AGI and ASGRA in historic first joint meeting

L-R: ASGRA Chairman Janet Bishop and
AGI President Máire Mac Conghail

Having formed an alliance earlier in the year, Accredited Genealogists Ireland (AGI) and the Association of Scottish Genelaogists and Researchers in Archives (ASGRA) held their first joint meeting last week at a special two-day professional development event hosted in Belfast, where AGI (then APGI) was founded in 1986.

The two organisations have been providing accreditation for professional genealogists for three decades, and have joined forces to promote the benefits of such accreditation for both competent genealogists and those seeking to engage competent and trustworthy researchers.

At the beginning of the two-day event AGI President Máire Mac Conghail, and ASGRA Chairman Janet Bishop outlined the history and evolution of their respective organisations and welcomed the alliance.

In August, an internal newsletter for AGI and ASGRA members (compiled by Kirsteen Mulhern (ASGRA), Michael Walsh MAGI, and John Grenham MAGI) was launched, and AGI will attend the 28th Annual Conference of the Scottish Association of Family History Societies, which ASGRA is hosting at North Queensferry, Fife, next April.

AGI and ASGRA have similarities. For example, both have programmes to help those in transition towards a career in genealogical research. However, there are differences of approach between the two organisations. The alliance recognises these differences and does not seek to impose uniformity. The organisations are equal and are supportive of one another.