Public libraries play a vital role in local communities. They ensure that every Australian, no matter their economic means, is able to access information, assistance, education, community engagement and at a very basic level, a temperature controlled safe space.
ALIA made a submission to The Department of Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development, Communications and the Arts' modernisation of the Australian Classification Scheme.
The submission includes feedback around current Classification procedures and mechanisms, several definitions that are central to reforms, the establishment and makeup of a proposed independent Classification Advisory Panel, and indications about future communications of classification decisions.
ALIA's submission to the Parliamentary inquiry into the adoption of artifical intelligence arguing for more support for libraries to ensure that people are not left behind in the AI revolution. The submission also spoke to some of the copyright policy challenges and proposed solution. Three main recommendations were made:
1. That the government work with ALIA to fund the development and roll-out of training for library staff addressing AI literacy and pedagogy to support the community to be AI literate.
The ALIA Code of Conduct outlines the standards of behaviour required by employees, volunteers and contractors in the performance of their duties and functions. Consistently applying these standards of behaviour, contributes to making a safe, respectful and productive workplace.
ALIA's submission to the Joint Standing Committee on Electoral Matters’ inquiry into civics education, engagement, and participation in Australia underscores the ways in which libraries support a democratic society.
ALIA's submission to the Australian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) addressing current and emerging threats to transgender and gender diverse human rights in Australia. The submission focuses on the provision of information about the challenges that library services, predominantly public library services, have faced when hosting LGBTQIA+ events and when providing or displaying LGBTQIA+ content, with trans and gender diverse content.
ALIA's submission into Revive First Nations First National Consultation underscores the huge contribution to Australia’s arts and cultural sector in all its expressions, and urges Creative Australia to ensure that the diversity of experience of First Nations people in the cultural sector is reflected.
The Australian Library and Information Association is a founding member of the Australian Media Literacy Alliance (AMLA) and contributed to the AMLA submission to the Government's inquiry into News Media Assistance Program. The submission makes the folliwng key points:
The Australian Library and Information Association (ALIA)'s submission to the News Media Assistance Program Consultation makes key recommendations around the availability and accessibility of news and journalism and media literacy support. It outlines the citical role of libraries in providing equality of access to news media, and support and challenges required to support this role.
The following recommendations are made:
Australian Coalition for School Libraries's (ACSL) submission to the Expert Panel to endorse the submission from Emily Squires, Rebecca Cameron and Sally Allen and its recommendations:
1. As a matter of equity, a target that every ACT public school student has access to a well resourced school library run by qualified staff.
2. That the Education Directorate develop a central register on the provision, resourcing and staffing of school libraries to provide a source of data to track impact on literacy and numeracy outcomes.
