Newsletter May 2021
A Word from the Chair
Dear Library Friends and Members!
These are my last months as member and chair for IFLA‘s Libraries for Children and Young Adults Section. It has been 8 years of friendship, fantastic libraries, fantastic librarians and being a part of great projects, and a program for developing library services for children and young adults around the world.
Working under COVID-19
The last months with COVID-19 pandemic have changed how we work and live. Lockdowns, working from home, travel restrictions, social distancing, home schooling, masks, isolation from family and friends and many meetings on zoom and in teams. With members all over the world, our IFLA section is quite used to communicating and collaborating remotely, but still we all felt so sad when the IFLA World Library and Information Congress (WLIC) in Dublin had to be cancelled in 2020. The opportunity to come together, to share our ideas and to plan for future activities are important for us.
However, even if the pandemic is still holding the world in a tight grip, we see that librarians working with children and young adults are able to adopt new service models in the library field to meet the continual and ever-evolving needs from our local and global community. In addition, IFLA has also utilized new ideas, provided extra platforms, and created unique opportunities for us to work together better and stronger in these challenging times.
This year, for the very first time, the World Library and Information Congress will be virtual, with support of the Dutch National Committee.
The physical conference previously planned, will be held in Rotterdam in 2023, and the next in-person conference will be planned for in Dublin, Ireland in 2022.
Let us remember Viviana Quiñones
16th of December 2020, we lost our dear friend and committee member Viviana Quiñones. She held different positions in IFLA‘s Libraries for Children and Young Adults Section (C&YA Section) and in IFLA’s organisation. She was passionate in the belief that children’s literature could make a difference and that library services are necessary tools for individual development and education. No matter where in the world, the aims are similar, but the circumstances are different. I am therefore very pleased that The World Through Picture Books, a program which Viviana was passionate about, is now in the process of creating a third edition together with librarians from all over the world.
Moving forward
This year is election year at IFLA, and IFLA C&YA Section welcomes all 19 nominees with the skills, experience, commitment, and most importantly, passion to serve a dynamic and inclusive international library community to come forward. We look forward to having 10 new to volunteers join us during WLIC in August 2021. Last but not the least: I would like to thank our members for the hard work that you have done in the last years.
We invite all of you to stay in touch and to interact with the section through our webpage, Facebook or Youtube. A heartfelt Thank You to all the contributors for this Newsletter. We wish you all a wonderful autumn/spring season and hope that we soon will all have a fresh start with rekindled vibrancy and happiness.
Stay safe, and be well,
Jorun Systad
Chair – IFLA Libraries for Children and Young Adults Section
Introduction
The articles listed below cover various interesting topics from digital services for teens in Singapore NLB to the progress the 3rd edition of the World Through Picture Books program. You can select single articles or download a version with all articles in one document.
Latest News: Short Report on the Safer Internet Day Survey
Going Digital: Bringing the Library to Teens in the New Normal
The COVID-19 pandemic has presented public libraries in Singapore with unprecedented challenges in reaching out to users especially the teens. In this article Ms Siti Aisyah Binte Abdul Nasir, Deputy Head (Children & Teens) at NLB Singapore, highlights several of NLB’s new digital initiatives targeted at teens to support their home-based learning as well as exploring various ways to engage teens while adhering to movement restrictions.
How To Hold Online Events You Will Not Be Ashamed Of
With the arrival of a pandemic in our life, many libraries are facing two main options for interacting with users: providing them with various electronic resources and conducting online events. Anton Purnik, Head of Information & Technology Division at the Russian State Library for Young Adults, talks in this article about mastering the challenge to set up online events that are entertaining and educational as well.
Interview: Technology For Teenagers In An Italian Library – What Changed During Covid-19 Emergency?
Naoko Nakajima Koseki (National Diet Library, Tokyo, Japan) visited Bologna in March 2014, and its Sala Borsa Library. Nicoletta Gramantieri guided her around the Library. Six years later when library services all over the world were pulled to improve their digital offer due to the Covid pandemic, Naoko is interviewing Nicoletta Gramantieri about the current changes in the activities addressed at teenagers and young adults of Salaborsa in Bologna.
The World Through Picture Books 3rd edition – How Does My Country Get Involved?
With this programme the Section is celebrating and promoting the language, culture and quality of children’s book publishing from over 50 countries. In 2021 the Section’s WTPB working group started preparations for an updated 3rd edition. In this article, Claire Stuckey, one of the coordinators of the WTPB working group, is sharing her experiences in participating at this programme.
The IFLA Guidelines for Library Services to Children age 0-18 In A Nutshell
IFLA’s Libraries for Children & Young Adults Section is now taking another step after revising the Guidelines for Libraries for Children 0-18 in 2018. Salomon Hellman reports on the progress of a very ambitious project.
All articles in one document