Category Archives: podcast

CPDWL Podcast Project: Episode 3

Colleagues, we are excited to announce the our third episode of the CPDWL Podcast Project where we feature library and information professionals who support and participate in professional development work.

Our guest is Susan Schnuer. Susan Schnuer is the Public Library Innovation Programme Capacity Building Manager for EIFL. Her responsibilities include working with library authorities in Africa on institutionalizing continuous professional development for public librarians, in the past year she has worked mainly in Kenya and Namibia. Before joining EIFL in 2018, Susan was the Associate Director at the Mortenson Center for International Library Programs, located at the University of Illinois. For more than 25 years Susan created and implemented high-quality professional development programmes for librarians world-wide. Susan received multiple grants that allowed her to focus on specific regional library needs. Working with local partners, she implemented successful and sustainable library projects in countries such as Costa Rica, Ghana, Haiti, Nigeria, Tanzania, and Uganda.

Most recently Susan has been focused on the development of library leadership materials for public libraries. Supported by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, the project Strengthening Innovative Library Leaders (SILL) is a freely-available training programme designed to build leadership and innovation skills for anyone who works in a public library. The training materials were co-developed with librarians from Armenia, Bhutan, Haiti, India, Myanmar, Namibia, and Nepal. Susan has received numerous awards including the IFLA Scroll of Appreciation and the John Ames Humphry/OCLC Forest Press Award for International Librarianship. Susan has a Bachelor’s degree from Tufts University, an education postgraduate degree from Boston University, and a library postgraduate degree from the University of Illinois, USA.

See here for the podcast conversation!

Transcript

Ray:

Hi, this is Ray Pun. Welcome to the  CPDWL podcast project! In this space we talk with library and information professionals who support and participate in professional development work. Today’s guest is Susan Schnuer, Public Library Innovation Program Capacity Building Manager for EIFL. Her responsibilities include working with library authorities and Africa on institutionalizing continuous professional development for public librarians. In the past year. She has worked mainly in Kenya and Namibia. Before joining EIFL in 2018, Susan was the associate director of the Mortenson Center for International library programs, located at the University of Illinois. For more than 25 years. Susan created and implemented, high quality professional development programs for librarians worldwide. She received multiple awards and grants that allowed her to focus on specific regional library needs, working with local partners, she implemented successful and sustainable library projects in countries such as Costa Rica, Ghana, Haiti, Nigeria, Tanzania and Uganda. Welcome, Susan!

Susan:

Thank you for having me, Ray.

Ray:

So before we begin, there are actually a couple of questions I should have asked before which is mindful, can you tell us what it stands for.

Susan:

EIFL stands for electronic information for libraries, it’s a nonprofit that’s located in Lithuania, and its motto is knowledge without boundaries.

Ray:

Great. And we know for a fact that a fun fact is that you are always traveling as I read in your bio, can you tell us where you’re located right now?

Susan:

Actually I’m back in the United States right now which is great because I’ve had about eight international trips this year so it’s fun to be home.

Ray:

That’s nice. So we’re going to have this conversation with you, and we’re really interested to hear about your experiences as I described, and for yourself. We’re curious to hear if you had to describe yourself using only one word, what word would that be?

Susan:

Well, my grandchildren would say that I’m fun, but in a professional setting probably the word that I would use to describe myself is perceptive. And this is a quality that I developed from my upbringing where I was raised in France Peru and Mexico, and also from the work that I’m currently doing internationally. I’ve learned how to understand both verbal and nonverbal communication in complexity.

Ray:

Wow. That’s interesting that you were born grew up in different areas that that I didn’t know. So, it might explain a little bit about your current work but we’re really curious what compelled you to become a librarian. How did you get started?

Susan:

I didn’t start on the path of librarianship I started as a bilingual elementary teacher and then I stopped school years to to be at home with the children, and when I thought about rescheduling I was thinking about well what should I do, where do I want to go, and a friend suggested that I become a librarian. I agreed. And I thought I’d be a school librarian. However, when I graduated from the University of Illinois, a brand new center had opened, the Mortensen Center for International library programs. I applied and the rest, as they say, is history.

Ray:

So, with the work you’ve done at the Mortensen Center and and your current work. We’re really curious about also your vision or view for international librarianship, what does it mean to you and has that vision changed for you over time?

Susan:

For me international librarianship means understanding the global network that surrounds the work of libraries and librarians, or the players, what are the issues, what are the challenges. How do we work together to sustain and grow that global network. My thinking about working internationally has evolved a great deal over the years in developing and transitioning countries, 25 years ago I worked on the assumption that the international work was more of a one way highway from us to you. But now I’m a firm believer in co-partnership, co-creation and sustainability. The best work is the work that makes a change that leaves a very small footprint.

