My active involvement in IFLA (International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions) and its New Professionals Special Interest Group (NPSIG) resulted in a particular interest in working culture and communication in library associations. This was reflected in talks I have been giving as NPSIG Convenor to share my experiences and provide a fresh perspective on professional communication in an associational context. The efforts of the group in this field got rewarded in 2011, when the NPSIG leadership received the IFLA Communicator of the Year Award on behalf of the group.
#IFLAdial
I have been coordinating the IFLAdial Working Group that was set up at the World Library and Information Congress in Helsinki, Finland with the goal to address communication issues within IFLA and to develop proposals for IFLA’s Professional Committee. Based on feedback by IFLA activists around the world through social media and other means, an extensive report was compiled and got published in December 2012. The final report is available at the IFLA website and on NPSIG’s blog. The IFLAdial Work Group continued its work by providing translations of the report in several languages and creating awareness about the results.
expertise for library associations
My expertise with New Professionals and my views as a new librarian let me take part in internal brainstorming meetings of library associations on a national and international level (see this report about a working meeting at IFLA Headquarters in 2010 that was dealing with the future look and feel of IFLA’s online activities). I have been a regular advisor to colleagues and library associations on New Professionals matters.
LIS Traveler 