Canadian Library Association Survey of Challenged Materials & Policies

This is the 6th annual survey of challenges to library materials and policies that is being conducted by the Canadian Library Association’s Intellectual Freedom Advisory Committee.

Your responses will help inform the Committee’s policy and advocacy work on behalf of the CLA membership. Results are shared widely, for example, with the Book and Periodical Council [of Canada] and the Office of Intellectual Freedom of the American Library Association. The database is available without charge to anyone requesting it.

The purpose of the survey is to gather data about the nature and outcomes of challenges to library materials and policies (e.g., collection management, access to Internet and facilities) initiated in publicly funded, Canadian libraries (e.g., public, school, academic, and government) between JANUARY 1 and DECEMBER 31, 2011.

One form should be submitted for each challenge to an item or a policy.

• Survey in English: http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/DF56YJP
• Survey in French: http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/D3HT99K

So that we can share preliminary findings in time for “Freedom to Read Week,” please participate if at all possible by February 6, 2012.

If you have questions about the survey, feel free to contact me at alvin.schrader@ualberta.ca or 780-405-7546.

Thank you for participating in this important work!

Alvin M Schrader,
Convenor, 2012-2013
CLA Intellectual Freedom Advisory Committee

Upcoming Tour for Students: Library of Parliament

The Canadian Library Association is pleased to invite MLIS and LIT students in the National Capital Region to attend the following tour scheduled for February.

Other events will be announced by e-mail as they are confirmed with the host organizations. For more information, please contact cla.govlib@gmail.com

February 2 – Tour of the Library of Parliament

This tour will visit both the Main Library on Parliament Hill and Library’s Spark Street location.

Location: Parliament Hill / Sparks Street
Date: Thursday, February 2, at 10:00 am
RSVP: Please RSVP by Friday, January 27 at http://tinyurl.com/2012-tour-LoP

Closure of Human Resources and Skills Development Canada Library

Changes at the departmental library of HRSDC

As a result of the strategic review of HRSDC in 2010, the Chief Financial Officer Branch is transforming how it conducts business to ensure it continues to provide modern services that are as effective and efficient as possible.

Over the past several years, departmental employees have been increasingly researching and accessing information online. As such, the HRSDC Library has seen a reduction in the use of its physical locations and in requests for research services. Taking into account this trend while ensuring it is using taxpayers’ dollars wisely, HRSDC will no longer operate the libraries physically located in Gatineau and Montréal as of March 31, 2013.

As a first phase, the library’s research services will no longer be provided after March 31, 2012. New research requests are no longer being accepted.

Online resources and databases will remain available to employees for their research and reference needs.

The physical collection will be phased out by March 31, 2013 and materials of historical value will be relocated to Library and Archives Canada. The rest of the collection will be provided to other departments or sold through Crown Assets Distribution.

You will be notified of further changes to library services as they are implemented.

Top 10 Library Stories of 2011

American Libraries presents its list of the top 10 library news stories of 2011, covering digitization, privacy, copyright, advocacy, and much more.

 

Event in Ottawa: IM Battledecks – “Imagining the Future: Information Management in Turbulent Times”

Tuesday, January 31, 2012, 2:00 pm
Ottawa Public Library, 120 Metcalfe (Auditorium)

Battledecks represent the ultimate challenge for a public speaker as they are challenged to give a coherent presentation based on hand-selected, seemingly unrelated slides that they see for the very first time live on stage. This competition, often referred to as “PowerPoint Karaoke,” will see five brave and willing participants compete for the glory of being crowned Ottawa’s IM Battledecks champion.

The theme will be “Imagining the Future: Information Management in Turbulent Times” as participants face judgment from a panel of judges, with the winner to be determined based on a variety of criteria and general overall awesomeness. Hilarity, along with some learning, is guaranteed for all!