Ray:

Interesting and you started a lot of work at this law with our section and of course all the other groups, specifically, how did you get involved with CPDWL, and why did you work with this section, specifically for you?

Susan:

Actually and it says a lot about CPDWL. When I attended my first IFLA which was in Argentina in 2004. And I was really interested in continuing professional development, at that point, and so I visited all the different sections that were engaged with professional development and CPDWL was the only section that invited me to the table, and was interested in my opinions. And for me that was meant that that was a section. That’s where I wanted to be with people who had those kind of beliefs, and we’re willing to invite everybody to participate.

Ray:

And you were previously a co chair for the section, is that correct?

Susan:

Yes, actually I started the whole co-chair sort of activity in our section, I was first chair. But when I was thinking about it I really realized that first of all this was this was big work, but also we were not doing a good job of mentoring people on the section and in the community who might be interested in doing this work but were reluctant to take it on thinking it was, it was too much. So how to give them a chance to see the work up close and to figure out if there’s something that would be interesting in them so Ulrike Lang and I were the first ones to be co-chairs. We propose this to IFLA and they were not thrilled with our idea but now gained some popularity and I think this is a great way to proceed.

Ray:

Definitely, and your work as a satellite meeting chair right? You have your organized?

Susan:

Yes. And I have to say that it I think that’s some of the best CPDWL work is done in the satellite meetings where you really get a chance to delve into the topic, but you also get a chance to hear from different perspectives from people who might not have a chance to attend an IFLA but can come to a satellite meeting. I’ve just loved some of our satellite meetings, there are a ton of work, and they’re just of learning and richness and friendships and just lovely.

Ray:

Yeah, I totally agree. We were able to organize one this year in Zagreb, Croatia, and I was part of the planning group and it was quite a rewarding, but also great learning experience. And with that being said you had mentioned all the work within CPDWL and IFLA. Can you share with us a memorable moment you have with CPDWL or IFLA?

Susan:

I’m actually I’m going to share a funny moment that I’ve had with CPDWL at IFLA. And this was when I was running a CPDWL session for the IFLA Congress, and we had had extensive conversations in CPDWL about the fact that we no longer wanted to do sessions that were just about people reading papers or speaking one way to an audience. We wanted to host sessions where presenters would read, and talk and would be engaging and would have dialogue with the participants. So we decided on a roundtable approach, I can’t even remember exact topic, but we had several presenters and our participants would move to different tables every 15 to 20 minutes. This format had not been used at IFLA yet so we explained carefully to the IFLA conference organizers, that we would need several round tables mobile chairs, flexible space. In other words, what we got instead was an auditorium, with a stage, and some fixed seats, or initial panic, we reorganized and had different presenters in different parts of the auditorium. Some in the front of the stage, some at the back of the room. It was hard to use the chairs and most of the participants and the presenters just stood and talked. My role was to stand on the stage, explain what was happening and blow a whistle to let people know to move to another group there was time to move on. It was probably the most chaotic session that I’ve ever moderated, and yet at the end, numerous participants came up to me to say that was the best session that they have ever attended: engaging and interactive. And could we please continue to offer this session. So I think that was kind of a transformational moment for us in CPDWL that we needed to be presenting, new ways of offering knowledge to the participants of IFLA and not always do the same old traditional approach.

Ray:

Yeah, that’s actually a good point. And just to hear right you’ve been instrumental in making that happen because right now you can submit proposals under banquet roundtables, and now they actually have the roundtables.

Susan:

It was after that first sort of catastrophe that we had, then discuss more with IFLA headquarters. And I think the great point when they saw how popular this session was they understood that they needed to create the space for that.

Ray:

Yeah, and it’s great to have that variety. Some people might like papers and you know the roundtables just mix them up a little bit.

Susan:

Yes, exactly.

Ray:

So, what are you most excited about in the profession?

Susan:

I continue to be amazed at the work being done by some of our colleagues in low resource countries. There are some amazing organizations such as Read Global that works in India, Nepal, and Bhutan, and running projects for small enterprises for women in libraries are offering safe spaces for victims of sex trafficking. World Reader is another organization that works with publishers and authors to capture local materials and local languages load them on e-readers that are then distributed to public libraries and many countries. A librarian in Myanmar told me this last story that I wanted to mention. She noticed that they, there were a lot of street children in her town, and they did not have time to come to the library because they were spending their time collecting plastic bottles to sell in the marketplace. So she set up a table with tablets outside the library so that when they pass by the library. They could stop for a few minutes to read or play a game. There are many of these stories and they’re all inspirational.

