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Registration Now Open for the 2020 Information Without Borders (IWB) Conference!

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On February 11th, 2020, the 14th annual student-run Information Without Borders Conference (IWB) will be held in the McInnes Room at Dalhousie University’s Student Union Building. The topic for the 2019 conference is: Information at Home. Halifax is a unique community with a diverse population with different experiences and different needs. The conference will explore the information needs of Halifax and how different individuals and organizations help serve the information needs of the Halifax community. As we explore some of these information needs, the conference will provide an opportunity for interdisciplinary and inter-organizational discussion on this topic for a variety of professional and student attendees.

Registration is now open! Student registration will be $25, or $105 for professionals & community members. Registration includes access to all events, breakfast, lunch and a gift bag.

Register via Eventbrite here: https://www.eventbrite.ca/e/84081805945

We are also running two competitions that feature student research: the first is a poster competition, the second is a paper competition for the student speaker session. We encourage all university students who are researching relevant topics to apply. Please see our website for details.

We hope that this year’s conference topic will be of interest to you! Please share this information with your department.

For more information, please email iwb@dal.ca or visit our website at www.iwbconference.ca

Symposium: Indigenous Knowledge & Access (Nov 15th)

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Please join us for a day of stimulating discussion and presentations on Indigenous knowledge and access! The Indigenous Knowledge and Access Symposium will be held in Halifax on Thursday, November 15.

Co-hosted by Dalhousie Libraries, Dalhousie’s School of Information Management, and Library and Archives Canada, the event will focus on the work and challenges of documenting and improving access to Indigenous knowledge. The day features a keynote address by Elder Albert Marshall and Dr. Cheryl Bartlett, presentations from the Mi’kmawey Debert Cultural Centre and Beaton Institute and much more!

This event is free and open to the public. Space is limited. Please be sure to register in advance, and prior to Monday, November 12.

Event info:
Thursday, November 15, 2018
Registration opens at 8 a.m. (AST)
Sessions begin at 8:45 a.m. (AST) and run all day until 4:10 p.m. (AST)

Collaborative Health Education Building (CHEB), Room 170
Dalhousie University, 5793 University Avenue
Halifax, Nova Scotia

It’s FREE!

Reserve your spot for this event now! All seating is general admission.

SIMAA Event Welcomes Students & Celebrates Peers

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SIMAA welcome_FionaThe SIM Alumni Association (SIMAA) hosted their annual Welcome Reception & Outstanding Alumni Award Presentation on Monday, September 24th in Room 3089, Kenneth C. Rowe Management Building. Attendees mingled, snacked on delicious hors d’oeuvres, and listened to remarks from SIMAA Chair David McDonald (MLIS ’99), SIM Associate Professor Vivian Howard (MLIS ’95), and SIM Director Sandra Toze. Sandra distributed gifts to alumni celebrating anniversaries (from 5 to 38 years!) on behalf of Marianne Hagen (Alumni Officer, Faculty of Management).

The 2018 Outstanding Alumni Award was presented to Dr. Fiona Black. Dr. Black shared some special career memories and gave incoming students some tips for “a joyous life as an information professional”. Those tips are: 1. Aim for excellence, and help others to join you, 2. Be inclusive, walk the walk, and make the right things happen, and 3. turn a potential whine on its head, think constructively about a resolution – all important tips for everyone to keep in mind! Dr. Black also gave special thanks to her colleagues in SIM, Dr. Bertrum MacDonald (who kickstarted her life as an academic) and to her MLIS and MIM students throughout the years.SIMAA welcome_reception

SIM is proud of the legacy of our programs, and the connection we continue to have with our alumni. This event is always a wonderful opportunity for SIM alumni, students, faculty and staff to catch up and network.

Cheers to all alumni and friends who joined us on September 24th – we hope to see you again soon!

(Perhaps during our 50th anniversary celebrations?!)

MLIS Alumna Organizes Correctional Facility Book Club

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Janice Fiander (MLIS ’95 & Manager, Alderney Gate & Dartmouth North branches, Halifax Public Libraries) is featured in this Star Halifax article about Page Turners Book Club for inmates of the Nova Scotia Correctional Facility in Dartmouth, NS.

Read the full article here:

HALIFAX—Twelve months ago, two Halifax women entered the province’s largest jail, not to serve sentences, but to start a book club. The program continues today, with more than 50 men having participated, and its organizers would like to see it grow to serve more inmates in more facilities. Individuals from Halifax Public Libraries and the John Howard Society of Nova Scotia partnered to bring the book club to the Central Nova Scotia Correctional Facility (CNSCF) last spring.

By mid-July, they gained access to the medium-security jail, and brought with them a few hundred books for the men inside. Janice Fiander, manager of the Alderney Gate and Dartmouth North libraries, is an organizer of the book club. She travels to the jail in Dartmouth once a week to spend a couple of hours facilitating the program. She said inmates can be easily ignored or misunderstood by those on the outside. Spending time with the men in CNSCF through the book club called Page Turners has illuminated for her some of their experiences.

“Going in and doing the book club really opens your eyes to (the inmates’) challenges and their issues, and in particular their challenges for when they’re released, and their reintegration,” she said.

