The future of public libraries was the topic of ABC Radio National’s Bookshow program on Thursday 12 June. You can download the audio or listen to the program for the next couple of weeks.
Here’s their outline:

Public libraries in New South Wales have threatened to charge for services if they don’t get more funding. Library users [...]

According to Penny Carnaby, National Librarian and Chief Executive, of the National Library of New Zealand, the “New Generation National Library of New Zealand will be a library that never sleeps”.
The building will be redeveloped to increase accessibility to the building and its contents, increase the building’s internal legibility (does that mean it will be [...]

If only all our library marketing could be this original.

(from the Empty Pockets)
Marketing is a real issue for all types of libraries. Would love to hear of any ideas that you have for libraries that have worked, or you think could work. After watching this video, I would not consider any idea too [...]

They are now over for the kids but still leave plenty of work for me to do! One of the activities that worked really well for me was the “Girls Goss” session. Previously it l been hard to get the girls aged 8-15 to come in and use the library, let alone use it as [...]

A report [pdf, 325k] on Public Library usage for 2005/06 has recently become available (or at least I received a recent notification). The 35 page report is a straightforward read covering the work of public libraries across the country:
“Access to services is provided through a network of 1,522 public library service points (1,439 fixed point [...]

Thursday the 29th of November is a Day of Action to improve funding for New South Wales Public Libraries. According to an ALIA press release, “funding for these libraries has decreased from 23.6% of the total operating costs of public libraries in 1980 to 7.8% in 2004-05 with further reductions in years since then. The State [...]

It was announced last week, that the Northern Territory Library had received the Gates’ Foundation’s 2007 Access to Learning Award. They received US$1 million from the Foundation in recognition of their work with indigenous communities in the Territory:
“The majority of the Northern Territory’s indigenous population lives in extremely isolated areas with very limited services [...]

It’s time to start planning events for National Simultaneous Storytime. Here is the update from ALIA….
Libraries, school classrooms, bookstores, childcare centres, coffee shops, mums and dads clubs and children’s hospitals are all invited to register for NSS !
The Australian Library and Information Assocation is delighted to announce that the 2007 NSS book is:
The Magic [...]

Peter Carter is currently CEO of Casey-Cardinia Library Corporation, a regional public library service operating in the South-East of Melbourne. He has been working in public libraries for just on 30 years which he says is both scary and possibly a little sad. He has a particular interest and experience in automating library services and [...]

ALIA has released the results of its Internet Filtering in Public Libraries 2007 survey, its 3rd such study since 2002. They had 104 responses from Australian public library services, which is nearly 20% of the 548 services nationwide. This has become of greater interest of late with the Federal Government announcing the forthcoming [...]