Category Archives: International conferences

Learn about Virtual Reality at the Library 2.0 Virtual Conference on March 29, 2022

I am very excited to announce the 2022 line up of free global virtual conferences offered through the Library 2.0 virtual conference series! The three conferences this year focus on Virtual Reality; Urban Librarianship; and Privacy.

The first conference of the year, Virtual Reality and Learning: Leading the Way, will take place next week on March 29th 2022 from 12pm-3pm US-Pacific time.

This mini-conference is part of the Library 2.0 Worldwide Virtual Conference series, which was started in 2011, to build community among information professionals, provide a forum for discussion about important topics, and learn from each other across the world.

Virtual reality is a growing technology trend for libraries, and it’s a technology that is used to support learning and interaction in a wide range of environments. Sara Jones and Tammy Westergard both have extensive experience with deploying virtual reality in libraries, which was valuable as they helped us organize this mini-conference.  We look forward to hearing from them about their VR experience, as well as engaging with many others to discuss this important topic.

The conference kicks off with a one hour opening keynote panel discussion. We’ll hear from the following people:

  • Sara Jones, State Librarian, Washington State Library
  • Tammy Westergard, Senior Workforce Development Leader, Project Coordinator – U.S. Department of Education
  • Greg Lucas, California State Librarian
  • Milton Chen, Independent Speaker, Author, Board Member
  • Catherine Devine, Director, Business Strategy – Libraries and Museums, Microsoft Worldwide Education
  • Karsten Heise, Director of Strategic Programs, Nevada Governor’s Office of Economic Development (GOED)
  • Dana Ryan, PhD, Special Assistant to the President, Truckee Meadows Community College

During the next 90 minutes, you will have the chance to attend three 30-minute sessions – choosing from 18 presentations. Sample presentation titles include:

  • The Virtual Library: Making Interactive Online Tours with 360° Images, Augmented Reality, and Virtual Reality Technologies
  • An Overview and Understanding of the Metaverse
  • Libraries as the Center of Virtual Reality Collaboration

The conference ends with a 30-minute closing keynote session.

Registration is free; sessions will be recorded and made available after the event.

Thank you to founding partner The School of Information at San José State University for making the Library 2.0 conference series available, and to our partner organizations The Association for Rural & Small Libraries (ARSL) and Califa Group for their support of this mini-conference.

Mark your calendars for upcoming Library 2.0 virtual mini-conferences in 2022; both will be held from 12-3pm Pacific time and will be free and held online.

  • July 14, 2022 – Urban Librarianship: Innovative Ideas, Active Leadership, and Best Practices.
  • October 13, 2022 – Privacy

I hope you will join us on March 29th, 2022 to learn about virtual reality!

Digital Transformation and the Libraries in Extraordinary Circumstances

Digital Transformation and the Libraries in Extraordinary Circumstances

By Loida Garcia-Febo, ALA President 2018-2019, International Library Consultant, CPDWL Advisor

The Croatian Library Association, the National and University Library in Zagreb, and the University Library of Rijeka are hosting the first hybrid library conference I’ve attended since the pandemic. The theme is Digital Transformation and the Libraries in Extraordinary Circumstances. The hosts and the librarians are visionaries stepping up to provide a quality event to discuss a timely topic impacting everyone and everything on our planet.

The Croatian Ministry of Culture, the Director of the National and University Library, the President of the Croatian Library Council, and the President of the Croatian Library Association- all welcomed attendees expressing their joy and support of the event.  Everyone is thrilled about this opportunity!

This extraordinary effort showcases the determination of librarians to implement strategies to keep attendees secure while attending an in-person event, and strategies to use the latest technology to broadcast an event to benefit the continuing professional development of library workers nationally.

The theme of my opening keynote built on my speech for the 2019 Austrian Library Association Conference on “Artificial Intelligence in Libraries” was “Libraries and digital transformation: supersonic library services in the 2020s.”

The pandemic ushered libraries into full digital transformation. To meet the needs of library users and researchers accessing services only online, libraries faced a steep learning curve to implement elements of automation, AI, and machine learning. While libraries have been discussing and exploring digital transformation for years, the pandemic accelerated the process.

Our world and the global information environment were and are still being transformed by the profound impact of COVID-19 on people, society, and the planet. We are living in the era of digital transformation for the people. Digital transformation is a priority in the world, and it is people-centered.

