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[Lecture] Raising our Hands: Indigenous Data Sovereignty and Relationality in LIS

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This is part of an open lecture series, entitled Decolonization in the IM Professions, co-sponsored by the School of Information Management (SIM) and the Centre for Executive and Graduate Education (CEGE), Dalhousie University. Everyone is welcome! Keep an eye on our website for info on future events.

Tuesday, September 14 @ 1pm ADT

Virtual via Brightspace Collaborate. Click this link to join. Read instructions above before accessing.

Kayla Lar-Son, Indigenous Programs & Services Librarian, X̱wi7x̱wa Library (UBC): “Raising Our Hands: Indigenous Data Sovereignty and Relationality in LIS”

This lecture is an open classroom taking place as part of the course, INFO6610/MGMT4611 Information Policy taught by Dr. Jamila Ghaddar at Dal’s School of Information Management. Everyone is welcome! Stay tuned for future events!

Register: Please send your full name and any accessibility concerns to jghaddar@dal.ca.

Abstract: LIS institutions have long been the stewards of Indigenous cultural materials including Indigenous stories, Knowledges and Indigenous research that may or may not have been ethically conducted. But are libraries actually the best stewards for these collections? In this talk we will explore the concept of Indigenous Data Sovereignty and how it relates to libraries, as well as discover ways in which libraries can work with Indigenous communities to evaluate our own institutional priorities and procedures to develop culturally appropriate data protocols, and repatriate digital and non-digital collections.

Biography: Kayla Lar-Son is Metis and Ukrainian settler and originally from Treaty Six territory. Currently she is the Indigenous Programs and Services Librarian for X̱wi7x̱wa Library at the University of British Columbia, and the Program Manager Librarian for the Indigitization program.

MI Student Creates Interactive Index Map to Historic Halifax Aerial Photographs

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Soon-to-be Master of Information (MI) graduate, Jesse Burgess, shared his recent experience creating an interactive index map to historical aerial photographs for the Halifax Municipal Archives. Originally intended as a summer practicum placement, the opportunity was shifted to a volunteer position in the fall term, due to the pandemic.

• Screen-capture of the Halifax Municipal Archives’ Historical Aerial Photograph Index Map

The map presents a geographic index to digital images that Jesse described and uploaded into the Archives Database.  The 350 photos centred over Halifax Harbour were done in two surveys, one in 1955, the other in 2001. Jesse geo-referenced the historical photos and created shapefiles that HRM’s GIS Team used to generate the online index map.

“I really enjoyed working on the project, and it meant a lot to be able to see how my home city has grown over time,” said Jesse. “With one set of aerial photographs taken before my time and the other reflecting the period of my childhood, the project allowed me to contrast the areas I am familiar with and their origins. In the summer, I took the Government Information Resources course (INFO 6300) to give myself exposure to the other types of materials which I might encounter at the Archives. While completing the project in the fall, I took SIM’s Archives II (INFO 6860) and Geographic Information Systems (INFO 6681) courses; I considered this alignment to be very fortunate, as it helped bring everything I was learning and working with into sharper focus.”

Where the content of the photographs focused upon different areas within the HRM, finding a means to make them accessible naturally related to considering maps and the flight paths used to create the series. Both series of aerial photographs were managed by working with spreadsheets of associated metadata. Alongside the administrative metadata, Jesse sought out geospatial coordinates (latitude, longitude) of the photo-centres to facilitate mapping the images. Coordinates were obtained by cross-referencing Google Maps data and Natural Resource Canada’s “The Atlas of Canada – Toporama” (https://atlas.gc.ca/toporama/en/index.html) with the centres identified in the photographs.

Georges Island; Tom Alfoldi aerial photograph, 2001, CR70-237, Halifax Municipal Archives

The map was built from an Esri ArcGIS shapefile based upon the geospatial coordinates identified for each image; each point plotted in the shapefile was labeled with the associated reference name and linked with a URL field to the archival holdings. Already the index map has helped users find images to support their research, or just have fun exploring all the changes in Halifax over the past 65 years.

From Municipal Archivist, Susan McClure: “This project was a perfect match of Jesse’s skills and our need to provide better access to these valuable historical images. We were delighted and grateful that despite COVID cancelling the practicum, Jesse was willing to volunteer his time to do the project.  We really appreciate the practicum opportunity to work with SIM students; it is rewarding to see them apply their classroom learning and complete needed projects for the Archives.  First-year student Jordan Audas just finished his practicum with us, and we now have some great new descriptions, digitized material and social media posts available to the public.”

“Having the opportunity to explore those time periods using the skills developed in the MI program really solidified my joint interests in archives and data management,” says Jesse. “The staff at the Halifax Municipal Archives were supportive not only of my work on the project, but of my understanding of broader archival principles and how municipal records are managed; it was an opportunity for which I am immensely grateful.”

