Vol. 3, No. 3: The Regional Issue 🗺️

Welcome to the March IFLA Newsletter, focused on regional issues!

March 2023 — Vol. 3, No. 3 View in your browser → THE REGIONAL ISSUE Welcome to the March IFLA Newsletter, focused on regional issues. When IFLA's members agreed on our new governance structures just over two years ago, perhaps the biggest innovation was a much stronger focus on adapting our work to the needs of regions, and making regional voices heard. As the first ever Chair of IFLA's Regional Council, I have the privilege to see how our six new Regional Division Committees are taking up the challenge of putting flesh on the bones of this mission. And I am so impressed at what they are achieving! Read the full editorial → Nthabiseng Kotsokoane 2021-2023 Regional Council Chair REGIONAL FOCUS For stronger libraries, in Niger and Africa: IFLA's engagement around the African Regional Forum for Sustainable Development A strong team of IFLA representatives attended the 9th African Regional Forum on Sustainable Development, held in Niamey, Niger. Through their presence, they were able to build links and advocate effectively for libraries both with regional and national leaders. Read more → Now Available: IFLA Asia and Oceania Regional Quarterly News – February 2023 Issue Dear friends, We are back with another issue of the IFLA Asia & Oceania Regional Newsletter (February 2023). Download the PDF to dive right into the articles. Read more → IFLA MLAS + Regions: Supporting Strong Library Associations Over the last few years, the IFLA Management of Library Associations Section has followed a strategy to engage closely with the regions of the world: Asia-Oceania, Europe, Latin America and the Caribbean, Middle East and North Africa, Sub-Saharan Africa and North America. Currently, MLAS is partnering with IFLA New Professionals SIG (NPSIG), the Environment, Sustainability and Libraries Section (ENSULIB), and the IFLA Regional Divisions to present a webinar series on the "Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and Library Associations." Read more → IFLA PARL + LAC Region: Collaborative international partners IFLAPARL, the Library and Research Services for Parliaments Section of IFLA, promotes international collaboration in the field of parliamentary librarianship and information services. The Section has been achieving this through several activities. Find out more about the Unit's work and this collaboration with organisations from the LAC Region. Read more → IN THE FIELD IFLA President Barbara Lison joined the 225th anniversary celebrations of the National Library of Luxembourg, speaking on a panel on national libraries in the age of globalisation. IFLA President-elect Vicki McDonald spoke at the Future Libraries: Future Communities conference, bringing together librarians and policy makers. Read more → IFLA Governing Board Report IFLA's Governing Board met online on 27 February 2023. They focused on continuing to deliver on the Plan for Securing IFLA's Future, and to provide direction and guidance to the Federation over the coming months. Read more → IFLA ELECTIONS Voting now open! Elections for key posts and committees across IFLA will be open until 12 April. Following a great response to our call for nominations, there is a strong set of candidates committed to the future of our Federation and ready to take IFLA's work forwards. Those eligible to vote have received an email asking them to make their choice. View individual candidate profiles on the Elections platform → Candidates for President-elect, Treasurer, and Governing Board Member at large having also prepared video presentations. Watch video presentations → POLICY AND ADVOCACY Partnerships to Counter Theft and Trafficking: IFLA Joins ICOM at launch of new Red List When any type of cultural property disappears, it is a great loss to humanity. However, around the world, cultural objects are at risk of illicit theft and trafficking. This is a complex issue, and working to counter these threats is not a task that one can take on alone. Read more → Regulating for rights – IFLA comments on the draft UNESCO Guidelines on Platform Regulation Following our participation in the UNESCO Internet4Trust conference, IFLA has now submitted comments on UNESCO's draft Guidelines on Platform Regulation. In addition to welcoming the balance found in the document, we also propose improvements, including readier recognition of libraries' role in a healthy internet. Read more → 10 years into the Marrakesh Treaty: what does the data say? With key copyright decision-makers meeting this week in Geneva at WIPO, we are happy to follow up on our report with an overview of country-by-country implementation of the Marrakesh Treaty with an analysis of the data as a whole. This demonstrates both the effectiveness of international action in driving national change, and the fact that most countries have sought to maximise the possibilities created to provide access for persons with print disabilities. Read more → IFLA Report: Copyright & cross-border challenges in preservation The Copyright & Legal Matters Advisory Committee (CLM) of the International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions (IFLA) is excited to announce the publication of a new report titled "Copyright & cross-border challenges in preservation: empirical evidence". Read more → Findings and Recommendations from the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction Midterm Review The United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction (UNISDR) has recently published the results of a midterm review of The Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction (2015-2030). Read more → PROFESSIONAL AND DEVELOPMENT Out Now: March 2023 issue of IFLA Journal The March 2023 IFLA Journal features 15 articles, of which 12 represent original research and 3 offer reviews of important topics in the LIS field. Read more → Now available: IFLA report on the 2021 Safer Internet Day survey This new IFLA Professional Report provides the results of a baseline survey of safe internet practices in libraries for children and young adults around the world. This survey was created by members of IFLA's Libraries for Children and Young Adults (C&YA) Section, with the goal of finding out: What would help librarians create and maintain a safer online world for children and young people? Read more → New IFLA Guidelines for Library Services for Prisoners The 4th edition of the IFLA Guidelines for Library Services to Prisoners has been endorsed by the IFLA Professional Council and is now available for download in the IFLA Repository. This current edition is the result of an ongoing collaborative effort between many individuals from many countries, including the support of the IFLA Library Services to People with Special Needs Section (LSN). Download the Guidelines → OPEN CALLS & PROFESSIONAL OPPORTUNITIES Applications for IFLA/SYSTEMATIC Public Library of the year Award 2023 are open! The award is presented to a public library anywhere in the world that has best managed to combine open and functional architecture with sustainable and creative IT solutions and has included both digital developments and local culture. To be eligible for the award, the library must be newly built, have added a significant extension, or located in a building, that have not previously been used as a library. Deadline: 23 April 2023 Read more → Invitation for World-wide Review of LRMoo, the object-oriented formulation of the IFLA Library Reference Model The LRMoo Working Group of the Bibliographic Conceptual Models Review Group is pleased to invite your responses in the world-wide review of LRMoo. Deadline: March 31 2023 Read more → Knowledge Rights 21 request for proposals: National initiatives 2023 Do you have a great idea for a project that would unlock progress towards concrete legal and policy reforms in favour of 21st century access to research, education culture in Europe? Apply now to be a Knowledge Rights 21 national initiative! Read more → WLIC 2023 UPDATE Early bird discount From 21 to 25 August this year, in the Ahoy Rotterdam Convention Centre, you and your colleagues can look forward to an inspiring and very worthwhile week in Rotterdam. To learn and listen, inspire and be inspired, to enjoy excursions and being together, to explore Rotterdam and network with international colleagues: these are all reasons to register for the WLIC 2023 Congress in Rotterdam. Buy early bird tickets for the congress now and receive up to 30% discount on the price of a passe-partout. Read more and register → Inclusivity at WLIC 2023 To ensure that WLIC 2023 is as accessible as possible, many key sessions will be live streamed on the conference platform. The new technology will also allow viewers to comment in the chat and ask questions in real-time. The whole WLIC audience - online and onsite - will also be able to vote online for the new 'people's choice' poster award. More details will be announced shortly! Register and get a free IFLA WLIC 2023 goodie bag The first 500 people who register and reach out to the Dutch National Committee will receive a code for a goodie bag which can be collected at the conference venue in Rotterdam. Already registered? To secure your gift code, please send proof of your registration to wlic2023@bibliotheek.rotterdam.nl. Read more → Call for posters closes soon! Are you involved in an interesting project, new service, or application of technology? Would you like to share, discuss, and network with others about your work? Deadline: 1 April 2023 Read more → Follow the WLIC social media accounts below to ensure you don't miss any updates! UPCOMING EVENTS 22-23 March Cataloging DVDs, Blu-rays and Streaming Video with RDA and MARC21: Best Practices IFLA Audiovisual and Multimedia Section 29 March Webinar on social justice, diversity and inclusion in academic and research libraries IFLA Academic and Research Libraries 30 March Sustainable Development Goals in the View of LIS Students IFLA Division C 31 March Mismatch Finder: Resolving Mismatches in Wikidata's 100 Million Items IFLA Science and Technology Libraries 4 April Șirna Public Library from Romania IFLA Environment, Sustainability and Libraries 8 April High-performing Schools with Effective School Libraries, Part III IFLA Division F 25 April Open Science and AI: A UK Policy Discussion Knowledge Rights 21 NEW MEMBERS IFLA warmly welcomes the following new members: Aggarwal College Ballabgarh - India Almayzab Digital Library – Sudan DELNET - Developing Library Network – India Kelvin Smith Library – United States of America Library Association of Bermuda (LAB) MacEwan University – Canada Northwestern University – United States of America Universitätsbibliothek Rostock – Germany We look forward to their engagement and involvement. 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