My talk will be available on the Croatian Library Association website soon, but for now I will share an overview of salient points:

I also delved into:

  • what we have learned during the pandemic on our way to digital transformation,
  • explained how libraries can sustain these changes,
  • went over areas of concern,
  • the new requirements for successful librarians in this field,
  • what are the social, sustainability, and wellness implications for libraries/librarians,
  • how we are creating the future today by forecasting, and
  • what we need to do to achieve full digital transformation

Overall, I emphasized, technologies alone do not determine results. They must be adopted embedding our professional values and in particular, social, economic, and political contexts that influence their development and use.

The social inclusion of the community is the consolidation of democracy. All of these will help us to rebuild a just and equitable society transformed by technologies.

—-

Useful logistics for this successful and secure conference that might help you to develop your next hybrid library event:

The conference, attended by 100 librarians on site, started with a large number of attendees, including myself, traveling by bus from Croatia’s capital, Zagreb to the beautiful coastal city of Lovran. Everyone on the bus wore masks and followed security and physical distance protocols.

At the conference, attendees must wear masks at all times as well, screen themselves to check their temperature, and use hand sanitizer when entering the meeting rooms. Virtual attendees participate in an engaging event featuring speakers and PPT slides on the same screen and opportunities to engage in various meeting rooms according to themes.

The conference name tags include a QR code for contactless information about all things conference-related. Bonus applause for beautiful conference bags and an exhibits room featuring prominent library vendors.

It is amazing to see how in-person attendees have big smiles as they greet one and another after so long without in-person conferences. For clarity, big smiling eyes when wearing masks are lovely. Big smiles at mealtimes when masks are removed are like the sun shining on us.

Recognition to an incredible national library team:

  • Dijana Machala, President of the Croatian Library Association
  • Ivanka Stričević, Director National and University Library of Croatia
  • Jelena Glavić-Perčin, delegate of the Minister of Culture and Media
  • Dejana Golenko, President of Law Libraries Section, Croatian Library Association
  • Lea Lazzarich, Director of Libraries for the University of Rikeja
  • Tatjana Aparac Jelušic, President of the Croatian Library Council

Russian and US Libraries Supporting the Well-Being of Individuals and Communities Thursday, 3 June 2021, 9am CDT/5pm MSK by Svetlana A. Gorokhova and Daria Beliakova

The US Russia Library Dialogue, in partnership with American Library Association’s International Relations Office, and the Russian Library Association will host a free webinar “Russian and US Libraries Supporting the Well-Being of Individuals and Communities” on Thursday, June 3, 2021, 9am CDT/5pm MSK. Register — https://lnkd.in/eTNsW4Z — in advance for this webinar. After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the session. The webinar will be conducted in English and Russian (with translation).

As we head into a second year of living with the coronavirus pandemic, libraries remain second responders helping their communities navigate these uncertain times. In this webinar, US and Russian library specialists will share strategies for how libraries in both countries can support their communities, including the social and emotional well-being of library users and library staff, as we start to emerge from isolation and libraries reopen. The panelists will discuss challenges in returning to in-person service, strategies for supporting individuals and communities, and how collective self-care can become an ongoing part of library service.

Join us for a lively conversation as we discuss where we are, and where we would like to go as we work with our communities to navigate these uncertain times.

 

PANELISTS

US Speakers: Nicole Cooke, Augusta Baker Endowed Chair and Associate Professor

School of Information Science, University of South Carolina

Loida Garcia-Febo, International Library Consultant

Russian Speakers: Anna Galeeva, Deputy Director, Novosibirsk Regional Library, Head of Da Vinci Casa Art Platform

Liudmila Pronina, Director, Tambov Regional Library, LIS Professor, Tambov University

Moderators: Svetlana Gorokhova, Russian Co-chair US Russia Library Dialogue

Ellen Knutson, US Co-chair US Russia Library Dialogue

Interpreter: Valeriy Volozov

 

Как российские и американские библиотеки обеспечивают индивидуальное и общественное благополучие своих пользователей.

Четверг, 3 июня 2021 года, 17:00 (время московское).

Российско-Американский библиотечный диалог, под эгидой Американской и Российской библиотечных ассоциаций проводят вебинар «Как российские и американские библиотеки обеспечивают индивидуальное и общественное благополучие своих пользователей». Вебинар состоится в четверг, 3 июня 2021 года, в 17:00 по московскому времени. Ссылка для регистрации…….После регистрации Вы получите подтверждение и информацию по участи в вебинаре. Мероприятие пройдет на русском и английском языке. Зарегистрированные участники смогут воспользоваться синхронным переводом.