Check out Jesse’s work here: https://www.halifax.ca/about-halifax/municipal-archives/exhibits/historical-aerial-photos.  The Archives plans to add more aerial photos to Jesse’s map, so let them know if you want to practice your GIS skills!

1955 aerial photo over Eastern Passage – Lawlor Island – McNabs Island – Fort McNab, 102-105-1A-32164-02, Halifax Municipal Archives

SIM Research Day Highlights Breadth of Management Research at Dalhousie

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SIM held its annual Research Day event on April 1st, 2021. A total of 15 presenters including students and alumni from the Master of Information (MI), Master of Information Management (MIM), Master of Electronic Commerce (MEC), and Master of Science (MSc) programs gave dynamic 3-minute presentations of their research, in various stages of completion. Topics covered a wide range of disciplines, including predatory publications, quantum safety, ocean researcher twitter habits, ethics, online group work, information literacy, Irish language and music, and online dating (full list of participants below). Judging by the intriguing questions from the audience, these topics struck a chord and connected to many current social issues.

“SIM has a long history of supporting student research and our annual research day highlights and celebrates this,” says Dr. Vivian Howard (SIM Acting Director). “As usual, I was so impressed by the range of topics and by the presenters themselves as they summarized their research in three very short minutes.  This year’s presenters included alumni as well as students in various programs. The virtual delivery format meant that we were able to include presenters and audience members from a wide variety of locations and it really expanded the reach of this event, and, I hope, inspired a lot of excitement about the kinds of research taking place within our School and our Faculty as a whole.”

Special thanks to Dr. Keith Lawson (SIM Assistant Professor) for acting as MC, and to Dr. Dominika Wranik (Associate Dean-Research, Faculty of Management) for welcoming attendees.

Want to learn more about research initiatives at SIM? Visit the research page of our website.

Thank you to our Presenters

  • Miranda Angelski & Katie Kehoe (MI): Temporary Caregivers and the Child(ren) in Their Care: Fostering an Engaging and Supportive Library Environment
  • Andrew Battershill (MI): Ethics in Action-Wealth Inequality and Solidarity
  • Leah Boulos (Alumni): Predatory Publications in Cochrane Systematic Reviews
  • Ryan Deschamps (Alumni): An Introduction to the Quantum Threat and Quantum Safety
  • Pallavi Gone (MI): Scholar’s Interactions on Twitter: A Case Study on Ocean Researcher’s Conference Participation
  • Lisa Holmes (MIM): Swipe, tap, and scroll: Supporting the transition to university for Gen Z student
  • Molly MacDougall (MI): Ethics in Action: Starting from the Ground Up
  • Rachel Moylan (MI): Presence, Agency, and Context: Students’ Experiences Engaging in Creative Group Processes in an Online Educational Environment
  • Lisa Mullins (MI): Municipal Food Gardening Policies and Programs across Canada
  • Cora-Lynn Munroe-Lynds (MI): Information Literacy in Nova Scotia: Systematic Mapping of High School Learning Outcomes
  • Kate Newhook (MI): Ceol Agus Teanga: Examining the Relationship Between Irish Music, Irish Language Learning, and Personal Knowledge Management
  • Tasnim Nishat (MSc): “What will they think?” Fear of identity misclassification keeps men from choosing female Uber bike drivers in Bangladesh
  • Gabriel Orellena Diaz (MEC): Dating Apps and Online Communities and the Impact of Covid-19
  • Zhensong Zheng (MSc): The Effect of Managers’ Experiences During 2007-2009 Financial Crisis on Firm Performance

 

SIM Research Day 2021: Call for Presenters

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SIM RESEARCH DAY 2021: Call for Presenters (please share)

Attention: All researchers in the SIM community

Mark your calendars!

Thursday, 01 April 2021 will be SIM Research Day.

Time: 11:00am – 1:00pm via MS Teams *link coming soon*

SIM Students:  Showcase a research project you are working on or have recently completed—a thesis, poster, or other project. Research Day can accommodate a mix of presentation formats (lightening talks, posters), but the focus will be on brief focused presentations and lively audience engagement. Think about how you might be able to present your research to be part of this celebration of research at SIM.

Research Day is open to all students—incoming and returning, MI/MLIS and MIM.

Other students, alumni and IM/LIS professionals: Please consider sharing your research with us!

Faculty: Encourage your research students to sign up for this event!

If you would like to present at Research Day, please email Kim at sim@dal.ca by 15-March. If you don’t yet know your topic or format, that is fine! You will have time to confirm those details.

Looking forward to hearing from you.

SIM student featured in National Post & The Star

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MI student, Shannon Faires, is a research associate with the Dalhousie Agri-Food Analytics Lab. She is quoted in two recent articles in the National Post and The Star, respectively. Both articles discuss a survey the Lab conducted with Canadians about local food. Excerpts are shared below.

