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The Australian Libraries Copyright Committee (ALCC) welcomes the amendments to the Bill. A localised and universally applicable anti-piracy notice and takedown system for addressing local copyright infringements would increase clarity and reduce costs both for our members and for Australian creators.

Since 2015, ALIA has been the lead association for discussions with the Australian Government and other stakeholders about the role that libraries play in contributing to the delivery of the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDG). We have been working to assist Australian library and information professionals and their organisations to be part of this international drive for greater social equality, improved economic prosperity and a more sustainable environmental approach. Our initiatives are based on three roles for libraries: (1) Supporting freedom of access to information outcomes; (2) Providing examples of success, which can be used as part of Australia’s reporting; and (3) Helping to communicate the 2030 Agenda to the general population.
 
ALIA could list projects and achievements for all 17 goals, but instead have chosen the 10 goals which best relate to the Australian experience and where we have the strongest examples of library contributions nationally and in each of our states and territories. Goal 1 No poverty -- Goal 3 Good health and well-being -- Goal 4 Quality education -- Goal 5 Gender equality -- Goal 8 Decent work and economic growth -- Goal 9 Industry, innovation and infrastructure -- Goal 10 Reduced inequalities -- Goal 11 Sustainable cities and communities -- Goal 16 Peace and justice strong institutions -- Goal 17 Partnerships for the goals

Australian Libraries Copyright Committee (ALCC) and the Australian Digital Alliance (ADA) joint submission on the Copyright Regulations 2017 responds to questions set out in the consultation paper and provides additional suggestions for small changes to the regulations. Issues raised relate to unpublished works, the safe harbour scheme, technological protection measures (TPM), fair dealings for students and researchers, regulations governing photocopier notices, and document delivery and interlibrary loan provisions.

This submission by the Australian Library and Information Assocation (ALIA) comments on the Draft 2016 National Research Infrastructure Roadmap.
 
ALIA thanks the Expert Working Group (EWG) for listening to the case put forward by humanities, arts and cultural organisations, and for including Platforms for Humanities, Arts and Social Sciences (HASS) as one of its recommended nine focus areas. We are also pleased to see the National Library of Australia’s Trove identified, with others, as an existing national research infrastructure asset.
 
ALIA reiterates a request for the EWG to make explicit reference to the important role of Australian library and information professionals in making data more accessible and discoverable for science and humanities researchers. ALIA also urges the Government to include a representative from the library and information sector if a Research Infrastructure National Advisory group were to be formed in order to take full advantage of the knowledge and skills of the professionals we represent.

ALIA Library Technician Research Award 2015, Debra Gilmore, ALIATech 
 
This research, made possible by ALIA in the form of a research grant under the auspices of the ALIA biennial Library Technical Research Award, investigates whether Registered Training Organisations (RTO) Library Technician courses adequately cover the information and communications technology (ICT) skills required by library technicians and employers.
 
 
 

Brief statistical snapshot of Australian library sector in 2018.

• 5,000 members of the Australian Library and Information Association
• 13,650 library locations in metropolitan, regional and remote Australia
• 27,500 workers in libraries and information services
• 12.9 million users in communities, schools, universities, TAFEs, government departments, research agencies, hospitals, NGOs, law firms, banks, media channels, technology companies and other knowledge-based enterprises across Australia
• $2.8 billion is the estimated annual investment in library and information services in Australia

This report, produced by Dr Katherine Howard and commissioned by the Australian Library and Information Association (ALIA), is based on desk research carried out over the period of November 2016 to February 2017. It followed on from the Special Libraries Summit, held on 2 September, in Adelaide, alongside the ALIA National Conference.
 
The report is structured as follows: a recap on what we already know that special librarians do now, through literature reviews, projects and commissioned research, and how this role may be extended. Secondly, the report identifies competitors in the marketplace in terms of both job classifications and information providers, with areas of overlap between them and the librarian role highlighted. This in turn identifies the unique selling points (USPs) of the librarian in the Special Library domain.

In 2013, the Australian Library and Information Association (ALIA) set out to investigate (1) How will libraries remain relevant for users? (2) What changes will institutions and individuals in the sector experience? (3) Will ‘library and information professional’ continue to be a necessary and desirable occupation? Three years on, we have reviewed the themes, actions and what we have learned since the original investigation. This is the May 2017 update of the Future of the LIS Profession: Library and Information Professionals report. 