The people incarcerated at CNSCF — 95 per cent of them are male —are either serving sentences of less than two years or awaiting trial. Fiander said one of the goals of the book club is to build a bridge to the outside world by giving inmates a connection to public libraries and the John Howard Society. Once released, they can turn to those organizations for support.

L to R: Jennifer Haigh (John Howard Society of NS) and Janice Fiander [photo credit: TARYN GRANT/FOR STARMETRO]

L to R: Jennifer Haigh (John Howard Society of NS) and Janice Fiander [photo credit: TARYN GRANT/FOR STARMETRO]

The Challenge of Communicating Information to Decision Makers

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Submitted by Dr. Bertrum MacDonald (SIM Professor):

EIUIOne of the most challenging issues facing the world today is how to mitigate and adapt to the effects of climate change. The quantity of information on this subject is massive and growing, which presents another challenge. How can the best and relevant information be brought to the attention of decision makers and everyone else who has a stake in the future of the planet? A new book on the subject grapples with this question.

You can read a review of Communicating climate change information for decision-making, written by Curtis Martin, a graduate student working with the Environmental Information: Use and Influence (EIUI) research program, headed by Dr. Bertrum MacDonald, at this link.

You can also learn more about EIUI at www.eiui.ca, or follow on Twitter: @eiui_dal.

Dr. Vivian Howard: Celebrating Nunavut Day July 9, 2018

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Re-posted from CEGE Connection (the Centre for Executive & Graduate Education blog). Featuring SIM Associate Professor, Dr. Vivian Howard:

Nunavut Day 2018On July 9, 1993, the Parliament of Canada passed the Nunavut Act which established the territory of Nunavut, which would come to realization sometime in the future.   On April 1, 1999, Nunavut became a legally distinct territory.  Today, we celebrate Nunavut Day 2018.

Dalhousie and Nunavut have enjoyed close ties beginning with Dr. Robert Moody who was Deputy Minister of Education in the Government of Nunavut.  As well, Dalhousie’s Faculty of Management, a member of a tripartite consortium with the Institute on Governance and PGF Consultants, is involved in two projects with the Government of Nunavut. The objectives of these projects are to enhance the leadership and policy formulation capacity of the Government of Nunavut.

Dr. Vivian Howard recently travelled to Rankin Inlet where she met with the participants in the “Emerging Leaders” certificate program to discuss pathways into the Centre for Executive and Graduate Education (CEGE) programs.

Dr. Vivian Howard:

There was significant interest in the MPAM, MIM, and MBA options.  I was honoured to join in the graduation ceremony, where 21 Government of Nunavut employees, all Inuit, received their certificates.  Another highpoint of my visit was participating in the signing of the amended Memorandum of Understanding between Dalhousie and the Government of Nunavut.  Dalhousie has a long history of involvement with Nunavut.  I am proud of what has been accomplished and look forward to future partnerships and collaborative opportunities.

Congratulations to the cohort of graduates!

MLIS Alum Spearheads Airport Library Project

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Dave MacNeilDave MacNeil (MLIS ’09 – manager of collections and access, Halifax Public Libraries) is featured in this article (The Star Halifax) discussing new library kiosks at the Halifax Stanfield International Airport. More great ideas from HPL!

From the article: “Wednesday will mark a book launch of a totally different kind as a joint venture between Halifax Public Libraries and Halifax Stanfield International Airport takes flight.

The unveiling of two library kiosks — one located pre-security, the other post-security — will provide travellers, airport staff and local residents with the opportunity to check out a varied collection of between 350 and 400 books.

Described as similar to “big, glass-doored fridges,” the two kiosks will be stocked with books accessed by using a Halifax Public Libraries card.

“You simply scan in your card, type in your PIN number, open the door and browse the books in there. Then you take what you want, close the door, and you’re good to go. It’s very easy to use,” said Dave MacNeil, manager of collections and access for Halifax Public Libraries.

The RFID tags on the books — a radio frequency identification similar to the tech on credit and debit cards that allow users to tap to pay — will tell the kiosk when a book has been removed. Once a user selects a book and closes the door, the kiosk scans what’s inside, knows which book is not there, applies the borrowed book to the user’s account and prints out a receipt.

MacNeil said a little more than a year ago, the airport approached them about a partnership to help promote the library’s digital resources. That discussion quickly grew into a partnership to co-share the cost of two kiosks to provide a physical library presence at the airport.

“We’re trying to cater to all audiences so there’s a good mix of general fiction for adults, picture books and board books for kids, lots of quick reads that would include short stories, general trivia, your Chicken Soup type books, travel books,” MacNeil said.

“All things you can pick up if you’re travelling to pass some time waiting for your flight or choose from any of the number of novels that you might want to take with you on your trip.”

MacNeil said the kiosks are similar to “an unstaffed branch,” with all the same rules in place. You can have your books for three weeks, renew them online if need be, and drop them back off at the kiosk, a drop-off box at the airport’s baggage pick-up area, or at any of the 14 library branches across HRM.

Although the book-borrowing kiosks are initially limited for the time being to those who possess a Halifax Public Libraries card, MacNeil said they’re looking at ways to expand the system.”

[photo credit: YVETTE D’ENTREMONT /STARMETRO]

 

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