Ray:

Wow, that’s really interesting to hear that kind of changes and challenges going on, and it does does make the profession pretty exciting. And so with the work you’ve done on providing professional development tips for many of the different groups you’ve supported, I’m really curious what’s a professional development tip or advice that you like to share with others listening?

Susan:

So my tip is this: make room at the table for all the voices. The wonder of using international setting is, is the beauty of all the different filters that we use to understand the world. However, in IFLA and in many international contexts where English is the dominant language, and a Western cultural approach is most prevalent, we can easily extinguish those voices that bring value and intelligence to our conversations. I’ve learned to listen, ask many questions and monitor off, when I’m speaking. Every time I speak I’m taking space, space that might bring another perspective, it’s important that our meetings and conversations are paced, so that everyone has a chance to speak, and we can see, full advantage of what it means to be truly global.

Ray:

Wow, very insightful. Um, this is a little bit different but I think people are probably curious, I’m definitely curious because of the work you’ve done, and I think I have an idea of what you might do but I’m curious what you would say, so what profession, other than librarianship, would you like to attempt?

Susan:

Hmm. I’m going to completely switch gears on you. I’ve thought of becoming a swim instructor for adults who have never learned how to swim. And I realized that I would love to do this when I was recently in Kenya, with colleagues at an ocean, and several women told me that they had never been either in the ocean, or a pool. And since we were in a location with both of those. We immediately started a little swim group. And they’re delighted and learning how to move in water was so rewarding I thought, “Boy, this is something I could see doing when I retired from my current position.”

Ray:

Oh, that’s nice. Yeah, I was a leading towards non-profit work, but I mean that’s sort of like similar advocacy level, work. And speaking about the work, you’re doing right now, what are you working on right now?

Susan:

So what I’m working on right now is making sort of changing the way that national libraries approach professional development building for their public librarians in Kenya and Namibia, and to do this, we’ve looked at what they’re currently doing what they’re currently doing is that they when they have resources, and they can bring in experts then they have training, but our idea was to build the expertise within the country, so that they wouldn’t need as much money, and they could also have the experts that they need right on site. And so I’ve been working in Kenya and Namibia with a group of cohorts of public librarians on developing their training skills, and also scaling them up in various areas, and it’s just been a great project in each country. I’ve been working in Kenya for 18 months in Namibia now for about a year. And I’ve been there, like four or five times every year and it really has been fun to work with a very amazing group of local librarians who are very excited about being trainers in their, in their local context so it’s just kind of fabulous.

Ray:

How exciting that you get to have this opportunity and it’s so great that you’re working globally and really supporting librarian local librarians there. And so with that being said, we know that it sounds like, and we know that you’re always somewhere, doing something really important and critical, and we appreciate that and so this is a final question here where can our listeners connect with you, online?

Susan:

One of the ways I do that especially with my colleagues in Kenya Namibia is on WhatsApp. So I am on WhatsApp, and easily accessible there, but also email, Facebook LinkedIn or other ways I can be, you can get my attention.

Ray:

Great. Well, I wanted to thank our listeners for hearing all the interesting things that Susan has presented and Thank you Susan, for joining us in this conversation!

Susan:

Thank you for having me, Ray! It’s been delightful!

CPDWL Podcast Project: Episode 2

Colleagues, we are excited to announce the our second episode of the CPDWL Podcast Project where we feature library and information professionals who support and participate in professional development work.

Our guest is Catharina Isberg. Catherina is the library director of Helsingborg public libraries since 2013. She’s the new chair of the IFLA division IV, a new member of the governing board for the period, 2019 to 2021. Catharina is also a member of the IFLA Management and Marketing Standing committee and previously served in the CPDWL section for eight years in various roles such as Secretary, information coordinator and co-chair. The transcript is below with resources that Catharina referenced Enjoy!

See here for the podcast conversation!

Transcript

Raymond Pun
Hi this is Raymond Pun. Welcome to the CPDWL podcast project! In this space, we talk with library and information professionals to support and participate in professional development work. Today’s guest is Catharina Isberg, Catherina is the library director of Helsingborg public libraries since 2013. She’s the new chair of the IFLA division IV, a new member of the governing board for the period, 2019 to 2021. Catharina is also a member of the IFLA Management and Marketing Standing committee and previously served in the CPDWL section for eight years in various roles such as Secretary, information coordinator and co-chair. Welcome!

Catharina Isberg
Thank you.

Ray
So we’re really excited to have you here and with all the work you’ve done a CPDWL, and everyone is really thankful and appreciative. And from my time there I’ve certainly interacted with you collaborate with you, many times, and from what I’ve been hearing. You’ve been described as very talented very communicative, graceful .If you had to describe yourself using only one word, what word would it be?

