librarianship

All posts tagged librarianship

Getting Ready for ALA Midwinter 2013

Posted by melissaicd on January 23, 2013
Posted in: ALA, APALA, librarianship. Tagged: , , , .
Image of ALA Midwinter Meeting 2013 logo

ALA Midwinter Meeting 2013 is at Seattle, Washington

What to pack? Lots of warm clothes. And of course my electronics, chargers, and batteries. Airline reservations? Hotel? Check, check. Schedule of events and programs to attend? Mostly done. Meeting agendas? Still need those files downloaded, possibly printed.

This year, I am focusing my professional association work on only a few groups, most prominent among them is APALA (Asian Pacific American Librarians Association). Much of the work I’ve been doing for APALA this year were accomplished via long-distance communications and virtual teams. As a consequence, I’ve come to know some APALA-associated names as part of an email message or listserv post. This Midwinter 2013, I am meeting many APALA librarians for the first time, face-to-face. An interesting trend that, I suspect, will become commonplace really soon, really fast.

Given the expense and the effort needed to attend these professional conferences, why do I bother? And why would my workplace bother to send me? I find great value in working with other professionals toward a common goal. Our conferences are one of the few ways we get to see each other (or meet each other for the first time). Besides this, professional conferences are where relevant, timely topics are discussed and debated among peers. We share information and solutions, too. More importantly, as a faculty colleague of mine declared, “you’ll be representing us.” Considering I take pains to represent my university and library well, both at conferences and with my professional association work, I was happy to hear her frame my conference attendance that way.

‘In a single garment of destiny’

Posted by melissaicd on January 21, 2013
Posted in: advocacy, culture, librarianship, participatory, social justice, social media, technology. Tagged: , , , , .
image of wall at Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial in Washington DC. Inscription on wall reads

Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial, National Mall and Memorial Parks, National Park Service, Washington, DC. Photo by afagen via Flickr

Today is MLK Jr. Day 2013. Tributes to the good doctor abound. I call your attention to the 2 most compelling that came through my Facebook newsfeed this weekend. The first is a video from King Tribute that came to my attention through Cultural Survival. I’m still trying to determine the video’s exact origins and provenance, even its purpose and the intent of its creators. It feels like a commercial or teaser for a longer documentary or an exhibit. However, its message clearly and succinctly communicates the importance of media and technology to social justice and activism. Do check it out.

The second is a short article on how we can each honor Dr. King’s memory in big ways and small. By giving, learning, teaching, committing, and dreaming, we can all do things that serve ourselves and each other.

I admit, what made these snippets compelling to me isn’t their originality of thought or the clarity of their calls to action. It was the serendipity of their timing. They came to my attention at just the right time, with just the right message. Now, what do these two MLK tributes, focused on social justice and equity, have to do with libraries and librarianship? Plenty.