Уже второй год мы живем в условиях  пандемии, когда библиотеки являются вторым по важности (после экстренных служб) эшелоном, помогая  своим сообществам эффективно существовать в такое непростое время. Во время вебинара российские и американские специалисты поделятся своим опытом по поддержке своих сообществ, включая вопросы социального и эмоционального благополучия своих пользователей и сотрудников, во время открытия библиотек и возвращения их из изоляции  к полноценной жизни. Спикеры из обеих стран обсудят те вызовы, с которыми сталкиваются библиотеки, возвращаясь к физическому обслуживанию населения; какие стратегии вырабатывают библиотеки, чтобы поддержать свое сообщество и каждого из его членов; как сделать обеспечение коллективного благополучия неотъемлемой частью библиотечного обслуживания.

Присоединяйтесь к нашему разговору о том, где мы находимся сейчас и куда мы хотели бы прийти в нашей работе по поддержке наших пользователей в нестабильное пост-пандемийное время.

 

СПИКЕРЫ 

США: Николь Кук, профессор, Школа информационных наук, Университет Южной Каролины

Лойда Гарсиа Фебо, Президент АБА (2019-2019гг)

Россия: Анна Галеева, заместитель директора, Новосибирская государственная областная научная библиотека; руководитель арт-платформы «Дом да Винчи».

Людмила Пронина, директор, Тамбовская областная универсальная научная библиотека; профессор кафедры библиотечно-информационных ресурсов  Тамбовского государственного университета.

Модераторы:

Светлана Горохова, со-председатель Российско-Американского библиотечного диалога (Россия)

Эллен Кнутсен, со-председатель Российко-Американского библиотечного диалога (США)

Attend Bilingual Virtual Conference focused on Civic Engagement March 25-26, 2021

I am very excited to announce a free bilingual Spanish/English conference – Seguimos Creando Enlaces 2021: Civic Engagement in Action – which will be taking place online over two days from March 25th-March 26th 2021 from 10:00 am – 3:00 pm US-Pacific Time each day.

This mini-conference is part of the Library 2.0 Worldwide Virtual Conference series, which was started in 2011 and was founded based on many of the principles of civic engagement. Civic engagement is all about making a difference in the civic life of our communities and about promoting the quality of life in a community. Civic engagement activities range from voting to volunteering as well as other activities that benefit society. Libraries are an essential part of helping communities thrive and libraries have a key role to play in engaging with individuals and groups to help them participate actively in civic activities.

This mini-conference differs from the typical Library 2.0 Worldwide Virtual Conference in several ways.

  • It is the first completely bilingual Library 2.0 conference ever offered since the conference series was founded. All sessions will be offered in both Spanish and English.
  • The sessions are spread over two days instead of just one day; this is to accommodate the additional time it takes to translate content.
  • This conference was a true collaboration of multiple organizations all working closely together to ensure that great content would be included and available in both English and Spanish. Library 2.0 Worldwide Conference Series is partnering with the Seguimos Creando Enlaces (Creating Connections) bilingual conference to bring it online; the conference is presented by the San José State University School of Information, Library 2.0 Worldwide Virtual Conference Series, Southern California Library Cooperative in partnership with the SERRA Library Cooperative, and the California State Library.

Registration is free, and attendees will have the option to view live presentations in English and Spanish. Sessions will be recorded and made available after the event.

Seguimos Creando Enlaces 2021: Civic Engagement in Action

  • Who Should Attend: Librarians, library staff members and library school students from around the globe
  • When: March 25 and 26, 2021
  • Time: 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Pacific Time each day (UTC-7)
  • Where: Online via Zoom
  • Cost: FREE!
  • Presentations and Speakers: Conference Schedule
  • REGISTER NOW! (English form)
  • REGISTER NOW! (Spanish form)

I hope you will be able to join the conference to learn about different perspectives related to civic engagement, meet colleagues from the US, Mexico and across the globe, and engage in interactive discussions through the virtual conference.

Library of the year in Sweden 2020 – not a library by Catharina Isberg

Every year a library in Sweden is nominated as Library of the year. This year there were huge changes.

The nomination is carried out by DIK, the Swedish union for library, culture and information. And this prize has been given for the last 30 years. The purpose of Library of the Year is to draw attention to the libraries’ important role in a democratic society. Every year libraries are highlighted which in different ways and according to their unique conditions, have excelled a little extra.

For the first time – Library of the Year 2020 is not a library. Instead, the prize goes to the people behind it – all librarians in Sweden.

This year, due to the pandemic, DIK has seen creativity and forward-thinking spirit in the libraries and initiative beyond the ordinary and traditional approaches.

With scarce funds and their own concerns for infection, the country’s librarians have used their skills and competences and ensured that libraries are open, switched up their digital activities and delivered books to those who, due to the risk of infection, could not pick them up themselves.