From the National Post (read the full article here)

We may see the value in buying local food, but that doesn’t mean we will open up our wallets: report

Contradictions cloud our relationship with local food, a new report from Dalhousie University’s Agri-Food Analytics Lab (AAL) suggests. While four in five Canadians say they’re ready to pay more for “locally grown” fruit and vegetables, few put weight on point of origin in their decision-making.

“We talk a good talk, but what goes on in grocery stores is very different,” says Sylvain Charlebois, professor of food distribution and policy, and senior director of the AAL.

Their survey of 10,266 Canadians in early October showed that while 79.5 per cent are open to paying more for locally grown produce, only one in four (25 per cent) actively seek it out while grocery shopping. The researchers describe this discrepancy between attitude and behaviour as “the local food paradox.”

“When a lot of people buy food at the grocery store, they’re not looking for where the food was grown. They’re looking for what food is cheapest,” says AAL research associate Shannon Faires. “People may value local food more, and think it’s worth more money, but that doesn’t necessarily mean they’re looking for it.”

From The Star (read the full article here)

Canadians are hungry for locally grown food, but high costs curb our appetite for it, study finds

Four in five Canadians say they’re willing to pay a premium for local food, yet only a quarter of them are making a priority of buying it. So what’s stopping them?

Ironically, the cost.

“We’ve been promoting the hell out of local foods across the country,” said Sylvain Charlebois, a Dalhousie professor in food distribution and policy. “So are these programs working? Well, yes and no.”

A new study led by Charlebois for Dalhousie University’s Agri-Food Analytics Lab with research firm Caddle asked 10,266 Canadians about local food: how they define it, whether they would pay extra for it, whether they actively seek it out, and more.

Faires said while people say they’re willing to pay extra for local food even if it’s grown in a controlled environment like a greenhouse, that kind of food is still more expensive because of the high costs involved to grow produce year-round north of the border.

That’s why Faires and Charlebois would like to see more investment in Canadian-grown food year-round to increase the country’s food autonomy — and to decrease the price of local food.

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NS LGBT Seniors Archive Launches October 15th

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Submitted by Lydia Hunsberger (MLIS ’20 and Research Assistant, NS LGBT Archives Project):

The Nova Scotia LGBT Seniors Archive is a community archive initiative led by Dr. Jacqueline Gahagan and funded by the Nova Scotia Department of Seniors Age-Friendly Communities Grant and Dalhousie University Libraries. The purpose of this archive is to build connections among older LGBT adults and the broader community and aims to raise awareness and appreciation of the various social, economic, and artistic contributions from members of our older LGBT communities across Nova Scotia.

The official launch is scheduled for October 15, 4 – 5 pm. You can find the link to our virtual launch event here. Please contact jgahagan@dal.ca for more details.

This province-wide project will provide a platform to both increase social interaction and community involvement among older populations and will also create a living legacy through the collaborative development of a publicly accessible and searchable archive for use by community members, seniors, older and younger generations of LGBT populations, researchers and students, among others. The Nova Scotia LGBT Seniors Archives works in conjunction with a Community Advisory Committee (CAC), comprised of community members and stakeholders that work with the archives team as volunteers to provide recommendations and vision for the project, connect the archives team with new donors, and assist with collection of materials and oral histories.

The Nova Scotia LGBT Seniors Archive houses a variety of materials from organizations such as Lesbian and Gay Rights Nova Scotia, Gay and Lesbian Association of Nova Scotia, Mister Atlantic Canada Leather, Safe Harbour Church, and Church Members Assembled to Respond to AIDS, among many more.

October: A celebration of Canadian libraries + Mi’kmaq history

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Happy October! There are lots of reasons to celebrate this month:

October is Canadian Library Month: Launched in 2006 by the Canadian Library Association (CLA), Canadian Library Month (CLM) provides “an opportunity for Canadians not familiar with their local library to come down and experience all the services available to them.”1 CLM serves as a way to establish new relationships between the libraries and local communities while at the same time developing existing relationships. The 2020 theme is “One card, one million possibilities.” Click here to learn more.

 

 

Source: https://twitter.com/DalhousieU/status/1311418299910152193/photo/1

October is Mi’kmaq History Month: In 1993, Premier John Savage and Mi’kmaw Grand Chief Ben Sylliboy

declared October as the official month to recognize and celebrate Mi’kmaw culture and heritage. This time of year, known as Wikewiku’s among the Mi’kmaq, offers all of us an opportunity to recognize and celebrate the historic presence of the Mi’kmaq, the L’nuk, whose unceded territory we live on and who have lived here for over 14,000 years. At Dalhousie, we work, study and live on traditional and unceded Mi’kmaq territory. Click here to learn more.