Catharina
Actually you used one of them, communicative. I would use that one. So that’s really, that’s really what I think is extremely important in every role that you have.

Ray
Yes, certainly. And, as, as our work dictates today it’s quite a global profession and we’re always communicating with each other from other parts of the world. And, you know, this is something that I think our listeners are really interested to hearing which is what compelled you to become a librarian, how did you get started?

Catharina
Well, that is quite a funny story I would say, My parents and my sisters, they were all teachers, and I didn’t want to go that path, I wanted to do something else. So I went to the student counselor during high school, and said that, “I want to be a lawyer and attorney.” And she started talking with me as an after our discussion I realized “No, I’m not going to be in a tornado. So we went on in the alphabetical list. We started with A for attorney”, with no, and then we came to look at bibliotekarie (librarian in Swedish), and was discussing that. And I said “Yes, that’s good.” So I went for a two week internship, as part of the school year to the public library, and like that, that’s the start of it. I got summer work and then I started my education directly after in the high school. And now, I’m a librarian.

Ray
More importantly, you’re also an international librarian, you’ve been so involved with IFLA, and what does international librarianship mean to you?

Catharina
We are all part of the global arena, and the library and information arena looks much more globally. When it comes to sensation and everything, all information is accessible, or should be accessible, all over the globe. And so, that is really the important part for me, that we get access to information, and that everyone has freedom of expression that you can express, whatever opinions, you have. You should be able to do that. Wherever you are, and in order to do so you need to have accurate information. So for me, in the age of fake news and alternative facts, we all need to become more global and more international in our library work.

Ray
So that’s interesting that you mentioned fake news and alternative facts, and certainly that has been coming up for the past several years, but has that changed, like the vision for you, like when you first started and thinking about international work over the years or it’s been consistently trying to provide information access, so forth?

Catharina
Actually, when I have worked in IFLA and I’ve seen many different parts of the world, I realized how important work is, that really work on it together because I’ve seen that. It’s not a matter of having a lot of money, or all the time. It’s a lot about having your ideas and doing things together, collaborating, discussing things. And to move forward, we can get all those ideas together and really work much more together than we did before. And going to the library outside Cape Town, it gave me so much to get them to take home to my library, and also to see that we have so many things in common, but we also have things that are different from what we’re used to in our daily work. So, I must say that I become much, much more humble, and I really feel that there is much much more to learn from each other. And I thought from the beginning. And the political arena of the world is changing, I really think we need to work even more on this.

Ray
Yeah, certainly, and the fact that you had mentioned IFLA and we had mentioned earlier, your involvement with our section. Now for our listeners, they’re probably really curious for eight years you’ve been involved at CPDWLl, how did you get involved, and why this section?

Catharina
Actually it was because I was part of the Swedish National Library expert committee on CPD issues. And when the World Library Information Congress was going to Gothenburg in 2010, I visited the CPDWL standing committee meeting. And we discuss the work that we had been doing in Sweden, and the CPDWL standing committee in such a work. And by the end of the meeting, I was asked, “Shouldn’t you join the section?” and it went from there. The next year I joined the section. And when I came to that first meeting, I was asked, “Could you be the information coordinator?” And I was.

Ray
Then from there on, you became more involved a secretary and co-chair and conference satellite meeting organizers, is that right?

Catharina:
Yeah, that’s right. It all started that there. I also said when I walked into that first meeting and they said do you want to be an information coordinator? My first question was, but isn’t there anyone else that has been part of this section for longer time that should do it or wants to do it? And I got the answer, no. So, I started to get involved. And it’s just been a lot of fun.

Ray
So, any other memorable moments you have about CPDWL or IFLA that you’d like to share.

Catharina:
Well, actually I would like to share the first time we had the coaching session, We had this drop-in coach, coaching, which we provided for whoever wanted coaching on the congress delegates. And there was one lady that came up to me and we were having our coaching session and I won’t talk about what we were discussing but her gratitude and her thankfulness for this 20 minutes that we spent together, that was really, really, really important to me, and I really enjoyed it a lot and I saw that in those small things, and the small conversations and the network that you have during the conference, you can make a difference.

Ray:
Was that last year in Malaysia?

Catharina:
Yes, that’s right. And this year we had our second coaching session in Athens and it’s really important, as well as the different knowledge cáfes and workshops that we’ve had during the conferences where you really make use of everyone’s knowledge, so that everyone has a voice.

Ray:
Yeah. And we, as for our listeners, we have a webinar on coaching which I believe you spoke last May?

Catharina:
Yeah, just shortly. I was just the kind of introducing the project. We had two coaches that were thinking much more and I would really say that it’s, it’s still available the recording and you should listen to Barbara and Peter who talked about coaching. It’s a really good webinar.

