About the Project

Archive Alive is a cultural travel platform that reimagines local neighborhoods as living museums, helping travelers uncover the stories that give each community its soul. Many of the places we explore today looked very different years ago—and may change drastically in the future. In our fast-evolving world, local stories are not always passed down to younger generations, placing cultural memory at risk of disappearing.

This project was developed by a team of young Southeast Asian leaders from the Philippines, Thailand, Cambodia, and Brunei, and proudly awarded a small grant by the U.S. Mission to ASEAN and Young Southeast Asian Leaders Initiative (YSEALI), through the InnovatHer program supported by the Kenan Foundation. With this support, Archive Alive brings community storytelling into the digital age.

Through QR-coded markers placed across partner communities, travelers can scan and instantly discover the history behind buildings, traditions, shops, and artisans. 

Archive Alive invites you to slow down, connect deeply, and experience a place through the eyes of the people who keep its culture alive—one story at a time.