As we welcome a new year, we’re taking a moment to reflect on what 2025 meant for eLaboratories. This past year was about expanding our community, and creating spaces for conversation, learning, and collaboration around documentary editing and recovery. Thanks to your continued engagement, 2025 became a year of momentum, visibility, and connection.
Below, we’re sharing highlights from the past year and a look ahead at what’s next.
2025 Highlights!
A Year Full of NEW eLaboratories Events!
In 2025, eLabs hosted 13 events and recorded sessions, marking our continued commitment to teaching and discussing editing and recovery work. These gatherings included:
- Virtual Workshops focused on tools and strategies for documentary editing & recovery work
- Webinars & Community Conversations exploring methodologies and best practices
- Project Spotlights & Deep Dives featuring ongoing research efforts and practitioner experiences
- Cohort Groups for discussing select topics at length
These events helped us strengthen our role as a convening space—bringing together editors, scholars, students, and practitioners to learn from one another.
Launching Our Social Media Presence
One of the biggest milestones of 2025 was officially launching eLaboratories on social media. This year, we opened and began actively building our presence on:
These platforms allow us to share updates, highlight community work, promote events, and reach new audiences interested in documentary editing and recovery. As we look to grow these channels, 2025 laid the foundation for stronger digital engagement and outreach in the years ahead.
A Growing Community of Course Users
In 2025, our courses continued to support learners at different stages of their project work. Throughout the year:
- 79 new users joined eLaboratories
- Our foundational courses remained key entry points for understanding documentary editing & recovery
- Our courses were increasingly used by undergraduate students as part of their course work
We view 2025 as a year of listening, observing, and learning from our users, helping us better understand what future courses should look like.
Looking Ahead: Goals for 2026
Building on the growth and visibility of 2025, we’re excited about what’s ahead.
Strengthening Community Engagement
In the coming year, we aim to:
- Host more interactive and community-driven events
- Invite additional guest contributors to our blog
- Create clearer pathways for community members to share their work and expertise on our Practitioners Directory and Project Directory
Expanding Outreach & Visibility
We plan to continue growing eLabs by:
- Deepening partnerships with projects, institutions, and similar organizations
- Using social media more intentionally to promote documentary editing & recovery practices
- Increasing cross-promotion between events, blog content, and courses
What’s Coming Next
Looking forward, you can expect:
- New course development informed by community needs
- More collaborative programming with partners in editing, archiving, recovery, digital humanities, and more
- Ongoing improvements to how we share resources, events, and educational content
Thank You for Being Part of eLabs
Everything we accomplished in 2025 was made possible by our community. Whether you attended an event, wrote a blog post, followed us on social media, or simply shared our work with others—your support matters. eLaboratories is stronger because of you.
Here’s to another year of learning, collaboration, and growth. We’re excited to continue building this space together.
~eLabs Team
Do YOU Want to Get Involved?
Want to be part of what’s next?
- Attend an upcoming eLabs or Community Event
- Share your expertise and propose a course
- Follow us on Instagram & Bluesky
- Join our Slack Workspace
- Promote your work through the Practitioners Directory or Project Directory
Let’s make the year ahead even more impactful.