25th Annual Mortenson Distinguished Lecture, Right to Accessible Information for Global Citizenship: UNESCO's Programme for Persons with Disabilities.

Join us online or in person on Tuesday, October 27th at 4:00 PM CDT for the 

25th Annual Mortenson Distinguished Lecture, Right to Accessible Information for Global Citizenship: UNESCO's Programme for Persons with Disabilities.

Dr. Irmgarda Kasinskaite-Buddeberg, Programme Specialist for UNESCO’s Knowledge Societies Division, Communication and Information Sector will talk about her work and provide insight into the concrete actions taken by UNESCO to ensure that the right to accessible information for persons with disabilities is respected around the world and to contribute to the full empowerment of persons with disabilities. 

The presentation will also include the introduction of key initiatives, research results, policy and capacity building tools developed by UNESCO as well as future plans within the context of building inclusive knowledge societies.

The lecture will take place on the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign campus in Room 126 of the Graduate School of Library and Information Science, 501 East Daniel Street, Champaign. It will commence with a memorial tribute to Ekaterina Genieva (April 1, 1946-July 9, 2015), former Director General of the Margarita Rudomino All-Russia State Library for Foreign Literature, by Marianna Tax Choldin. Dr. Genieva received an Honorary Doctor of Letters from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign in 2001.

If not in-person, please join us online. The lecture will also be streamed live on the internet with American Sign Language interpretation. Just visit go.illinois.edu/livestream3 on October 27^th at 4:00 PM Central Daylight Time. The recorded video will be made available with closed caption.

This year’s lecture will also kick off a year-long celebration of the 25^th anniversary of the C. Walter and Gerda B. Mortenson Center for International Library Programs, established in 1991 to strengthen international ties among libraries and librarians worldwide for the promotion of international education, understanding, and peace. Librarians from more than 100 countries have participated in professional development programs offered by the Mortenson Center, the only one of its kind in the world. Learn more about us at http://www.library.illinois.edu/mortenson.

Thank you to our co-sponsors: The Illini Union Board, the Center for Global Studies, the European Union Center, the Graduate School of Library and Information Science, the Division of Disability Resources & Educational Services, and the University of Illinois Library at Urbana-Champaign.

Free Library 2.015 Worldwide Virtual Conference Promotes Global Information Sharing

The date is set, proposals are accepted, and presentations are being prepared as the fifth annual Library 2.015 Worldwide Virtual Conference draws near. 

On Tuesday, October 20, 201, from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m.U.S. Pacific Daylight Time, the free international conference will be held online via Blackboard Collaborate web conferencing and accessible from any personal computer and most mobile devices. Scholars, researchers, information professionals, and students are encouraged to attend and benefit from the global exchange of knowledge.

The conference theme of Tools, Skills and Competencies is at the core of the opening keynote address by Dr. Sandra Hirsh, professor and director of the San Jose State University (SJSU) School of Information. Hirsh will discuss the evolution of information services and address what it means to be an information professional today. Her keynote starts at 7 a.m. U.S. Pacific Daylight Time.

The day-long event is packed with keynote and distinguished speaker presentations and 50 crowd-sourced presentations. The full conference schedule is available by time zone on the conference website. All sessions will be recorded and freely accessible for future viewing.

Founded in 2011 by Hirsh of the SJSU School of Information and Steve Hargadon of The Learning Revolution, the Library 2.0 conference series promotes inclusivity with the goal of creating open dialogue about the future of libraries. More information on the 21,000 member international Library 2.0 network, and on attending the Library 2.015 Worldwide Virtual Conference, is available on the conference website. 

About the SJSU School of Information

The San Jose State University (SJSU) School of Information prepares individuals for careers as information professionals. Graduates work in diverse areas of the information profession, such as user experience design, digital asset management, information architecture, electronic records management, information governance, digital preservation, and librarianship. The SJSU School of Information is a recognized leader in online education and received the Online Learning Consortium’s Outstanding Online Program award. For more information about the school, please visit ischool.sjsu.edu.

Contact:

Nicole Purviance

Director of Marketing and Communications

School of Information

San Jose State University

One Washington Square

San Jose, CA 95192-0029

nicole.purviance@sjsu.edu

http://ischool.sjsu.edu

Call for Column Contributions: Global Postcards, International Information & Library Review

The International Information & Library Review is currently seeking articles and proposals for the journal’s “Global Postcards: Research, Projects, and Experiences from the Field” column. The due date for the next issue is December 1, 2015.

The “Global Postcards: Research, Projects, and Experiences from the Field” column features news and reports from around the world. Contributions do not need to be lengthy, but should be informative. The strength of the column is its broad, international focus, and contributors are encouraged to explore issues and share news relevant to their geographical region, as well as the larger, global audience.

Topics may include (but are not limited to):

·         Reports from on-the-ground projects

·         Recaps of conferences and meetings around the world

·         Accounts of professional development experiences

·         Summaries of research projects

·         Grants and other funding opportunities

Submission Instructions

Interested authors are invited to submit proposals and articles to the column editors at jsolis@email.unc.edu and rlk25@pitt.edu. Articles should be written in Word.

Editorial information

·         Editor-in-Chief: Gary M. Pitkin, University of Northern Colorado (Retired)

·         Column Editor: Jacqueline Solis , University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill

·         Column Editor: Robin Kear, University of Pittsburgh