Access Division Newsletters

The Access Division produces a Newsletter three times a year, to illustrate progress in a number of selected areas of its Work Plan. The text of recent LIBER Access Division Newsletters appears below.

Activities

The Division will act as a forum to assist European research libraries to identify areas of common interest within collection development for collaborative work and to facilitate the realization of the work. It will work with individual European research libraries, library groups and consortia, library organizations and intergovernmental bodies as appropriate in pursuit of its aims, and will seek advice from such bodies in other parts of the world as necessary. As much work as possible will be carried out through correspondence, and at the annual meeting of the Division (to be held during the LIBER Annual Conference). When appropriate, additional seminars and workshops will be arranged.
The following activities are within the Division’s sphere of responsibility:
• improving understanding of the collecting patterns and priorities of European research libraries;
• monitoring publishing patterns and assessing their impact on European research libraries;
• advising on practical aspects of library acquisitions processes in order to help libraries achieve the best value for money;
• monitoring development in teaching, learning and research strategies and be able to be partners in learning and research communities;
• and supporting the Expert Committees of the Division in their work on those activities which follow the general programme of the Division and on other activities which enhance the professional work of those Expert Committees.

Programme of Work (2007-2009)

Topics for 2007-2009 LIBER Annual Conferences:

1. Defining electronic core collections
2. E-books
3. The changing role of the subject specialist at:
- educational level: teaching Information literacy, integration of IL courses in the curricula;
- research level: collaboration with researchers; information specialists – experts in their fields - can play a key role in multidisciplinary teams.
4. Web legal deposit → guidelines for selection
5. Collecting the web
6. Selecting for digitisation
7. Copyright & licensing
8. Acquiring publications via internet
9. VAT for electronic publications (Frankfurt Group’s lobbying campaign)

In 2007 the session of the Collection Development Division during the annual conference will be on the topics 1, 2 and 3; in 2008 on the topics 4, 5 and 6, and in 2009 on 7,8 and 9.

Suggestions for reading on the first three topics:

Armstrong, Chris and Ray Lonsdale: “Challenges in managing e-books collections in
UK academic libraries”. Library Collections, Acquisitions. & Technical Services 29 (2005) 33–50.

Ball, David: “Innovative models for procuring e-books”. Serials 19(1), March 2006, 28-31.

Bennett, Linda: “Infinite riches in a little room: how can we manage, market and modernize the e-books phenomenon?” Serials 19(1), March 2006, 18-22.

Chan, Gayle R.Y.C. and Janny K. Lai: “Shaping the strategy for e-books: A Hong Kong perspective”. Library Collections, Acquisitions. & Technical Services 29 (2005) 205–219.

Holder, Warren: “E-books - reinventing the wheel?” Serials 19(1), March 2006, 15-17.

Sharp, Steve. “E-book: the new serial?” Serials 19(1), March 2006. 8-9.

Taylor-Roe, Jill: “Acquiring e-books for academic libraries - a modern Grail quest?” Serials 19(2), July 2006, 133-141

Campbell, J.D. (2006) 'Changing a cultural icon: the academic library as a virtual destination,' EDUCAUSE Review, Jan/Feb, p.16-31: http://www.educause.edu/ir/library/pdf/erm0610.pdf

Hyams, Elspeth: “From academic librarians to strategy consultants – Elspeth Hyams talks to Gary Horrocks”. Library + Information Update July/August 2005. http://www.cilip.org.uk/publications/updatemagazine/archive/archive2005/...

