World Library and Information Congress: 74th IFLA General Conference and Council

"Libraries without borders: Navigating towards global understanding"

10-14 August 2008, Québec, Canada

Call for Papers

Science and Technology Libraries Section

Session Theme: "Science across Libraries: provision of science and technology information resources and services in diverse settings"

The World Library and Information Congress: 74th IFLA General Conference and Council will be held in Québec, Canada, 10-14 August 2008. The theme for the Conference is: "Libraries without borders: Navigating towards global understanding".

The Science and Technology Libraries Section is planning a two-hour program in Québec and we invite you to submit an abstract for presentation. The theme for our meeting is "Science across Libraries: provision of science and technology information resources and services in diverse settings".

Increasingly, information resources and services related to science and technology are in demand by users beyond traditional contexts and with varying levels of expertise and knowledge. A variety of libraries and other information professionals are called upon to design innovative approaches to meeting this demand. Complicating such efforts, however, are issues related to science and technology literacy in the general public, collection development and access issues, and other provision and source related challenges. Moreover, trends in science and technology, particularly those of global importance (such as global warming, the ecological impact of globalization, or information technology issues in developing countries) can increase demand of certain resources and challenge the expertise of traditional librarians.

In addition to a keynote speaker, we are seeking three excellent papers that address the issues surrounding and effecting the provision of science and technology information resources and services in diverse settings. Of particular interest are papers that represent perspectives that will have relevance to an international audience.

Three papers will be selected for presentation.

Proposals for papers must be submitted by 15 February 2008. The proposal should include a title, a 200-400 word abstract and relevant biographical information of author(s) / presenter(s).

Successful proposals will be identified by 3 March 2008 and presenters will be notified.
The full paper is due by 1 May 2008. We hope that Simultaneous Interpretation will be available for this session, but we strongly recommend that the presentation slides should be in English, even if the presentation is delivered in one of the other official languages.

Please note that all fees, including registration for the conference, travel, accommodation, etc. are the responsibility of the authors of accepted papers.

For additional information or to submit your proposal, please contact:
Jill Mayer
IFLA Science and Technology Section
NC AHEC ILS Associate Director
Health Sciences Library
UNC Chapel Hill, NC 27599-7585
USA
E-mail: jbmayer@email.unc.edu