AOOS2019: ‘Libraries: Create Spaces – Inspire Dialogue – Empower Community’ - IFLA Asia and Oceania Section Open Session Athens, Greece, August 24-30, 2019

The open session of the IFLA Regional Section for Asia and Oceania (organised by the Regional Standing Committee – RSCAO) plans to contribute to this year’s WLIC theme of “Libraries: Dialogue for Change”, by exploring how libraries have empowered their communities by way of creating trusted space and stimulating dialogue.

The RSCAO open session aims to demonstrate how all types of librarians/libraries in Asia and Oceania have brought people together in vibrant community hubs, generated dialogue/conversation and helped their communities to figure out/resolve the complexities of life as well as the society they live in.

We are seeking high-quality, thoughtful and inspiring papers, and encourage professionals across the Asia-Pacific region to submit proposals for papers on topics relating to the session theme.

Sub-themes

The organising committee is particularly interested in proposals for presentations on any of the following sub-themes:

• Library as a trusted and safe space for fostering community dialogue - (How libraries have done this? Why libraries are ideal institutions to lead dialogue and deliberation efforts in communities - examples of current practices; impacts made; Lessons learnt)
   
• Library services and facilities – (What new services and facilities have been implemented for creating enriched community dialogue? How are they marketed, what are the measures of success? - examples of current practices; impacts made; Lessons learnt)
   
• Library leadership and staffing – (What change management techniques have been successfully used to empower library staff to provide innovative services that helps community feels comfortable and foster dialogue  - examples of current practices; impacts made; Lessons learnt)
   
• Library education – (How libraries have influenced library schools to adapt their curriculum in line with the needs of the profession and the community? What dialogue and collaboration is taking place or exists between library schools and libraries at large?)

Submissions

We invite for submission of abstracts followed by/proceeding to full papers, particularly those which provide transferable examples of current practice, impacts made and lessons learnt.

Abstracts are invited for either full papers or for lightning talks.

Papers can be submitted only through EasyChair: https://easychair.org/conferences/?conf=aoos2019

Note: To submit a paper you need to have an EasyChair account. Follow the link EasyChair Signup to create EasyChair account, if needed.

Full Papers

• Papers are invited for presentation on the open session themes, which can take the form of research reports, case studies and other examples of what works in practice.

Lightning Talks

• The purpose of a lightning talk is to articulate a topic in a quick, clear and insightful manner. You are invited to share your stories, thoughts and experiments with the audience.
  
  Committee is seeking proposals for 5 lightning talks (6 minutes each) aimed at igniting lively discussions among the audience. Although not a must, the talks may include a PowerPoint presentation not exceeding 3 slides. Talks that convey the message and capture audience attention are much appreciated.

Content of Abstracts

• Informative abstracts (500 words) should be prepared following the template provided below. Each abstract will be blind reviewed by members of the Professional Committee of Regional Standing Committee for Asia and Oceania. Abbreviated abstracts or not in prescribed format or late submissions will not be considered.

Important Dates and Other Details

• The deadline for submitting a detailed abstract (500 words) and full author details is Friday 15 February 2019. Selection of papers is based on the abstract. Due to the large number of submissions received, only the successful presenters will be notified by 10th April 2019.
   
• Full texts of papers are due on 15 June 2019. Abstracts should be submitted as a 'pdf' file.
   
• The committee will evaluate the submitted abstracts against criteria which include: innovative content, topical relevance, regional interest, clarity of exposition, originality, and overall quality.
   
• Papers must be original submissions not presented or published elsewhere – (IFLA rule).
   
• Papers should not be more than 4,000 words, single spaced in Times New Roman 12 point.
   
• Papers and abstracts should be in English.
   
• The author(s) should include their full contact details and brief biographical notes.
   
• Note: all papers presented at IFLA WLIC 2019 should be available under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 license. Authors of submitted papers have to sign IFLA’s Authors’ Permission Form which formalises this.

Publication

AOOS2019 papers will be published on the IFLA website and as an option in the IFLA Journal.

Venue

The open session will be held at Megaron Athens International Conference Centre in Athens, Greece.

Planning Committee

Dr. Premila Gamage (Convener)
Dr. Nor Edzan Che Nasir (Co-convener)
Dr. Ramesh C Gaur
Cendrella Habre
Mya Oo
Heather Todd
Sanjay Bihani (Chair, RSCAO)
Tina Yang (Secretary, RSCAO)

Contact

All questions about submissions should be emailed to: aoopensession2019@gmail.com

More details: https://2019.ifla.org/cfp-calls/asia-and-oceania-section/