Lippincott, Joan K.: “Net Generation Students and Libraries”. In: Educating the Net Generation. Educause, 2005. http://www.educause.edu/NetGenerationStudentsandLibraries/6067

Marcum, James W.: “Visions: The Academic Library in 2012”. D-Lib Magazine 9(5), May 2003. http://www.dlib.org/dlib/may03/marcum/05marcum.html

Links to Expert Committees set up under the Division

• Groupe dés Cartothecaires de LIBER
• LIBER Manuscript Librarians Group

Division Committee Members

Collection Development Division Committee 2007

(Chairman): Vacant

Renate Klepp, Universitätsbibliothek Wien, Dr.-Karl-Lueger-Ring 1, 1010 Wien 1, Austria
renate.klepp@univie.ac.at

Julie Ladant, Bibliothèque nationale de France, Quai François Mauriac - 75706 PARIS Cedex 13, France
julie.ladant@bnf.fr

Antero Laiho, Turku University Library, FIN-20500 Turku, Finland alaiho@utu.fi

Monika Moravetz-Kuhlmann, Bavarian State Library, P.O. Box 80328 München, Germany
moravetz@bsb-muenchen.de

Kristina Pai, Tartu University Library, 1 Struve St, Tartu, Estonia Kristina@utlib.ee

Minutes of Divisional Meeting, Koç, Istanbul, 3 July 2008

Minutes of Divisional Meeting, Koç, Istanbul, 3 July 2008

Key Issues

a) Current Priorities

- Quality Management and Performance Measurement.

- The shift to new principles of assessment in which outputs and outcomes
replace inputs as measures of quality and the implications of this shift in relation to decision making, culture change and related human resource issues.

- Ongoing change in management styles and related issues of recruitment,
training and succession planning.

- Communications (internal and external) and marketing strategies for library services and products.

- The implications of the electronic information age for libraries and their managers.

b) Wider Issues

- Maintaining and communicating improvements in business management processes.

- Fundraising and sponsorship.

- Staff training and development. Exploring possibilities of common European curricula and mutual recognition of training and qualifications leading to ability of staff to work beyond national boundaries.

Means of Communication

In view of the seniority of those for whom the Division's programme is intended a major part of our activities will be based on the exchange of experience through workshops, seminars and other fora. To ensure that the Divisional Committee is aware of the interests and needs of registered members a regular agenda item at business meetings will be "Future projects and issues to be addressed".

The results of the Division’s activities :seminars,presentations during the annual conferences,reports,etc, will be put on the web site.

We shall also indicate links to useful sites and documents in library management area (especially guidelines,methods,experiences …),and ask for contributions in this field.

Library Services in a rapidly changing environment

LIBRARY SERVICES IN A RAPIDLY CHANGING ENVIRONMENT As digital information resources become ever more significant, and as new players begin to deliver similar services, LIBER will defend and support the role of the research library as the conduit for information about past and present scholarly research. LIBER will actively support the work of member libraries in areas such as digitisation, preservation and the provision of access to these resources. It will also strongly maintain its commitment to the historical and cultural heritage of European collections. During the period 2007-2010, LIBER will implement the following actions: ACTIONS 2.1 Following its response to the European Commission’s i2010 Digital Libraries consultation document in January 2006, LIBER will seek opportunities and partners to promote the digitisation of the historical collections held in Europe’s research libraries and representing the multi-lingual cultural heritage of European society. 2.2 In recognising the need for digitisation of many different materials, such as manuscripts and archives, maps, drawings, pictures, sound, movies, and every kind of scholarly data, some of which do not form part of traditional library collections, LIBER will work with CENL and the European Digital Library initiative to assist in the development of a coherent European policy for digitisation and access to online resources. 2.3 In recognition of the value of collections of rare and special materials held by research libraries in Europe, and the particular obligations that the stewardship of these special collections represents, LIBER will seek to obtain a commitment from its members to a series of principles for the development, promotion, maintenance, security and preservation of special collections and for enabling the widest possible access to them for users. 2.4 To ensure the best use of resources for the task of digitising Europe’s printed collections and to avoid unnecessary duplication, LIBER will work with the Digital Library Federation and OCLC to develop the EROMM database and its contribution to the Registry of Digital Masters (RDM). 2.5 LIBER will continue to give a high priority to the long-term preservation of the scholarly output and will take steps to assist its members to implement internationally accepted standards. 2.6 LIBER and EBLIDA will organise a joint workshop on digitisation to be held in Copenhagen in October 2007, and will establish a joint Digitisation Expert Group. 2.7 LIBER will work with The European Library (TEL) and the European Digital Library (EDL) to extend their coverage to research libraries other than national libraries. 2.8 LIBER and EBLIDA will seek to address and resolve the legal problems around digitisation, especially those linked to copyright. 2.9 LIBER will continue negotiations with the e-Depot at the Koninklijke Bibliotheek with a view to creating a partnership agreement of benefit to LIBER members and the e-Depot. 2.10 LIBER will undertake joint activities with the Consortium of European Research Libraries (CERL), particularly in relation to rare books and manuscripts. 2.11 LIBER will review its Expert Committees and establish any further committees required to complete representation of special collections at a European level.