In 2013, the Australian Library and Information Association (ALIA) set out to investigate (1) How will libraries remain relevant for users? (2) What changes will institutions and individuals in the sector experience? (3) Will ‘library and information professional’ continue to be a necessary and desirable occupation? Three years on, we have reviewed the themes, actions and what we have learned since the original investigation. This is the May 2017 update of the Future of the LIS Profession: Public Libraries report. 

In 2013, the Australian Library and Information Association (ALIA) set out to investigate (1) How will libraries remain relevant for users? (2) What changes will institutions and individuals in the sector experience? (3) Will ‘library and information professional’ continue to be a necessary and desirable occupation? Three years on, we have reviewed the themes, actions and what we have learned since the original investigation. This is the May 2017 update of the Future of the LIS Profession: School Libraries report. 

This submission from the Australian Library and Information Association (ALIA) in response to Australia's first Open Government Action Plan 2016-2018 discusses the role of public, academic, research and special libraries in supporting open data and digitial transformation, citizen engagement and access to government information, the provision of data management and researcher support services, and the societal benefits of access to high-value datasets within Trove.

In 2018, the Australian Library and Information Association (ALIA) organised seven Leadership & Innovation Forums across Australia. These forums are a biennial event.
 
The theme in 2018 was ‘Meaningful and respectful engagement with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander knowledge, culture and heritage – what more do we need to do?’ This aligned with the Presidential theme of Indigenous matters and complemented ALIA’s 2019 Truth, Integrity, Knowledge campaign.
 
These forums took place in New South Wales, the Northern Territory, Queensland, South Australia, Tasmania, Victoria and Western Australia. In May 2019, to coincide with ALIA’s Annual General Meeting, a similar forum was held at the Australian Institute of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Studies (AIATSIS) in Canberra.
 
Across the eight forums, conversations shared common threads, prompted and supported by questions directed towards the expert panellists. These panellists included representatives from AIATSIS, the Jumbunna Institute of Indigenous Research and Education, Noongar Boodjar Language Centre, and the Indigenous Literacy Foundation.
 

The panellists were asked variations on the following questions:
 
• How can libraries develop and improve our programs and services to better meet the needs of our Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities?
• In what ways can libraries attract more people from Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander backgrounds to work in our sector?
• What are some of the personal experiences – or compelling arguments – that have influenced your thinking and have motivated you to be an advocate for change?
• What more can we do?

Australian Library Design Awards and Conference, 19 June 2017 Melbourne
 
The Australian Library Design Awards have been created to showcase the best in contemporary library interiors and exteriors in Australia, and to celebrate the investment in libraries made by our nation's institutions, corporations, local, state and territory governments. They have been developed in the context of other competitions internationally, including the American Institute of Architects/American Library Association Library Building Awards and the Danish Agency for Culture Model Programme for Public Libraries Public Library of the Year Award. The entries, shortlisted and winning designs provide case studies in excellent library design for the 21st Century. 
 
The awards are organised by the Australian Library and Information Association in partnership with the Australian Public Library Alliance and Council of Australian University Librarians. The organising committee includes senior library leaders from Queensland, New South Wales and Victoria, acting on behalf of colleagues nationally. More than 30 libraries were entered for the inaugural Australian Library Design Awards 2017. Public, school, academic and special libraries all featured in the entries, and there was a special award for the library voted for by ALIA Members.

Australian Library Design Awards and Conference, 19 June 2017 Melbourne
 
This conference presentation (PowerPoint slides) provides two examples and two schools of thought in the approach taken to design school library spaces suitable for 21st Century education.
 
The Australian Library Design Awards have been created to showcase the best in contemporary library interiors and exteriors in Australia, and to celebrate the investment in libraries made by our nation's institutions, corporations, local, state and territory governments. They have been developed in the context of other competitions internationally, including the American Institute of Architects/American Library Association Library Building Awards and the Danish Agency for Culture Model Programme for Public Libraries Public Library of the Year Award. The entries, shortlisted and winning designs provide case studies in excellent library design for the 21st Century. 
 
The awards are organised by the Australian Library and Information Association in partnership with the Australian Public Library Alliance and Council of Australian University Librarians. The organising committee includes senior library leaders from Queensland, New South Wales and Victoria, acting on behalf of colleagues nationally. More than 30 libraries were entered for the inaugural Australian Library Design Awards 2017. Public, school, academic and special libraries all featured in the entries, and there was a special award for the library voted for by ALIA Members.