The importance of libraries becomes especially apparent in times of crisis and librarians have shown an enormous willingness to spread culture and information. Together they have proven that a library, it is so much more than a physical place. The librarians have a huge skill and competence which the society benefits from.

Therefor DIK wanted to pay a tribute to this effort and therefore award Library of the Year 2020 to all librarians in Sweden.

Further information is found at: https://dik.se/om-oss/stipendier-och-utmarkelser/arets-bibliotek

Online Conferences and Learning: An Interview with Jane Dysart

Photo: Jane Dysart

I was lucky to speak with Jane Dysart, a member of IFLA’s Knowledge Management Standing Committee and Continuing Professional Development Committee and Workplace Learning Standing Committee! We talked about her work in supporting online professional development learning, LIS trends and what’s in store for her upcoming virtual conference!

Ray: Thank you for taking the time to speak with me! With the shift to digital learning, it is unfortunate that all in-person meetings and conferences have been cancelled or converted to online formats. What are your thoughts on this approach and why did you decide to combine Computers in Libraries & Internet Librarian virtually together? 

Jane: Yes, very sad to miss all our fun learning and networking face-to-face events. However, Information Today is hoping to make our first virtual library event,  Computers in Libraries & Internet Librarian Connect, an exciting online learning and interactive experience. Computers in Libraries was scheduled for late March in Washington DC and we had to cancel it a few weeks before.  Internet Librarian was scheduled for mid-Oct and early in July it became apparent that we couldn’t hold an in-person meeting even though we’d already planned the conference and had shared the program online.  We wanted to do a virtual event to honor those who had registered for CIL and agreed to roll their registration over to 2021 and we wanted to reach our fans of Internet Librarian too. We also wanted to experiment and learn the ins and outs of virtual events. So voila!  We put two strong, already planned, programs together, checked with speakers, and created a very ambitious 5 day event online!

Ray: What are some exciting sessions that you’d like to highlight from Computers in Libraries & Internet Librarian Connect this year?

Jane: We’re very excited about the format of our new event – each day of the week from Monday September 21 through Friday September 5. We’re starting early in the morning ET and including “Talking with Libraries: Stories from Around the Globe” — interviews by popular European library star, Erik Boekesteijn.  The first interview features IFLA President Christine Mackenzie! We have two keynote every day, one early and one late: Lee Rainie, Sarah Boisvert, Clifford Lynch, Nicol Turner Lee, Daniel Russell, Eepmon (Erick Chan), David Feriero, Leslie Weir, John Bracken, Misty Jones, Bryan Alexander, Michael Edson, Dana Mitroff & more! We hope to attract library folks from all over the world and have some content during waking hours in their time zones! We have about 180 speakers — knowledgeable library practitioners, thought leaders, and experts from around the world! Prepare yourself if you look at the list of speakers, on our online platform, they are listed alphabetically BY FIRST NAME!!  LOL, obviously not our choice!

Ray: That is funny indeed! What are tips that you’d like to share with the international library community interested in organizing online conferences?

Jane: There is definitely a learning curve with creating virtual events: from choosing a platform (there are many out there; we went with Pheedloop because it could support 5 tracks of content at the same time, much like our F2F events); learning the platform and dealing with its imperfections (or at least handling things differently that we are used to!); ensuring we all know how to deal with the technology (we’re doing training with both our moderators and speakers); marketing a new event (at least library folk are familiar with our F2F brands and we hope will support our digital one!). Our goal was to make this event as interactive as possible so our regular session programs are organized with 5 tracks of sessions over 5 days focusing on Content Discovery & Management; Libraries & Communities; Technology; Management, Marketing & Change; Internet@Schools, Makerspaces & More! You can see more about the daily topics of each track on the website, for example, Track A over 5 days, https://pheedloop.com/cilil2020/site/tracks-a/. Most of our sessions will feature a speaker for 20 minutes followed by 20 minutes Q&A/discussion and then 20 minutes of speaker availability in the networking area as we get ready for the next speaker. I am sure we will all be exhausted by the end of the week, but are really looking forward to the experience and seeing lots of library folks from around the world! We will have a virtual exhibit hall (still working on that), many meet ups (still in process), and lots of networking opportunities. So keep checking out website for new updates!

Ray: How exciting! Finally, what are some trends you see that the international library community should be exploring more?