Library Management

Library services are becoming increasingly complex, and funding bodies are imposing growing demands for audits and accountability. LIBER will offer support to its member institutions by providing opportunities for benchmarking and by offering its members a range of tools and other support to facilitate their work. During the period 2007-2010, LIBER will implement the following actions: ACTIONS 3.1 LIBER will continue to provide general professional development opportunities for senior staff of its member institutions through its Annual General Conferences hosted by research libraries across Europe. Conference venues for 2007-2010 will be: Warsaw (2007), Istanbul (2008), Toulouse (2009), Tromsø (2010). 3.2 LIBER will continue to support professional development and best practice through the publication of articles in LIBER Quarterly. 3.3 LIBER Quarterly will remain principally an electronic-only publication, but print-on-demand copies will be made available from 2008. 3.4 Following the Library Management and Administration Division seminar on ‘Measuring Quality in Libraries’ held in March 2007, LIBER will build on existing documents and methodologies to develop actions and common tools for quality assessment, peer review and key performance indicators. 3.5 LIBER will encourage and facilitate the development of benchmarking in co-operation with other organisations (e.g. SCONUL, CENL), with the aim of identifying measurements independent of local culture, and thus allowing for international comparisons. 3.6 Responding to the need for organisational change in libraries in order to face new challenges, LIBER will make proposals on closer co-operation on staff management questions, particularly in the context of demographic changes (retirement and succession planning). 3.7 LIBER will analyse developments in electronic resources and will seek to improve measurement of their use in libraries. 3.8 LIBER will continue to work with ARL to develop a series of European versions of the LibQUAL+ suite of services to solicit, track, understand, and act upon users’ opinions of service quality; and will co-operate with ADBU (Association des Directeurs de Bibliothèques Universitaires) on the adaptation of LibQUAL+ into French. 3.9 LIBER will develop plans for a European Library Passport, facilitating the access of researchers to participating research libraries. 3.10 The LIBER Architecture Group will organise a workshop in Hungary in spring 2008 and a further one in 2010. 3.11 The LIBER Groupe des Cartothécaires will organise a conference on ‘The future of the map library and the map librarian’ in Amsterdam in July 2008, and a further conference in 2010. 3.12 Through its Access and Preservation divisions, LIBER will participate in the LIFE-2 (Life Cycle Information for E-Literature) project, funded by the UK Joint Information Systems Committee (JISC) in collaboration between UCL (University College London) and the British Library. 3.13 The LIBER Expert Group of European Manuscripts Librarians will organise a conference in Berlin in November 2007.

Division Committee Members

Library Management and Administration Division Committee 2007

Suzanne Jouguelet (Chairman), Inspection générale des bibliothèques, Ministère de la Culture, 182 Rue Saint-Honoré. 75001, Paris, France
suzanne.jouguelet@culture.gouv.fr

Anne Murray (Secretary), Cambridge University Library, West Road, Cambridge CB3 9DR,UK
aem43@cam.ac.uk

Didar Bayir. Koc University Suna Kirac Library, Rumelifeneri Yolu Sariyer, Istanbul 34450, Turkey
dbayir@ku.edu.tr

Ulrich Niederer, Zentral and Hochschulbibliothek, Sempacherstrasse 10, Luzern 002, Switzerland
ulrich.niederer@zhbluzern.ch