Ray:
Yeah, we have that in the page that you’ll see. So for those listeners, you can click on that link on the page. And so with coaching, that’s something one area that that has been sparking interest for a lot of folks and I’m curious here to hear what are you most excited about in the profession?

Catharina:
Actually, it’s two different things that one thing is to see the change, as the library and information I realize go through. To see that it’s getting more and more important, both on a local level, but also on a national and international level. And the other thing is really to go to my work every day and see the huge difference that we can play. Just for example, walking around in the library, especially in the children area and see the energy, the happiness from all the kids reading books and getting to know new digital devices. For example, today we had the first day of a national holiday for the schools, now they are all out for this week. And it’s called the “reading holiday.” So it’s a five days of reading. And we had all this things and the activities in the library today and just to see the kids. That is really something that excites me a lot about the profession. We make a difference.

Ray:
Yeah, that sounds really cool So is there a hashtag, sort of like a, you know, read “reading day today”, or something that’s trending so that others can see or is it very internal?

Catharina:
No, I am not sure if there is an if it is it’s unfortunately in Swedish. And, but it is a national holiday for, it has been for like four years or something.

Ray:
Right. Okay, that sounds really cool. What’s a professional development tip, or advice that you like to share with others?

Catharina:
Be brave and be brave, all the time. Go outside your comfort zone. And most important, is actually to be brave and go outside your comfort zone in your everyday and work, because I think that development is done in the everyday in the, in the work, and you have to look into your workplace learning and ensure that you take really advantage of all the possibilities, tou have to continuously. Because development is something that we need to do through all of our life. And I learned something new every day.

Ray:
Wow, so that’s great. And, you know, I think a lot of folks had heard that, you know, our section is really involved in professional development guidelines, a lot of webinars and collaborations we do so encourage our listeners to take the advice of Catharina and be brave, check it out and, you know, stay connected with us on social media. It’s a great opportunity to learn what we’re doing, but also in terms of the general professions. And I know we had just talked about this earlier about your, your family encouraging you to think of the profession before librarianship. But what profession, other than librarianship would you like to attempt?

Catharina:
If I would do something else, I would actually go into management consultant or business development or something like that. Because management and leadership is really something that I’m interested in. And I like to see people and business, developing. And so I think that that could be something for me. Maybe?

Ray:
it’s interesting. And we know that you are the new division for chair so congratulations on that. And what is next for you as the division chair, what would you like to accomplish?

Catharina:
Well actually, IFLA is undergoing a huge change. And as officer, I’ve been involved in the global vision and the strategy work, and that now goes into the governance work. And we are looking into how can IFLA optimize the organization, so that we as together all of us can fulfill the vision and mission, both at present time but also for the future. We have to have a good stability and sustainability into the IFLA work. And we also need to ensure a diversity, so that we diversify our membership and make sure that we are really present and engaged in all parts of the world, so that will become truly global. And the most important part as I see it is the professional structures with all the units or the sections like CPDWL is one section. We have a lot of them, and all the special interest groups. That’s the body of IFLA. And in that all the volunteer possibilities that so many people are involved. It’s more than thousand people involved in the work, how can we make room for as many people as possible to contribute to the work of IFLA, that is something that is really important for me.

Ray:
Yeah, that sounds incredible and sounds like a lot of collaboration, and a lot of hard work, coming in for all of us. This is a quite a task but I think this will be interesting to see how we develop going forward. And you know this this time just hearing you explain about your work, your vision, your own sort of a background, we’re really really thankful that you’ve taken the time today to speak with us. And you know this this is a question, probably for our listeners wondering if they wanted to connect with you, where can they find you?

Catharina:
Well, either you can look into the IFLA governing board web page, there is my contact details, but also, of course, it is business, I would suggest LinkedIn. That’s where I am most available when it comes to business contacts.

Ray:
Great, thanks for sharing that. We’ll have those links ready, and thank you again for taking the time to speak with us and to our listeners. Thanks for listening. Please feel free to check out the resources in the page and enjoy the rest of your day.

Catharina:
Thanks.

Resources

CPDWL Coaching Initiatives and Webinar

CPDWL Podcast Project: Episode 1

Colleagues, we are excited to announce the CPDWL Podcast Project where we feature library and information professionals who support and participate in professional development work.

Our first guest is Loida Garcia-Febo, the Immediate Past President of the American Library Association (ALA) and consultant to CPDWL Section and information coordinator to the IFLA Management of Library Associations Section. The transcript is below with resources that Loida referenced Enjoy!

