ALIA Access 2010 is taking place at the Brisbane Convention and Exhibition Centre from 1 – 3 September 2010.

The 2010 event will challenge the traditional format of ALIA conferences with a focus on making the conference more ‘accessible’ for delegates and vendors. More will be revealed as the planning progresses……

The 3-day multi-sector conference will feature library tours, video streaming, a conference dinner and an associated exhibition with library industry suppliers.

ALIA Access will also feature a rich online component.

Conference website – the first and last word on official conference news and information

Conference blog (RSS feed) -  The blog will feature speaker profiles, list the companies which will be sponsoring and exhibiting at the conference, highlight changes to the conference program as well as sharing the best things to do and places to visit in Brisbane.  Feel free to use the comments sections in the blog to ask questions and discuss the conference.

Twitter – members of the conference committee will be using this account to keep you up to date with conference planning, as well as highlighting changes to the conference website and blog

Facebook – another place to watch for breaking conference news, along with space to share conference stories, photos and more.

For those of you who like to blog, tweet, photoshare and slideshare, there is also a conference tag – #aliaaccess. Please add the tag to your posts, photos, tweets etc. so your colleagues from around the world can follow the conference through your reports, discussions, debates and images.

I look forward to meeting you in Brisbane in September.

Warren Cheetham
Digital Coordinator, ALIA Access 2010 Conference Committee

This coming Movember we issue a call to Australia’s library workers: become a Mo-brarian and join the fight to change the face of men’s health.

Movember, the formerly useless and boring month of November, has been remade with the addition of a little facial hair. Now a global charity phenomenon, Movember creates much-needed awareness while raising tens of millions of dollars to help with men’s health issues—particularly prostate cancer and depression. To be a part of something grand all you have to do is discard that triple-bladed razor with aloe-vera infused moisturising strips and let your upper-lip hair grow wild and free for 30 days in November.

Males make up less than a third of the library workers in Australia but we have a unique chance to spread a very important message about men’s health. Every year 2,900 Australian men die from prostate cancer and more than 18,000 will be diagnosed. One in six men is experiencing depression, right now, and practically none of them will seek help. Men hang tough, and it’s killing them. Movember works to turn that around. What can be done to help? Set up a display in your library, promote men’s health materials within your collection, sponsor a Mo-brarian or have a Mo-Staff morning tea to raise some funds. Why not get your patrons or local community involved and find fun and informative ways to spread the word.

But we’re not in this alone. We need our Mo-Sistas – the female colleagues who embrace the life-saving message of Movember. Encourage the men you know to become mo-growing Mo-brarians, cheer them on, support them when they itch to shave and try not to laugh at them too much!

So come join us at the Movember website and register as a Mo-Bro or Mo-Sista. By pooling our resources and presenting a united (and slightly hairy) face to the world, we have a wonderful opportunity to use Movember to promote our profession and raise the profile of male workers in the library and information industry.

Library workers of Australia unite and put your money (just slightly above) where your mouth is – join us, and help change the face of men’s health.

Our blog: http://mobrarians.wordpress.com/

Friend us on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Mobrarians/136011844137?v=info

Twitter: http://twitter.com/Mobrarians

Public Libraries Australia (PLA), the Queensland Public Libraries Association (QPLA), ALIA and the Townsville City Council are partnering to bring you:

QPLA/PLA CONFERENCE 2009 : CHANGE AND CHALLENGE
11 – 14 October 2009 Jupiters Townsville Hotel and Casino

The theme of the conference is appropriately Change and Challenge. It will feature many outstanding speakers and will highlight how we can deal with change and challenges in the three key areas of technology, organisations and community more effectively. The program features several concurrent sessions thereby allowing you to tailor the sessions you attend to your own needs and interests. Check out our exciting programme at the PLA conference website.

Keynote Speakers

Using technology in a time of social and organisational change – Dr Michael Stephens is currently a library and information science educator at the Dominican University Illinois, USA and is an international speaker on libraries, technology and innovation.

Future trends: demographics, libraries and change – Bernard Salt is a highly respected commentator on consumer, cultural and demographic trends. He is a regular contributor to The Australian and the author of The Big Shift: Welcome to the Third Australian Culture.

Public Libraries, social inclusion and community development – Noel Pearson is an influential Aboriginal Australian lawyer and land rights activist. He believes Indigenous policy needs to change direction, notably in relation to welfare, substance abuse, child protection and economic development.

Other speakers

The conference program (available here) contains an exciting range of speakers from public, state and the National Library of Australia covering topics such as digitisation, cultural change, community development, managing collections and much more.

Forums

Three exciting forums will bring together panels of passionate and committed library professionals to discuss and debate the themes of the conference.

Blog and tags

You can follow the latest news before, during and after the conference by checking the conference blog (http://auspublib2009.wordpress.com/) or adding it to your favourite feedreader (RSS feed).

• Read speaker profiles to find out who will be speaking about what at the conference.
• Discover which companies will be exhibiting at the conference, and find out about special deals.
• Keep up to date with changes to the conference program .
• Discover the best things to do and places to visit in Townsville.
• Read reports of conference sessions.
• Ask questions, debate and discuss the keynote and concurrent sessions.
• Look for last minutes changes to tours, programs etc.

For those of you who like to blog, tweet, photoshare and slideshare, there is also a conference tag. Please add the tag to your posts, photos, tweets etc. so your colleagues from around the world can follow the conference through your reports, discussions, debates and images.

Tag for blogs, photoshare and slideshare: qpla09
Hashtag for Twitter: #qpla09

I look forward to meeting you in Townsville in October!

 - Posted on behalf of Michael Stephens -

Dear Australian library colleagues,

You may have seen the announcement earlier this year where I was appointed as the 2009 CAVAL Visiting Scholar. My research, “Measuring the Value and Effect of Learning 2.0 Programs in Libraries” will evaluate the impact of Learning 2.0 programs in Australia and the perceived levels of openness, transparency and trust by staff in organizations that have completed the course.

Now it’s time for me to ask for your help!

If you have completed a 23 Things / Learning 2.0 program, I’d like to invite you to participate in an online survey.

Please take 10 to 15 minutes to complete this online survey.

If you have any questions or concerns about the survey, please contact me (email is on front of survey).

If have been the person responsible for developing and/or implementing a 23 Things / Learning 2.0 program for your library (single library service or a consortia program), please email your contact details to Warren Cheetham at CityLibraries Townsville (warren.cheetham@townsville.qld.gov.au). I have a special survey which Warren will send to you, just for people who have lead a learning 2.0 program.

Thank you for your participation in my research. I am looking forward to my trip to Australia in October!

Best wishes,

Michael Stephens ~

Assistant Professor, Dominican University GSLIS
Tame the Web: Libraries & Technology: http://www.tametheweb.com