 

SIM Co-Authored Report on Food Waste Released

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Re-blogged from the Halifax Examiner. Read the full article here. Learn more about the Dalhousie Agri-Food Analytics Lab here.

Featuring SIM student Erica Finch, and cross-appointed Professor, Dr. Sylvain Charlebois:

Because of the pandemic, we’re cooking more at home; we’re also wasting a lot more food

A new report released Tuesday suggests that Canadian households are wasting between 20 to 24 million kilograms more food each month since the pandemic began.

The report focusing on food waste in the home during COVID-19 is a collaboration between Dalhousie University’s Agri-Food Analytics Lab and Ontario-based research firm Caddle. It suggests Canadian households are wasting 13.5% more food at home overall, generating 2.3 kg of organic food waste when compared to 2.03 kg per week pre-pandemic.

“It’s not necessarily surprising that people are wasting more food, since they are at home more and cooking more, producing their own meals,” the report’s co-author Erica Finch said in an interview.

“But how much of that food that they’re buying are they using, and how much is being thrown away compared to before the pandemic? That’s the part that’s difficult for us to tell.”

Finch said at the outset of the pandemic when restaurants were closed, people couldn’t eat in restaurants. With options still somewhat limited, they wanted to know how eating more frequently at home was playing out with food waste.

“We know that (the restaurant) sector is producing less food waste but what we wanted to know was, was that food wastage just moving into the domestic sphere or were people being conscious of what they were throwing away,” she said.

Finch said it’s difficult to determine if households are “proportionally” generating more waste than before the pandemic simply because they’re eating more food at home.

“A 13.5% increase at home is consistent with the amount of waste that municipalities are processing,” she said.

The report involved a nationwide survey of 8,272 Canadians who responded between Aug. 21-23. Overall, 55.4% of those surveyed indicate they’re wasting less food in percentage of volume compared to before the pandemic.

Call for Nominations: 2020 Outstanding Alumni Award

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The Associated Alumni of Dalhousie University’s School of Information Management present an award annually to honour a member who “has made an outstanding contribution to Library and/or Information Management.”

Please help us to select the next illustrious recipient of this award by reviewing the award guidelines and submitting a nomination to draw our attention to a great colleague.

Awardees may be at almost any career stage as long as their accomplishments to date are a strong fit for the Selection Criteria:

  1. Innovation and leadership within their professional roles
  2. Research, presentations, outreach and publication record
  3. Service to relevant professional organizations
  4. Mentoring and support for junior colleagues

See Award Guidelines

Deadline for Award Nominations: 15 August 2020

Please send completed nominations to the Outstanding Alumni Award Committee Chair, Kelli WooShue, at Kelli.WooShue@novascotia.ca

Queries are most welcome.

SIMAA Outstanding Alumni Award Committee 2020:

  • Kelli Woo Shue, Committee Chair and Manager, Client Services, NS Provincial Library, Kelli.WooShue@novascotia.ca
  • Fiona Black, 2018 award recipient and A/Associate Dean, Faculty of Graduate Studies, Dalhousie University, fiona.black@dal.ca
  • MJ D’Elia, 2019 award recipient and Associate University Librarian, University of British Columbia-Okanagan,  mj.delia@ubc.ca
  • Deborah Hemming, Learning and Instruction Librarian, Dalhousie University Libraries, Deborah.Hemming@dal.ca
  • Angela Horne, Director, Rosenfeld Management Library and the Research Library Humanities and Social Sciences Division, UCLA, ahorne@library.ucla.edu

ICKM2020 to be Online

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ICKM2020 to Be Online

Sharing knowledge and research could not be more significant during these challenging times in 2020.The 16th annual International Conference on Knowledge Management (ICKM2020) will provide an ideal platform for you to submit research and to share ideas.

ICKM2020 will be held December 3-5 as a virtual meeting, broadcasting from Durham, NC, “the City of Medicine”. The conference theme is “Knowledge Commons” and the institutional analysis of data and the development of knowledge. There will be a panel of journal editors and keynote speakers discussing the “knowledge commons” as well as knowledge cafés and digital booths with exhibitors.

You are invited to submit completed research, on-going scholarship, or product development in the form of a paper, an in-progress report, or a poster for an interactive, digital presentation. Please see attached for the call for papers and presentations.

Recognizing how funding for travel and professional development is being frozen or reduced during the Covid-19 crisis, you may apply for sponsored scholarships.

For detailed information, go to:  www.ICKM.net

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Submission Deadlines

Full Papers, Workshops, and Posters Submission: July 31, 2020

Practitioners and Work in Progress Presentations (Abstracts Submission): August 15, 2020

Notification of Acceptance: September 30, 2020

Final Camera-Ready Full Paper Submissions and (optional) videos: October 20, 2020

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