Sharjah International Book Fair Archives | American Libraries Magazine

The Networking Library Lounge at the Sharjah International Book Fair/American Library Association Library Conference.

Networking and Learning in the Middle East

By Michael Dowling and Mary Mackay | September 22, 2017

Then–ALA President Julie B. Todaro opened the conference with an update on ALA’s Libraries Transform campaign, stressing library transformation as essential to the communities libraries serve. Miguel Figueroa, director of the ALA Center for the Future of Libraries, provided the second day’s keynote on the importance of exploring trends and signals around us and how … Continue reading Networking and Learning in the Middle East →

The Expo Centre Sharjah, site of the SIBF/ALA Library Conference

The View from Sharjah 2016

By Mary Mackay | November 15, 2016

The conference offered participants the chance to learn from international experts from the MENA region as well as from the US. In response to 2015 attendee feedback, the 2016 conference offered more interactivity and focus on specific topics, including in-depth facilitated discussion sections addressing how to build stronger library associations in the MENA region; the … Continue reading The View from Sharjah 2016 →

From left: Khaled Ahmad Halloume, Hassan Momani, ALA Past President Sari Feldman, Jassim M. Jirjees, Asmah Saad Assim, Muna Abdulla, and Azeyaa Ahmed at the 2015 SIBF/ALA Library Conference. Photo: ALA International Relations Office

SIBF/ALA Library Conference Turns Three

September 23, 2016

As ALA’s most ambitious international professional development collaboration to date, the library conference will be hosted at the 35th SIBF, November 8–10 at the Sharjah Expo Centre in Sharjah, United Arab Emirates (UAE). The shared location provides an opportunity for attendees to combine professional development with exploring and acquiring materials for their libraries. In 2015, … Continue reading SIBF/ALA Library Conference Turns Three →

Welcome from Ahmed Al Ameri, chairman of Sharjah Book Authority, at the opening of the 2nd Annual ALA Library Conference, November 10, 2015, at the Sharjah International Book Fair.

Library Issues from a Fresh Perspective

By Patricia A. Wand | July 14, 2016

The roster of keynote speakers includes ALA President Julie B. Todaro, who will focus on “The Expert in the Library,” and Center for the Future of Libraries Director Miguel Figueroa, who will discuss societal trends and managing change in libraries. But what happens when you transplant an ALA conference into an Arabic country? The answer: … Continue reading Library Issues from a Fresh Perspective →

Attendees at the second annual SIBF/ALA Library Conference, November 10–12 in Sharjah, UAE.

Librarians Gather at Sharjah/ALA Conference

By Mary Mackay | November 17, 2015

SIBF Director and Chairman of the Sharjah Book Authority Ahmed Al-Ameri said he was thrilled to welcome this second conference, which he sees growing in the future. “I am confident this mutual cooperation between the SIBF and ALA will be helpful in skill development of the industry’s professionals,” he said. ALA President Sari Feldman’s opening … Continue reading Librarians Gather at Sharjah/ALA Conference →

2014 SIBF/ALA Library Conference presenters and staff reconvene at the 2015 ALA Midwinter Meeting in Chicago. Left to right: Lynn Silipigni Connaway, ALA Marketing Director Mary Mackay, ALA President Courtney Young, ALA International Relations Office Director Michael Dowling, Michael Levine-Clark, Sharjah Book Authority Chairman Ahmed Al-Ameri, Jon Malinowski, ALA Executive Director Keith Michael Fiels, Magda El-Sherbini, Rick Anderson, Janet Fritsch

Looking to the Next SIBF/ALA Library Conference

October 7, 2015

The 2015 SIBF/ALA Library Conference will be held November 10–12. Attendees will be able to interact with an international roster of experts during 15 programs on topics related to all types of libraries that cover new trends and technologies, e-resources, innovative spaces and services, rebranding and proving the value of the library, staff and leadership … Continue reading Looking to the Next SIBF/ALA Library Conference →