Transcript Below

Raymond Pun 0:10
Hi, this is Ray Pun. Welcome to the CPVWL Podcast Project in this space we talk with library information professionals, who support and participate in professional development work related to librarianship. Today’s guest is Loida Garcia-Febo. The Past President of the American Library Association, and President of the Information New Way, a not for profit organization seeking to enhance the education of multiethnic populations in the United States, and in Latin America and Caribbean region. Loida has been a member of the CPWL section for eight years, and currently serves as a consultant, and also served the IFLA governing board from the 2013 2017. Thank you for joining us, Loida.

Loida Garcia Febo 0:56
Thank you so much Ray I’m so happy to be one of the inaugural guest of this CPDDL podcast and thank you so much for the invitation.

Raymond Pun 1:08
Great. We’re really excited to have you here, and we have a series of questions that our listeners are really interested to know more about you. So I guess the fact is that you’ve been so involved with international librarianship, and the work you do for ALA, IFLA, and a lot of people have described you and your sense of fashion as chic, very fashionable. And I wonder what would be one word, you would use to describe yourself.

Loida Garcia-Febo 1:42
I’m just very happy to hear those words. And I do put a lot of heart what I do. So, one word to describe myself is passionate. Everything I do in my profession is done with passion. And I really work with teams, I love teamwork, to accomplish goals, and I’m bringing my passion into that, you know, working, as you mentioned on the IFLA governing board for two terms, being ALA President, founding the IFLA New Professionals, collaborated on FAIFE annual report, establishing the CPDWL webinar series, everything, Everything is thanks to their support of librarians, in my passion for the profession, and for the library workers, and the communities we serve at academic public and school libraries and libraries of all types.

Raymond Pun 2:50
Yeah, and you’ve been so connected, as you’ve described so many different groups within IFLA, but also around the world based on the work you’ve done. And so, a question that probably a lot of people are thinking is what compelled you to become a librarian? How did you get started?

Loida Garcia-Febo 3:06
I love this question. Thank you. My mother was my school librarian. And I grew up in a school library. When I was thinking about which field, I will select for my master’s degree, my mom suggested to think about Library and Information Sciences, and I was familiar already with the LIS school at the University of Puerto Rico, because I accompany my mother when she was studying for her master’s degree there. So, I was familiar with the school, with the professors, and I really liked it there. And it was a great decision. I love being a librarian and I’m so happy that my mom was also a librarian.

Raymond Pun 3:55
Wow, so that you have a library in your family, so that’s really fascinating to hear. And do you think, based on that kind of influence, your work for doing international work was also influenced by your family or that was something you wanted to do something different.

Loida Garcia-Febo 4:16
I always love to travel and I always like to learn from different cultures. And so, when I had the opportunity to do this librarianship, it just both things came together: my passion for traveling and international work in, of course libraries in the work that we do in librarianship and through librarianship, and these international work. I have had many opportunities, I’m so grateful. Being able to impact our profession, and our library workers and communities in different regions of the world doing work in teams and it means this work means that I can collaborate together with librarians from different regions of the world. For instance, as I did to place access to information on the sustainable development goals of the United Nations, and you all are familiar with that now, and I’m still very very happy to have advocated on behalf of the IFLA in libraries or the United Nations participating in forums and the UN in conjunction with civil society organizations, meeting with leaders from different countries, representing their countries at the United Nations. And as part of a really amazing. Each level global team. So it was an incredible feat. And for the first time that UN including access to information, which is at the core of what we do. They put it that into documents so just the SDG. the Sustainable Development Goals, which is used by countries worldwide to strategize their development efforts, they dedicate infrastructure, their budgets, and it was amazing to be there with our partners from IREX, I still remember that typing warranty that will become part of the target 16 point 10, which is our goal 16. And that is a specific target 16 point 10 that speaks about access to information so that was amazing and I was able to that to do that building on international librarianship work, and of course, as part of a very mighty team that you know National Library teamwork is everything.

Raymond Pun 6:42
So it sounds like international librarianship means working with and collaborating with different stakeholders and really focusing on supporting libraries across the world and information access, and so forth. And I wonder has that vision changed for you over the years, or it’s been consistently the same?

Loida Garcia-Febo 7:02
It’s been consistently the same. I can tell you that when I started at IFLA. I started as a volunteer translator, or FAIFE’s annual report so I will translate papers from Spanish to English and that was an amazing eye opening, because I was able to get in touch with the international librarianship, different colleagues from different regions, different stakeholders and that was a really great spark. That I have been able to take that those things that I learned there with me throughout my career.

Raymond Pun 7:48
Wow, that’s very inspiring to hear how you started as a volunteer. And, as I described to our listeners earlier, you’ve been involved at our Continuing Professional Development and Workplace Learning Section for eight years and starting webinar series with New Professionals, as well as sessions in the World Congress, and I wanted to know how did you get involved with our section, and why this section?

