Dunedin Libraries to the fore

The Otago Southland Region has a large number of libraries of all shapes and sizes. Though we would have liked to take you on a tour of all these distance and time just would not allow it. So the Centennial Conference Social Committee has come up with a number of library tours to showcase what Dunedin has to offer and to whet your appetite to see more.

In Dunedin on the Sunday morning and at a loose end? Then our first tour is just for you. This will take in the old and new of the Dunedin Public Library. Centred around the Octagon this is a walking tour with transport available to take delegates back to the University in time for the Mihi Whakatau.

The University of Otago Library has seven libraries on the Dunedin campus. Tours have been arranged to visit a number of these. A tour of the Central Library (Information Services Building) is available on Monday afternoon. This building was completed in 2001 and has won a number of architectural awards. On Tuesday afternoon there will be the opportunity to see what the $10 million dollar refurbishment and extension to the Bill Robertson Library looks like. Since the building contractors are scheduled to finish the Friday immediately before Conference this tour will be one of the first groups to see the completed building. The Law Library has recently been refurbished and delegates will be able to tour this on Wednesday afternoon. All of these libraries are within walking distance of the Conference venue.

A tour of the Hocken Library has been arranged immediately after the Conference – though within walking distance transport has been arranged to get everyone there in a timely manner. The buses will not leave the Conference venue until after the Poroporoaki. Since the Hocken Library is a closed stack collection so this may be the one opportunity for delegates to see behind the scenes. And as an indication that things do not stand still in Dunedin delegates are warned that there may be considerable noise, dust, and dirt in the vicinity of the Hocken Library – State Highway 88 is being realigned to make way for the new Dunedin Stadium.

To ensure that we have enough tour guides and transport, delegates are advised that they need to book for these tours.

Small beginnings

At the 1910 Library Association Conference the number of papers given totalled four. Topics included the Dewey Classification scheme, mobile libraries, and ways to prevent the spread of disease via library books.

Delegates at the 2010 Centennial Conference have the choice of 42 papers, workshops and discussion panels. Besides covering the historical aspects of the occasion, sessions will cover such diverse topics as the “new” technologies (e-readers, e-books, mobile), sustainable libraries, New Zealand’s place and contribution in a global world, leadership, information technology, redefining and repositioning of services to our communities, and  the introduction of new international standards such as RDA.

The Conference Programme Committee has worked hard to ensure that the programme has something for all the library and information management sectors. But the proof is in the pudding. For those not familiar with this saying – to fully test something you need to experience it. And believe me the Centennial Conference will be an experience and a half.

Abstracts for the 1910 conference

Abstracts for the 2010 conference

What is a mihi whakatau?

As most LIANZA conferences start with a pōhiri there have been some questions as to why the Centennial Conference is opening with a mihi whakatau and what delegates and visitors can expect.

The mihi whakatau, like the pōhiri, is a ceremony in which mana whenua (Māori of the region) welcome the manuhiri (visitors) onto their land and put the manuhiri under their mana (which in this case can be translated as protection).

For the mana whenua of Otākou, a pōhiri can only take place on a papatipu (ancestral) marae.  As our welcome will take place at the conference venue, the mihi whakatau format will be used.  This differs from the pōhiri in that there is no call to the manuhiri to enter.  Delegates will be asked to go into the lecture theatre and take their seats before the ceremony begins.  In other respects, the ceremony will proceed in much the same way as a pōhiri, with exchange of greetings followed by a hongi to marry the two groups – mana whenua and manuhiri – together.

Did you know that the first National Librarian was an All Black?

This was how Julia Millen was introduced today on Good Morning – there to promote her new book A Century of Library Life in Aotearoa: Te Rau Herenga 1910-2010. Written to celebrate 100 years of The Libraries Association of NZ (also known as The NZ Library Association and of course LIANZA), Julia has traced the organisation from its inception in 1910 in Dunedin to its current status as a vibrant and professional voice in the new millennium.

At its centennial in 2010, the Association can celebrate many pioneering achievements, notably the interloan networks, establishment of the Country and School Library Services, the Library School and training courses for librarians, and the National Library which came into being after 2 decades of bitter and hard-fought battles. LIANZA has also faced serious financial and other internal problems which have threatened its very existence.

The launch of the book is an integral part of the 2010 centennial celebrations, and will be held on Monday 29 November in the Link (an area just outside the Central Library at the University of Otago). It is sponsored by the Otago Southland Region of LIANZA.

And for those who must know: ISBN 978-0-473-17579-5

 

Programme changes

Owing to commitments in Calgary Stephen Abram is now unable to present the closing address on the Wednesday afternoon. But he is still coming to the Conference, and delegates will be able to start living Stephen’s vision of the future a couple of days earlier than previously planned. His session is now scheduled for Monday morning at 11:15am.

The closing address will now be done by David Shumaker. The Wednesday will be a very busy day for David as his workshop “Succeeding with embedded librarianship” will still be run, as scheduled, on the Wednesday morning.

From an area definitely living at the edge – the Centennial Conference Committee is pleased to announce that Sue McKnight, ProVice Chancellor Learning Resources at the University of Canterbury, has agreed to speak on the lessons learnt at the University of Canterbury following the recent earthquake in the Canterbury region.

The 3M Award presentations originally planned for Tuesday has now been moved to Monday 2:30pm.

The registration brochure now includes the updated programme

Conference Brochure

Take a look at the interactive copy of this years conference brochure or simply download a .pdf version to read at your leisure.

Deadline for abstracts drawing closer

The deadline for submitting abstracts for the LIANZA Centennial Conference is Friday 25 June.

Do we have yours?

The theme for the LIANZA Centennial Conference 2010 “At the Edge – Te Matakāheru” allows us the freedom to celebrate the many aspects of librarianship including (but not limited to):

Planning: building, strategic planning, operational planning, project management, policy ..

Methods and processes/Service delivery: research, projects, surveys, qualitative and quantitative studies, teaching and learning, knowledge management, preservation, access, technology, archives, records management ….

People/HR/Relationship management: bi-cultural, communications skills, staff development, recruitment, politics, change management, performance management ….

Future: web, RDA, library systems, library as a space

And since it is the Centennial conference – the Past:  let’s acknowledge our achievements over the last 100 years

Authors should submit their abstracts online as early as possible, but no later than Friday 25^th June.

For more details please go to http://lianza.org.nz/news-events/conferences/conference-2010/call-abstracts