Libraries and community

Abstract: The 2020 COVID-19 pandemic forced public library staff to rapidly rethink the services they offered as lockdown restrictions meant that libraries as social venues briefly came to an end. Online content was developed overnight to fill the void. This study examines the impact that the contactless operational model has had on library services across Australia, as seen through the eyes of eight public library staff. The qualitative study contributes in-depth data to scant literature about public libraries and the pandemic in an Australian context.

The Australian Library and Information Association (ALIA) encourages library and information services professionals to promote and facilitate the development of their clients' information literacy skills.

Article by John Geijsman AALIA and Kirsty Lightfoot from INCITE May/June 2021 Volume 42 Issue 3 - Open Space.
 
This article discusses how libraries are connecting with their communities online with the development of a dedicated community Minecraft server.

ALIA Information Online 2017 Conference, 13-17 February 2017 Sydney: Data Information Knowledge
 
This conference paper examines how the Northern Territory Library (NTL) utilised social media to transform the reach and impact of its public programs, propel donations and redefine its relationship with the local community.
 

ALIA Information Online 2017 Conference, 13-17 February 2017 Sydney: Data Information Knowledge
 
This conference presentation (PowerPoint slides) supports the paper which discusses the role of new and emerging technologies in connecting people to library services. 
 

ALIA Information Online 2017 Conference, 13-17 February 2017 Sydney: Data Information Knowledge
 
This conference paper discusses the role of new and emerging technologies in connecting people to library services. 
 

ALIA Information Online 2017 Conference, 13-17 February 2017 Sydney: Data Information Knowledge
 
This presentation (PowerPoint slides) supported the talk on the role of libraries in building digitally inclusive communities. 
 

This joint submission from the Australian Library and Information Association (ALIA), National and State Libraries Australasia (NSLA), Australian Law Librarians Association (ALLA), School Library Association of Victoria (SLAV) and Australian School Library Association (ASLA) supports the provision of high quality and reliable telecommunications in regional areas and the increasingly important role of libraries in supporting the nation through their support of communities.

The Australian Library and Information Association (ALIA) submission to the Australia Council for the Arts discusses how libraries across the sector have responded to the COVID-19 pandemic. Libraries have been highly agile, adapting and embracing new technologies, delivering online forums and making electronic resources widely available. As a sector, libraries have proved to be proactive and exceptionally resilient throughout the pandemic.
 

This submission from the Australian Library and Information Association (ALIA) highlights three major issues—the importance of libraries and information centres in assisting high quality policy advice and service delivery, the need for whole of government approaches to information for an efficient and effective public service and the need to make government information widely available with web 2.0 technology to enable a high level of citizen participation in policy development a service delivery.