The Memory Safeguard Institutional Charter
Preserving Human-Authored Memory in the Age of Artificial Intelligence
Purpose
The Memory Safeguard Institutional Charter establishes shared principles for the responsible preservation of human-authored memory as artificial intelligence systems increasingly generate, transform, and abstract information at scale.
This Charter affirms that human memory—imperfect, contextual, and lived—constitutes a foundational record of culture, identity, and decision-making, and requires deliberate stewardship to ensure its integrity over time.
Scope
This Charter applies to institutions, organizations, and initiatives engaged in:
Archival preservation
Cultural heritage stewardship
Research and education
Ethical technology governance
Long-term knowledge preservation
Endorsement of this Charter does not require alignment with any specific technological, political, or philosophical position.
Charter Principles
1. Memory as Infrastructure
We recognize human-authored memory as a form of civilizational infrastructure that supports accountability, continuity, and cultural understanding.
Preservation systems shall prioritize durability, neutrality, and long-term stewardship over optimization or commercial objectives.
2. Human Authorship and Provenance
We commit to preserving clear provenance for human-authored memory, including authorship, time of creation, and conditions of origin.
Memory records shall distinguish original human expression from later interpretation, synthesis, or transformation.
3. Layered Preservation
We support preservation models that maintain separation between:
Primary human expression
Contextual metadata
Interpretive or reflective layers
No interpretive process shall replace or overwrite original human-authored records.
4. Non-Optimization of Memory
We affirm that human memory shall not be optimized for engagement, efficiency, or algorithmic preference.
Ambiguity, contradiction, and emotional variance are intrinsic to human experience and shall be preserved accordingly.
5. Temporal Integrity
We commit to maintaining the temporal context of preserved memory.
Subsequent reinterpretations shall be recorded as distinct artifacts, ensuring that change over time remains visible rather than collapsed into artificial coherence.
6. Consent and Stewardship
We uphold the principle that memory preservation requires informed consent and responsible stewardship.
Individuals retain the right to define access conditions, posthumous use, and restrictions on preserved memory.
7. Proportional Preservation
We recognize that meaningful preservation does not require total capture.
Preservation efforts should prioritize significance, reflection, and cultural value while avoiding surveillance-based or exhaustive recording practices.
8. Institutional Neutrality and Openness
We support open, auditable standards that enable institutional adoption without dependence on a single authority or proprietary system.
Participation in Memory Safeguard initiatives shall remain voluntary and non-exclusive.
9. Continuity and Dormancy
We acknowledge that preservation initiatives must endure periods of limited attention or use.
Systems should be designed for long-term continuity independent of trends, funding cycles, or immediate engagement.
10. Responsibility to the Future
We affirm that preserved human memory serves future generations by enabling accountability, historical understanding, and differentiation between lived experience and machine-derived inference.
Endorsement
By endorsing this Charter, an institution affirms its commitment to responsible stewardship of human-authored memory while retaining autonomy over implementation, governance, and scope.
Closing Statement
The Memory Safeguard Institutional Charter exists to ensure that as intelligence systems evolve, the record of human experience remains authentic, distinguishable, and accessible to those who come after us.
“The Institutional Charter defines our commitments; the Doctrine explains the reasoning behind them.”