Sofia 2004 – Libraries, Globalization, and Cooperation

Citation

Solomon, M. and Wallin, S. (2005), "Sofia 2004 – Libraries, Globalization, and Cooperation", New Library World, Vol. 106 No. 3/4. https://doi.org/10.1108/nlw.2005.072106cac.001

Sofia 2004 – Libraries, Globalization, and Cooperation

“Sofia 2004 – Libraries, Globalization and Cooperation” was the latest in an ongoing bi-annual conference series designed to explore issues involving the impact of globalization on libraries and other information agencies. The conference began on November 3 and concluded on November 5, in Sofia, Bulgaria. The hosts of the conference were Emporia State University in Kansas and The University of Sofia, Bulgaria. Presenters came from all over Western Europe, the Balkans, Thailand, and the United States to speak about a multitude of issues including education, information technology, cooperation, national and academic libraries, policy, and current issues. Present at the conference were many exhibitors of database software and publishers specializing in materials for library professionals.

On November 2, before the main conference began, a pre-conference student session was held and attended by American and Bulgarian students, as well as faculty representatives from the main conference. Topics covered in the student conference included issues of the future of LIS, curriculum, terminology, community analysis in Romania, reading promotion in Bulgaria, and distance learning in Germany. Linda Ashcroft delivered a presentation on how to publish articles in scholarly journals.

After the educational part of the student conference ended, students were treated to a night out on the town where they could sample a little bit of Bulgarian night life: dinner at a local restaurant and dancing at a club.

The main conference had 43 presentations in all, creating a comprehensive look at many of the issues and delivering new information and cunning insights regarding globalization, cooperation and libraries. What follows is a profile of several of the presentations, unique in themselves, but representative of the feeling of the conference as a whole.

Johan Koren of Murray State University, USA delivered a presentation with the intriguing title “Worldwide Collaboration Among Libraries and Librarians: Are We Globalizing, Glocalizing – or even Grobalizing Librarianship?” Koren first gave a variety of definitions of globalization from different sources, and then explored the meaning of the two new terms – “glocalization” and “grobalization.” Koren presented the terms as they are explored in the book The Globalization of Nothing, by George Ritzer (Pine Forge Press, 2004). According to Ritzer, glocalization occurs when standardized products become unique and are allowed to take on a local flavor. Grobalization is the polar opposite, where all things local and unique become standardized for the lowest common denominator. Koren’s presentation did a yeoman’s job of sifting through these unfamiliar terms and adding dimension to the issue of globalization. On a side note, it was mentioned later that many of the Bulgarians found added humor with the word “grobalization” because in Bulgarian, “grobe” means “grave.”

Vania Grashkina and Iskra Mahaylova of Bulgaria, and Nancy Bolt from the USA delivered a presentation titled “Project ABLE: an example for successful collaboration between libraries in Bulgaria and the USA.” Project ABLE, the American Bulgarian Library Exchange, is an ongoing collaboration between librarians in Colorado, Iowa, and Bulgaria. Though the goals of Project ABLE are relatively simple, the executions of its goals are quite complex, given the distance between the librarians both geographically and culturally. Project ABLE is designed to help Bulgarian librarians adapt to new technologies and discover methods of raising awareness of the value of libraries in the local government, as well as in their communities. The presenters repeatedly stressed that although their collaboration was going well, continuous communication between the librarians is key for this project.

Ivanka Yankova and Elena Koicheva of the University Library at Sofia University “St. Kliment Ohridski,” in Bulgaria delivered a presentation entitled “Dissemination of library information knowledge: partnership between University Library and Faculty of History at Sofia University ‘St. Kliment Ohridski’.” This presentation explored the ways in which the staff at the University Library were helping the faculty in the history department. Heavy stress was given to issues of communication and cooperation between university faculty and the library staff. This presentation stressed the importance of faculty and library staff working together to ensure that their information needs are being met. The faculty needs to be made aware of library resources available to them as well as to their students.

Rolf Hueper of the University of Applied Sciences in Germany presented on “Freedom of information laws.” The presentation consisted mostly of a history of government treatment of transparency – that is, how much government policy is freely available to the public in a way that renders government processes “transparent.” Less transparent governments tend towards tyranny, and more transparent governments tend towards democracy. The historical perspective was insightful and naturally raised questions in the minds of the participants like “How transparent is my government?” and “How would I know?” The presentation was an interesting reminder of the important role that local government policy plays in the way that libraries and information professionals can act globally.

Judith Brody-Preston of the University of Wales, Aberstwyth and Barbara Hull of the University of Teeside, Middlesbrough in the UK delivered a presentation on research currently in progress at their institutions to assess information literacy and to develop a toolkit for measuring the outcomes of information literacy programs. The studies in progress analyzed how “information literate” incoming students are, and how well those students are developing new skills in a variety of different programs. The study was intriguing, and much interest was expressed by other participants in what areas would be explored in the future of this study.

Overall, the conference presenters and participants stressed cooperation and collaboration as the most useful ways for librarians to continue to build a solid future for each other in our global culture. Even as systems grow larger and larger, with multinational corporations and governments spreading themselves around the world, it is the personal connections between people that build truly solid bonds.

Building bonds between participants was aided by a myriad of activities available to conference participants. Before the conference, a weeklong tour of central Bulgaria was taken advantage of by several librarians and students. The tour consisted of visiting historical sights around the central part of the country, as well as visits to some public libraries in different regions of Bulgaria. This gave the librarians and students an idea of what role the Bulgarian libraries play within their communities, and how they are supported.

During the main conference and between sessions, participants were encouraged to view student posters and interact with exhibitors, which included Project ABLE, Elsevier, Emerald Group Publishing, Jouve, ProQuest, Puvill Libros, Springer, TAGSYS RFID, and Thomson – K.G. Sauer, Walters & Associates. Student poster topics ranged between distance education, children’s reading programs, “Read to the dogs” – a program where blind teens read to guide dogs, intellectual property, and public health issues.

Other social activities during the conference involved several dinners, luncheons and tours. The opening night banquet featured a local folk singing group. On the second evening of the conference, participants were bussed to the National Library of Bulgaria for a tour, and then a trip up nearby Mt Vitosha to view the city. On the final evening, a dinner was organized at a local Bulgarian restaurant with live music and folk dancing. The day after the conference, attendees had the opportunity to take a tour to Rila Monastery and the American University in Blagoevgrad, Bulgaria.

Sofia 2004 was the third such bi-annual conference to be held in Sofia, and a fourth conference is being planned for 2006. For more information on Sofia 2004, and to find out how you can be a part of Sofia 2006, visit the conference web site: http://slim.emporia.edu/globenet/sofia2004/

Meredith Solomon(ilyse_slim@yahoo.com),Sam Wallin(wallinfamily@earthlink.net)MLS students in the Oregon cohort of the Emporia State University SLIM program, Kansas, USA