75,000 is needed to properly establish the basis for digitization and assurance . This allows us to purchase the necessary equipment to digitize all the photo material, documentation, books, newspapers and magazines in-house .
Join! Together we ensure that the knowledge can be transferred to the next generation
The horse world is constantly evolving. Developing horsemanship is progressive insight.
We would not have had the knowledge and experience we have today if we could not build on the knowledge that has been passed on to us by previous generations of teachers, breeders and everyone who has worked with horses.
Help secure this knowledge. When you contribute, your donation is converted into a subscription that gives you access to the digital archives.
The colorful history of our bond with the horse in pictures
The reason for this project was the call from equestrian photographer and equestrian journalist Jacob Melissen. In connection with the end of his career , Jacob was looking for a new destination for his equestrian archive that he had built up during his career.
But Jacob is not the only one who has made it a life's work to collect and archive our unique history with the horse. We have also entered into discussions with other parties that have historical collections and have come to the conclusion that we have a common interest :
Making the enormous knowledge and information contained in the archives (digitally) accessible to the equestrian community.
In this Samen Sterk project , we will start with Jacob's archive. And to further supplement it and keep it up to date. Jacob Melissen has promised to play an important advisory role in this.
Sponsors and cooperation
Do you feel connected to the equestrian sector as a company or organization and would you also like to contribute to safeguarding the unique history that we share with the horse? Then we would like to get in touch with you. For companies and stakeholders, we offer various opportunities to connect to this project and also make it visible within our community and through our channels. Contact us!
Ask?
You may have any questions about this project.
That is why we have listed the most frequently asked questions for you. Do you have another question? Send an email to info@equiconnect.horse
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Jacob's archive has been transferred to the EquiConnect.Horse office in Rotterdam. Many documents are so old that they are very vulnerable. There were also many silverfish in the documents. In Rotterdam, a special room has been set up for the archive. A specialist has come by to fight the silverfish. The room is well ventilated and the temperature is kept low so that the collection is not damaged.
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All pieces in the collection are checked to see if they are still copyrighted. If this is the case, the rightful claimants will be contacted. Based on a common interest in safeguarding the history of equestrian sports and breeding, a collaboration will be sought to make the information digitally accessible. We will make additional agreements with stakeholders about making the materials digitally accessible.
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I want access to the digital archive. How does that work?
You will have access to the digital archive as soon as the first materials have been digitised. The period that you have free access to the archive depends on the amount of money you have donated. -
I also have a lot of old documentation about horses, can you do something with that?
Yes! We would like to receive an inventory of the contents. We will then check for duplicates and we will be happy to include your collection in this project! Please contact us for further inventory and introduction. -
What happens if the donation goal is not met?
If the target of €75,000 is not achieved, the costs incurred will be deducted from the amount that has been raised. We will make the remaining amount available through our 'Strong Together' approach to horse lovers and professionals in need and good initiatives that contribute to horse welfare, sustainability and experience.