Loida Garcia-Febo 8:13
Yes, yes. So yes, I started out as a volunteer translating for FAFIFE. And then I became the secretary of FAIFE. And by the time I was in the my second term in faith, which is the Free Access to Information and Freedom of Expression for activity of IFLA. So by the time I ended my second term, there I was working at a library where we host some international libraries students as interns. And I was also coordinating some staff trainings. And so I got very interested in continuing professional development, and I was really happy to find CPDWL, and collaborating with the section has been wonderful to bring programs and resources to help librarians acquire skills needed for the job and workplace. It has been a wonderful eight years, and I’m still working with CPDWL as a consultant now.

Raymond Pun 9:15
Yeah, and we really appreciate your expertise and your experiences and skills to help continue growing with us. And I wonder if you can share with us a memorable moment you have about CPDWL, or IFLA?

Loida Garcia-Febo 9:30
Well, I have to say that I need to share two. Because they are really memorable in my career. The first was funding the IFLA New Professionals, and the IFLA New Professionals are under the sponsorship of Management of Library Associations, but they are all part of their professional division 4. And so we’re together with CPDWL and under that classification, let’s say, of IFLAA. And so I got in contact with CPDWL that way as well. And so, yes, one, one moment was establishing IFLA New Professionals in 2004 with two colleagues from Denmark and England, and that was a highlight that brought opportunities for students and new librarians to engaging associations work and to impact our profession globally. The established and other professionals, brought together new librarians worldwide, and I’m so proud of the group. And what all the conveners have accomplished through the years, and my other example is really more close to CPDWL, and it has to do with the opportunity of establishing a webinar series. And this was back in 2012. And so this webinar series is presented with CPDWL with the New Professionals in partnership with ALA, and the series is named “New Librarians Global Connections: Models, Practices and Recommendations.” And this series is wonderful. It features a wide variety of topics related to continuing education, such as human rights, open access Big Data, Services to teenagers, it is really very broad. We have many different topics and I would like to take this opportunity to invite everyone to access their recordings for free. Everything is free (gratis). And they are on the website of the New Professionals, and I’m so very happy to have been able to present webinars in English but also there are some in Spanish and Portuguese. And so I hope that people can take advantage of that. And I want to thank everyone CPDWL, and the New Professionals for continuing their webinars as well.

Raymond Pun 12:18
Certainly, that is something that our listeners should really look into the archived webinar, their archived and in the pages that you’ll find in the page right here where you access the podcast. And really, those are highlights that we really appreciate you sharing and our section is obviously focused on trends and developments that are happening in the profession. And I wonder what are you most excited about in the profession?

Loida Garcia-Febo 12:49
I am very excited about the present, our present and our future because I see a tremendous spirit of togetherness of working together, and that is beautiful. So I am looking forward to continuing working together with librarians from all regions of the world. That is very exciting, because that’s the only way in which we can impact, really truly impact our communities, our profession, our librarians and libraries, and I am here for the long haul. To continue, continuing to unify our library field. I’m also excited about all the evolving areas within libraries. We are creating a future, every day. So I’m very excited to continue working together with librarians to design programs and services to meet the needs of the communities we serve. And to do that, we need to equip our librarians, and this is the part was related to CPDWL, we need to keep an eye on societal trends, emerging technologies. And we can do that through our various resources I always like to recommend: IFLA trends report, which is updated periodically, and also the ALA Center for the Future of Libraries, they have a different set of trends that are updated in daily basis. For instance, artificial technology, big data, smart cities, and they’re all impacting the work that libraries do. So I’m excited about that, about working to continue integrating these type of trends in libraries to serve our communities and also to work to equip our librarians, with the skills they need to keep building libraries forward.

Raymond Pun 15:11
Yeah, it sounds like there are really great tips you shared, and those are really useful resources that our listeners should look into. And I wonder if there’s any other professional development tip or advice that you’d like to share with our listeners?

