In our communications-centered age, it is difficult to imagine a collective endeavor that can thrive without the tools of communication.
Conservation is no exception.
At the Getty Conservation Institute's inception, increasing conservation knowledge and awareness through communication was an important part of its mission. In its first few years, the Institute's efforts were directed primarily toward the conservation professional. More recently, the GCI, while not relinquishing that initial responsibility, has expanded its areas of communication to include the general public. The Institute's early concentration on professional information exchange was in response to a generally recognized need to improve the collection and dissemination of information for conservation professionals. When the Institute was established, one of its stated goals was to become a resource by addressing the lack of access to a comprehensive collection of conservation literature and documentation and the lack of information about information.