Jane: Interesting question.  I really believe we need to reset, not look for a new normal or try to fit the old ways into the new environment, but really rethink what we want to accomplish in our communities.  We definitely need to build up our digital collections in libraries with many different learning and discovery avenues, such as couch safaris to different places, zoos, museums, art galleries, aquariums, etc; virtual bird watching expeditions using webcams all over the world; as well as open access to our research and scientific resources and lots more.  I think we need to build more relationships with our communities (academic campuses, municipalities, enterprises, schools), bridging many of these communities in our geographic locations.  We also need to look for strong partners as IFLA always says – stronger together.  We need support from many new and diverse partners. I’m looking forward to our discussion in this session:

Health Crisis: Stress Test?

What did we learn in the past 6-plus months? Where did our libraries and communities fall short? How can we improve our services and readiness now and into the future? Vint Cerf recently said the virus was a really effective stress test of technology and technology companies, but what about libraries? How did we do with this stress test of our services. Where did we pass, where do we have more work to do and what does that look like?  Hear about recent community experiences and share yours!

Thanks again for letting me share my passions – libraries, learning, information discovery and management, communities, building relationships and sharing our knowledge and experiences. Hope to see lots of IFLA members online and will look forward to your feedback following the event!

Here’s another link, Jane’s blog calling our ambitious program a librarypalooza, https://dysartjones.com/2020/08/sept-21-25-librarypalooza-cil-il-connect/

***

JANE DYSART, Founding Partner of Dysart & Jones and Curator of Curiosity, She specializes in designing learning and leadership events and customized conference planning. Jane has brought together experts and facilitators, keynote speakers and presenters for more than 100 successful events in Canada, the US and the UK.

Information Professional Caucus Camp for Kenyan New Professionals by Nyakundi James Nyambane

(IPC camp organizers and participants March, 2020)

The IPC Camp event was hosted by the KNLS Nakuru at the American Corner on 6th of March 2020. The event attracted new professionals from all over the country. It was themed “Invigorating New information Professionals”  The New professionals comprised of students, new employees and senior employees as well.

The camp received a grant from the Kenya Library Association of USD 500 dollar in support of the event. The event attracted 160 new information professionals and other invited guests.

Aim of the KLA New Professionals Camp

The aim of The KLA New Professionals’ Camp was to attract new professionals who have the spirit and motivation to run with the new vision. Hot and trendy topics in the library world were deliberated upon with an aim to give working solutions in the Kenyan contemporary society of information. The camp also presented an immense opportunity for networking and professional interaction.

Objectives of the Camp

  1. To empower new professionals in the library and information career to get involved in the national association and with KLA, thus prompting them to be local and international thinkers and leaders.
  2. To increase the librarians’ network by linking new professionals with each other and existing gurus, thereby sharing experiences, opportunities, social interaction and laying strategy for further virtual interaction through social spaces.
  3. To offer first quality free training and knowledge exchange opportunities through open programmes and future satellite meetings.

 

Mapping New Professionals’ Camp Concept

There has been a new and awakening trend in the library profession to have camps, otherwise referred to as ‘unconferences’.  These are refreshing yet informal setups that have been attributed to seeing the sharing of new ideas, rise of motivation among peers, fostering of unity in librarians and key discussion of future trends which have a direct impact on the professional. Impressive ideas pertinent to the career were shared. From the participants who attended the event, the camp was more than a success. For The KLA professionals, it is a matter of catching up with the in-thing, as we have a lot more to share than to ignore in this profession.

Proposed schedule of events

The venue was settled at the American Spaces Nakuru KNLS, Venue provided by Nakuru KNLS Librarian Purity Kavuri. Experienced presenters who are information professionals from within the country and the Globe dedicated it to exploring a variety of trends. In addition to the lively discussions, the IFLA SG- Gerald Leitner sent the new professionals a message of encouraging such events and gatherings for new professionals. Below are some of the presenters.

           Purity Kavuri- “Library Advocacy” KNLS-Nakuru Branch Librarian

Raymond Pun, International “Librarianship and academic publishing” (California, USA)

Prof. Tom Kwanya, “Invigorating New information Professionals”  Knowledge Management Expert. Director, School of Information and Communication Studies The Technical University of Kenya.

New professionals’ camp was about daring to give the body freedom of being an important part of creative processes, provoke mind and connect it with ideas through the different “logic”, also to brush up the ability of alternative from spoken word ways of communication. The participant-driven approach allowed for active involvement of all attendees.

In conclusion, librarians are encouraged to find ways to include new professionals in library association projects. We encourage senior librarians to provide mentorship and guidelines for new professionals.

 

Nyakundi James Nyambane,

Librarian User services, USIU-A.

IFLA CPDWL Member