We Are Global

By Courtney L. Young | November 18, 2014

What I did not realize was how happily my passion for librarianship would collide with what my mother taught me—to be a citizen of the world. My first connection was as an LIS student at Simmons College, when I took an international and comparative librarianship course from professor Patricia Oyler. Years later, the lessons my mother … Continue reading We Are Global →

Latest Library Links

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Jackie Jennings writes: “It feels like the debate over whether #BookTok is bad has been raging since the moment the term was first coined. I’m starting off with a strong stance: BookTok is indeed bad. However, the problem with BookTok is not crappy books or bogus influencers. The problem with BookTok is TikTok itself. BookTok isn’t actually a community driven by fans, writers, influencers, or even publishers: it’s part of a social media corporation, controlled by the most mysterious, fickle god of all, the algorithm.” Not surprisingly, librarian recommendations can overcome some of BookTok’s limitations.

Jezebel, Apr. 18; Book Riot, Apr. 22
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ALA announced the launch of its state Intellectual Freedom Helpline grant program April 22. Over the next two years, 10 pilot program sites will operate a confidential reporting system that will help connect those experiencing censorship attempts with professional support, in-state peers, or referral to ALA’s Office for Intellectual Freedom, as appropriate. State or school library associations or agencies wishing to either establish an Intellectual Freedom Helpline in their state or expand existing efforts may apply for $10,000 grants through July 14.

ALA Office for Intellectual Freedom, Apr. 22
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In celebration of the release of his latest nonfiction title, The Secret Lives of Booksellers & Librarians, bestselling author James Patterson is honoring select American Bookseller Association and American Library Association members with bonuses. He announced plans April 11 to give $200 each to 250 library workers across the country. The deadline for ALA members may nominate members to receive bonuses through April 30. Winners will be announced at ALA’s 2024 Annual Conference in San Diego.
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Catherine Hollerbach writes: “In early 2020, when the world shut down for COVID, many people got interested in houseplants. Anne Arundel County (Md.) Public Library’s Crofton Library embraced this trend and then some!” While preparing to reopen after the COVID shutdown, the library installed plants at the information desk to discourage patrons from sticking their heads through gaps in newly installed acrylic shields. They were well received and cared for, and the library gradually added more plants and built educational tools, programming, and partnerships around the plants.

Public Libraries Online, Apr. 18
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Rodney Freeman writes: “I am proud to be a librarian—and rare. Less than 7% of librarians in the US are Black. Libraries symbolize the literacy that was denied to so many of our ancestors. For our enslaved forebears, something as fundamental as learning to read was illegal and dangerous, but they did it anyway. Separate but ‘equal’ schools and ‘colored’ libraries filled with cast-offs from white libraries were key features of the Jim Crow era. Today we are seeing the same impulse to distort access to information into a tool to suppress and control, and to make some people ‘other.’”

Newsweek, Apr. 16
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Lori Birrell writes: “Staff want to feel valued, and they want their work to have an impact. A reorganization process can help leaders to surface such areas of impact and give staff a feeling of empowerment and value. Practitioners considering any sized reorganization are strongly encouraged to consider what models and resources will best support them as they plan and lead this work. Regardless of the model or resources, any reorganization process should be more than just moving boxes and reporting lines around on an organizational chart.”

Library Leadership and Management, Apr. 15
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Megan Bennett writes: “Two decades ago, while Daily Show Senior Correspondent Dulcé Sloan was doing summer shows at a community theater in Quakertown, Pennsylvania, the library was her main hangout spot. In the small town of 9,000 people, it was a place to gather with other young actors—and the only place with internet access. American Libraries spoke with Sloan before her closing session at the Public Library Association 2024 Conference in Columbus, Ohio, about her new book, her journey in stand-up comedy, and her memories of libraries.”

American Libraries Trend, Apr. 17

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