Helge Salvesen, Universitetsbiblioteket. Breivika, Tromso 9037, Norway
helge.salvesen@ub.uit.no

Jolanta Stepniak, Warsaw University of Technology#, 1 Politechniki Pl, Warsaw 00-661, Poland
stepniak@bg.pw.edu.pl

Reports

MEASURING QUALITY IN LIBRARIES: NOTES ON A SEMINAR ORGANISED BY
THE LIBER DIVISION OF LIBRARY MANAGEMENT AND ADMINISTRATION AT THE BIBLIOTHÈQUE NATIONALE, RUE DE RICHELIEU, PARIS,
ON 23 MARCH 2007

1. The Seminar was introduced by Suzanne Jouguelet, Chair of the Division, and Bill Simpson, Divisional Secretary who explained the rationale for the day, what it was hoped could be achieved and how the conclusions would be presented. Presentation would include a session at the LIBER Annual Conference to be held in Warsaw in July 2007.

2. Assessment of Service Quality. Martha Kyrillidou (MK) of The Association of Research Libraries (ARL) spoke about LibQUAL and tabled papers on performance measurement and metrics. She explained that some national libraries have now adopted LibQUAL and its value not only as an assessment tool but, because of the co-operative nature of the enterprise, its usefulness in fostering a sense of community among libraries and librarians.

LibQUAL recognised the need for quantitative as well as qualitative assessment, particularly as libraries adapt to a world in which Google has become the default information resource for many and only 15.7% of those surveyed recently agreed with the statement “The internet has not changed how I use the Library”. Reassuringly 98% of respondents agree that the Library contains information from known and credible sources. ARL is working on new developments such as DigiQUAL to keep pace with changes in the information world.

Stephen Town (ST), spoke of the experience of SCONUL (Society of National, College and University Libraries), pointing out the many tools and options available such as Quality Assessment, Peer Review, Performance Indicators, Satisfaction Surveys and Total Quality Management, some of which can be used in conjunction with each other. He explained that for universities two “bottom lines” are crucial – the financial and the academic (research, teaching and learning). It is vital that the Library can have a positive impact on both.

ST referred to the “toolkit” produced by the SCONUL Working Group on Performance Improvement but stressed that more is needed for upward advocacy of the Library’s cause within our parent institutions. He mentioned our ability to move from a “business as usual mode” to the management of new initiatives (The Capability Maturing Model) and our ability to demonstrate our impact and value (i.e. how much is delivered per €1 invested in the Library for research or teaching and what value do Library staff add to the institution?)

In the discussion that followed this session reference was made to the introduction of tuition fees in the UK and its impact on the expectations of students and their parents, who increasingly see themselves as customers buying a service or product rather than as recipients of a free public good. Pierre Carbone also raised the issue of the impact of the Library on examination success and the quality of publishing.

3. Standardisation Pierre-Yves Renaud (PYR) drew the participants’ attention to ISO2789, dealing primarily with Library statistics, and ISO11620 covering performance indicators, using the classic model involving efficiency, effectiveness, relevance etc. Although neither standard is new, they are well-established and recognised and can express, in a common set of concepts, what can be clearly and effectively defined. There is now a need for a common standard which, like the GDP of a nation, is able to synthesize a set of data into a single figure that can be used for comparative purposes, either year-on-year within the same institution or at regular intervals with other similar institutions. Such a single measure would have to be built on clear definitions of what it should do, collection of common data and agreed indicators.

Willy Vanderpijpen (WV) described the many areas of measurement for national libraries, the initiatives being undertaken and the need for synthesis. It was hoped that this synthesis could be achieved and a common approach adopted through the Conference of European National Libraries. In the discussion that followed this paper it was agreed that the indicators and approach described by WV were as applicable to university as to national libraries.

