After the 2016 US presidential election, BPL heard from teens who were frightened, shaken, and without the agency to act. For many who were from a diverse culture or ethnicity, a member of the LGBTQ+ community, or simply had inclusive worldviews, this change in leadership created a deep sense of fear for themselves and those … Continue reading Acceptance and Inclusion
The new Biblioteca Alexandrina The Bibliotheca Alexandrina complex comprises not just a library building but also a planetarium and conference center. A large fence with guard stations about every 25 meters runs along the corniche. This was once where you could enter the grounds, but due to security precautions prompted by political turmoil, the entrance … Continue reading Visiting Egypt’s Libraries
Scheeder, addressing the crowd for the last time as president before Glòria Pérez-Salmerón’s term begins, emphasized the organization’s commitment to supporting the United Nations’ 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and strengthening regional strategy during her term. “I never imagined we would travel so far together, so fast,” she said. “You create the kind of change … Continue reading Countdown to Kuala Lumpur
The Soufrière Young Authors project has published six books since its first workshop in April 2016. Its goal is to produce all of its students’ books and distribute them widely on the 27-mile-long island. Peace Corps volunteer Grace Kilbane and Soufrière Public Library Librarian Catherine Prospere developed the project as a way to increase literacy … Continue reading Soufrière Young Authors Project
“We tie some education with it,” says Alice Reinert, school librarian at Wanamaker. “It’s geared to help our younger students learn their coins. And it’s also to try to get them service minded.” February is also when Wanamaker holds its Book Fair, so the month was a celebration of books and literacy, Reinert says. At … Continue reading School Raises Money to Support Haiti’s Libraries
Ghafoori, who has been with AUAF since 2008, said he had visited several public, academic, and government libraries in the past three weeks, among them San Diego (Calif.) Public Library, University of Nebraska Omaha library, the Library of Congress, the State Library of Maine, and Lithgow Public Library in Augusta, Maine. He was impressed with … Continue reading A Visitor from Kabul
Anne Tracy Morgan, daughter of financier John Pierpont (J. P.) Morgan, was the mind and money behind the volunteer mobilization. Morgan was a frequent visitor to France. When war broke out, she threw herself into relief work for the Allied cause. In 1917, she created the American Committee for Devastated France, better known as CARD … Continue reading The French Connection
In February, I led the first official delegation of American librarians and library supporters to Cuba for the Havana International Book Fair. I learned that the country had a longstanding commitment to literacy, and I began my visit with a meeting of renowned Cuban library leaders, including the remarkable Marta Terry González, and our own … Continue reading Connecting with Cuba
It has been a unique and interesting experience living abroad and witnessing firsthand the ways in which information access, technology policy, and digital privacy are closely intertwined with the political process. Following the completion of my fellowship in August 2014, I departed the US for Budapest, Hungary, where I took master’s courses in public policy … Continue reading Around the World in 80 Weeks
Earlier this year, ALA President Courtney L. Young, with support from the International Relations Round Table Advisory Award Committee, honored four libraries with this special citation at the 2015 ALA Annual Conference and Exhibition in San Francisco. They were recognized for designing and implementing a highly visible innovative library service that was unique or original … Continue reading ALA Honors International Innovators
With advanced technology and the ability to connect globally, the Indianapolis Public Library (IPL) formed partnerships with the eight international cities that are part of Indianapolis’s Sister City Program. IPL has made connections so far with Campinas, Brazil; Hangzhou, China; Cologne, Germany; and Piran, Slovenia. The first meetings involved a collection exchange between each city. … Continue reading The Indianapolis Public Library Goes Global
While teaching enabled me to learn new things and explore aspects of topics I thought I already knew, teaching overseas provided an opportunity to see those topics from a different perspective. For example, using an excellent book about ebooks in libraries as a textbook, I realized how North American–centric this text was. The vendors mentioned … Continue reading Teaching in the Land of Fields