Participants:

• Trevor Banks, Manager, IM Awareness, Learning and Engagement, Health Canada
• Emily Gusba, President, ARMA NCR Chapter
• Debra Power, IM Consultant, TeraMach Technologies
• Jason Reid, Director of IM, Citizenship and Immigration Canada
• Greg Renaud, Director of IM Policy, Planning and Innovation, Industry Canada

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When:
Tuesday, January 31, 2012, 2:00 pm to 3:30 pm

Where:
Ottawa Public Library, 120 Metcalfe (Auditorium)

Register at http://app.fluidsurveys.com/s/battledecks/

For more information, please contact cla.govlib@gmail.com

The Hill Times: Media and Copyright Policy Briefing

This week’s The Hill Times includes a series of articles about the media and copyright:

• Industry minister looks to future of Canada’s economy
  by Hill Times staff

• Getting it backwards: the problem with Conservative government’s copyright reform
  by NDP MP Charlie Angus

• Canadians get more than money’s worth with CBC
  by Senator Céline Hervieux-Payette

• Privacy commissioner Stoddart releases new guidelines for online advertising
  by BeaVongdouangchanh

• Crafting copyright policy to create a Canadian competitive advantage
  by Michael Geist

• Industry minister touts Copyright Modernization Act as ‘key pillar’ of government’s digital economy strategy
  by Chris Plecash

• Facing looming cuts, CBC remains focused on five-year plan
  by Chris Plecash

• Fact, fiction, and falsehoods about the ‘F’ word in copyright law
  by Howard Knopf

• Digital lock provisions of Bill C-11 go far beyond WIPO standards
  by Liberal MPs Geoff Regan and Scott Simms

• Ongoing dispute between publishers and universities highlights challenges of publishing in digital era
  by Chris Plecash

• Canada’s digital economy strategy looks to tap into growing digital media industry

  by Chris Plecash

The complete Policy Briefing can be downloaded from The Hill Times website.

On a lighter note…

 

(Via Stephen’s Lighthouse)

CLA Book Awards: Library Services Centre Commits to 3 Year Sponsorship

The Canadian Library Association (CLA)  is extremely pleased to announce that Library Services Centre of Kitchener Ontario has committed to sponsoring the CLA Book Awards for the next three years.

When Cécile Dillon, VP, Sales & Marketing and Michael Monahan, Chief Executive Officer, contacted CLA before the holidays to extend the sponsorship from 2012 to 2014 the news was joyously received. LSC has generously sponsored the CLA Book Awards for 2009-11.

CLA thanks Library Services Centre for its ongoing support to the Canadian library community. Look for the announcements of CLA Book Awards’ shortlists on March 1.

Open Library Data

Dear colleagues,

Libraries and Literacy is pleased to announce that data on British Columbia’s 71 library systems and 241 library branch locations is now available on the DataBC open data portal (www.data.gov.bc.ca) as part of government’s Transformation and Technology Strategy.

The data set includes a information collected through the annual statistics process.  For example, you will find data on:

• Number of people using the library in-person and virtually
• Library physical and electronic collections  (e.g. Books, DVDs, eBooks, MP3s)
• Number and types of programs and activities offered at the library
• Library size
• Staffing levels
• Library revenues and expenditures

While this information is already available on the Ministry website and in other places, we are pleased that inclusion in the DataBC website will heighten the profile of the data and make it more widely available.

BC public library statistics are used by researchers interested in community development, literacy and library studies; by libraries to evaluate their own performance; by local and provincial governments and by citizens interested in library services.

Notably, the information includes the latitude and longitude locations of each branch library, opening up endless possibilities for including libraries in GIS applications and finder apps!

Click here to access the data directly.

For some interesting commentary on the DataBC open data portal, see this blog post from David Eaves:  http://eaves.ca/2011/07/19/province-of-bc-launches-open-data-catalog-what-works/

Regards,

Jacqueline

Jacqueline van Dyk
Director | Libraries and Literacy | Ministry of Education

Latest issue of Inform now available

Catch up on the latest from Dalhousie School of Information Management (SIM)! Inform (Vol40.2) covers the period from July to December 2011 – happy reading!

Table of Contents

• The End of an Era: Happy Retirement, Shanna!
• Fall Convocation 2011
• Faculty of Management Awards
• Book Release: Barbara DeLory – Three Centuries of Public Art: Historic Halifax Regional Municipality
• Elsevier WebApp Competition
• Information Without Borders 2012
• Tracy Daley speaks about her job at 211 Nova Scotia
• SIM Associated Alumni Fall Update
• University Librarian retires; Dal welcomes new University Librarian
• Master of Information Management
• Donor List
• Alumni Relations Officer
• Faculty Updates
• A Summer at Yahoo! Research
• DJIM: Vol 7, No 2
• SLA Student Chapter
• Alumni News
• Dalhousie-Horrocks National Leadership Fund
• History of the Gnome
• Librarians Without Borders