Category Archives: LIS

Global gleanings #4: Coronavirus; library programmes; ancient manuscripts

Posted on 2020-05-31 by

This is a slightly expanded version of my column of news, views and snippets from the international literature of books, libraries, and information, which appears in LIASA-in-Touch, the newsletter of the Library and Information Association of South Africa.   The Coronavirus … Continue reading →

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Reviews of International and Comparative Librarianship: concepts and methods…

Posted on 2020-05-17 by

Since my last post on this topic, two new reviews of my book have appeared. More details appear under the heading Reviews and author interviews. I mention there a substantial and scholarly review article in Italian by Dr Anna Bilotta, … Continue reading →

Posted in Comparative Librarianship, LIS, The Book | Leave a comment

International Library History News

Posted on 2020-03-14 by

In my work in international and comparative librarianship and information work, I make much use of historical material. Some comparative work is purely synchronic, considering  situations across cultures, societies or countries as things stand at a given moment in time, … Continue reading →

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Global Gleanings #3: IFLA and the Developing World

Posted on 2020-03-01 by

  This is a slightly expanded version of my column of news, views and snippets from the international literature of books, libraries, and information, which appears in LIASA-in-Touch, the newsletter of the Library and Information Association of South Africa. In the … Continue reading →

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From participation to mobilization:  new roles in French public libraries

Posted on 2020-02-19 by

In 2016 Raphaëlle Bats contributed an article to an issue of Library trends (vol. 65, no. 2) discussing the responses of French librarians to the terrorist attacks on Charlie hebdo and a Kosher supermarket on 15 January 2015. The LT … Continue reading →

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IFLA oral history project

Posted on 2020-02-14 by

In 2027 IFLA will have a big anniversary. It was founded in Edinburgh in 1927, as the International Library and Bibliographical Committee, and only adopted the name, International Federation of Library Associations, two years later, at an international congress in … Continue reading →

Posted in International Librarianship, LIS | 1 Comment

Announcement: IFLA satellite conference on “International Research in LIS: Challenges and Opportunities”

Posted on 2020-01-27 by

I’m happy to announce that an IFLA satellite conference on international research in LIS  will be held in Dublin, Ireland, on 13 and 14 August 2020. The event will be a workshop-style meeting with a practical focus, aiming to improve … Continue reading →

Posted in Comparative Librarianship, International Librarianship, LIS, Research | Leave a comment

New National Librarian for South Africa

Posted on 2019-11-19 by

I can now report on the outcome of the disputed recruitment process that was discussed in a previous post, entitled, “Who should be the national librarian?” On 18 November the Board of the National Library of South Africa announced that … Continue reading →

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Technology for social good

Posted on 2019-10-08 by

Not for the first time, information technology is being touted as the answer to problems besetting developing countries, offering them, it has been thought, an opportunity to leapfrog poor infrastructure. The leapfrogging notion has been debunked among others by Abdelmalek … Continue reading →

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Riccardo Ridi on intellectual neutrality: a perspective from Italy

Posted on 2019-01-02 by

  Italian perspectives In the English-speaking world, we are not sufficiently aware of the huge amount of professional literature published in other languages. My eyes were opened to the wealth of professional literature in Italian some years ago, when I … Continue reading →

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