Loida Garcia-Febo 15:27
Yes, you know I’m an activist, a librarian-activist, an advocate. And so my advice also will go to the area of advocacy, to continue talking and also taking action, both things got together about issues that are impacting access to information which is at the core of what we librarians do. You know their copyrights and legal matters: ebook embargoes from publishing houses that are so wrong and limiting access to ebooks for our library patrons. So we must continue advocating for human rights, equity of access, the importance of diversity in our libraries programs, services and workforce and inclusion for all and different library associations: IFLA and ALA for instance, they have courses, and they have resources to equip. librarians, and also our library advocates. You know more wider group in this area of advocacy to help was advocate for this matters that I mentioned. Advocacy was at the center of my ALA Presidential National Library Tour, which I visited libraries across the USA and internationally, including the European Union Parliament. And so it is very important for us to stay abreast of resources, so we can utilize soon and continue advocating for libraries. Besides this, I will like to encourage librarians, also to dare to create. There are times when we noticed that some things will benefit our profession or libraries. But these are not in place. And so I want to encourage everyone to join forces with others, or with library associations, bring them your ideas and create those things yourself. You know, if you see something missing, you can certainly create it or work together with others. And that’s my favorite part, “together with others.” To create it, and that’s why and that’s how we created the IFLA New Professionals, and that is how we developed resources to help library workers for instance with wellness strategies, and that’s another area and information. Wellness is very important for all of us and it was one of my presidential initiatives. So that’s another area that we need to look at as well, to help our library workers, personally, as human beings as well. You know library workers’ wellness is extremely important for me, and I’m still very much collaborating with other librarians to move forward information, and our message to help us all. And I would like to encourage everyone listening to visit our ALA APA Wellness page which my presidential team revamped last year. And it includes our wellness resources for library workers in the areas of emotional, environmental, financial, intellectual, occupational physical, spiritual, and social wellness. And I want to highlight that the page on emotional wellness includes the recording of the webinar on strategies to manage microaggressions and workplace stress. So, I have just shared so much information on tips and advice, those are the areas I thought that were very timely at this time. So thank you for the opportunity.

Raymond Pun 19:44
Yes, those are really great resources for sure and we really appreciate that you’ve worked on this really hard with your teams to ensure that advocacy, wellness, work life balance are all part of what we do as we go forward in the profession, and something a little bit different. A question for you maybe is what profession, other than librarianship would you like to attempt?

Loida Garcia-Febo 20:11
This is a great question. I was always curious about attorneys and I think I will be a good attorney. I’m persistent, methodological and I love to advocate for causes that benefit communities so I will be that type of attorney.

Raymond Pun 20:31
Yeah, I could certainly see you even being human rights attorney. Right?

Loida Garcia-Febo 20:36
Yes, that will be wonderful.

Raymond Pun 20:40
Yeah. And so during your, your term right now, what is next for you after ALA presidency work, what are you working on now?

Loida Garcia-Febo 20:50
Well, it’s a very interesting question. I receive that question very often now. And after my ALA presidency, I took a very nice time to relax, and now I’m back with renewed energies, and as ALA Immediate Past President. I am an active member of the ALA board for one more year. And I’m also a liaison to some ALA areas, such as advocacy and I’m very happy because I truly enjoy working in that area. And IFLA, I am now have after and the my two terms, CPDWL. I am now a member of the IFLA section of management of library associations. And I was very familiar with that section because the New Professionals are under that section so I have collaborated with them for many years as well, and I’m currently coordinating our mid term meeting, and that will be at the ALA headquarters in Chicago, so it’s very exciting. And I’m working with it we have a working group working on that. And I’m also very excited because I am the newly information coordinator for the management of library associations, as a very fun thing, and so I’m enjoying that too and of course I continue with my work as a consultant so these days. I am immersed in papers and reading and writing. So, you know, that’s the life of the consultant, and I love everything that’s happening in my life right now.

Raymond Pun 22:36
Wow, congratulations. Those are really great opportunities and we’re really thrilled to have you still being really active with us for so many work that you inspire us to do. And we know that you are active in social media, but if you wanted to share with us, where can our listeners connect with you online?

Loida Garcia-Febo 22:57
Yes, I am on Twitter, so people can connect with me on Twitter, where my handle name is LoidaGarciaFebo, one word. I’m also on Facebook and on Facebook, you want to connect with me on the page that has the title of Loida Garcia-Febo as ALA President, 2018-2019, that’s the page to connect with me, Loida Garcia-Febo ALA President 2018-2019, and I’m on LinkedIn too, and I’m happy to connect there as well. You know, I’m a people’s person I love to stay in touch with colleagues and Ray knows that. Ray was part of my Presidential Advisory Board working on international topic, a star. Wonderful. So I’m happy to connect with my colleagues, and people through Twitter, on my Facebook’s President’s page, and on LinkedIn, of course.

Raymond Pun 24:04
Great, thank you for sharing those and certainly. Again, thank you for taking the time to speak with us and we’re really happy to have you still involved with CPDWL and the IFLA work. And with that, we wanted to thank our listeners for listening.

 

Resources:

Past Webinars from IFLA CPDWL Section and New Professionals SIG

ALA-APA Wellness Page

ALA President 2018-2019 Loida Garcia Febo’s Facebookpage