4. Paul Ayris (PA) described the work of University College London (UCL) in adopting a system of quality management for its Library. The process was being managed by an Operational Planning Team using three types of measurement: benchmarking against other libraries, internal key performance indicators (KPIs) and user satisfaction/impact assessment. Other institutions against which UCL will benchmark itself are being identified and KPIs will be agreed by July 2007. Because it is difficult to measure impacts the launch of the VAMP project is awaited with interest. LibQUAL will be used for satisfaction surveys and LIBRA when quantitative approaches are required.

Paul Sheehan (PS) described the process of Quality Review in Irish universities that had resulted from the Irish Universities Act of 1997. This was an exhaustive process, applied separately to all parts of the university, including the Library, that required six months’ to a year’s preparation and was repeated every 4/5 years. It extended beyond statistical analysis and was required to be “comprehensive and reflective”, including staff and customer perspectives and SWOT (Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, Threats) analysis. The Peer Review Group consists of five people, three from outside the institution (one of whom must be international) and produces a formal report to the university. The Review process results in the production of a Quality Improvement Plan, whose recommendations are discussed with senior university officers. Those that are agreed are referred to the Budget Committee. PS’s view was that the process is useful, though very labour intensive and that budgetary constraints often made it difficult to implement recommendations.

Bill Simpson (BS) spoke of the process of Operational Performance Review at Manchester. This included KPIs, some on an ongoing basis, some varying from year to year as targets were achieved. OPR also includes staff performance in terms of return for RAE (the UK Research Assessment Exercise), membership of external bodies and learned societies, publications and papers given at conferences, etc. Performance against the Manchester 2015 agenda and the Library’s own Strategic Plan is also considered, as are the findings of internal student surveys (largely based on gap analysis) and the Library’s participation in LibQUAL. The process includes a long meeting with senior academics and some lively debate. JRUL has also taken the lead in setting up an international benchmarking group of libraries in the UK, North America, Australia and the Far East. European partners are being sought.

ST raised a number of points from a SCONUL perspective:

· Can LIBER facilitate international consortia?

· Would it be possible to set up national or international (LIBER?) clearing houses for benchmarking?

· What about e-benchmarking?

He observed that benchmarking, particularly with external partners, was good for staff development.

In discussion the question of whether the French libraries’ programme to set up a system of international comparison should come under the aegis of LIBER. Obtaining agreement on what could reasonably be achieved across Europe was seen as a potential obstacle to this, though perhaps not insuperable if a relatively small and clearly defined group of indicators could be agreed.

Further remarks on benchmarking were made by Janifer Gatenby of OCLC, who spoke of the use that could be made of tools such as WorldCat in quality measurement.

Ulrich Niederer (UN) spoke of the Swiss Benchmarking Project which began in 2001 with agreement on performance indicators. Initially unsuccessful because of the amount of work involved for Library staff, it assumed a new life as national statistics became available in more usable form. “Circles of comparison” include public as well as academic libraries and attempts have been made to include German libraries. UN would be prepared to provide the indicators used to participants in the Seminar. A critical question for the Swiss had been the level of staffing resources needed to benchmark effectively.

5. Final Debate and Synthesis: The following key points and statements were made:

· It is essential to engage staff, both in the process and, especially, in ensuring that findings are acted upon rather than simply being noted.

· The point of the whole process, whichever methodologies are adopted, is not just to gather information but to improve performance.

· People will stop responding to surveys if they do not lead to change and improvement and, particularly, if their concerns are not addressed.

· We should not confuse the collecting of data with strategic engagement and decision making at the highest level. Performance measurement should be a tool for upward strategic engagement within the institution.

· There is a need for measurements that are independent of local culture if international comparisons are to be made. Should we begin by collecting and comparing existing lists?

· We should not survey users too often since “survey fatigue” sets in and response rates drop quickly.

· Should there be a LIBER group for LibQUAL.

· It was noted that French academic libraries, after some initial scepticism, are likely to adopt LibQUAL, with the first probably participating in 2007.

Bill Simpson
May 2007

Useful Links

Publications and reports –

Measuring Quality; Performance Measurement in Libraries - 2nd revised edition
By Roswitha Poll and Peter te Boekhorst.
Munich: K.G. Saur, 2007
(IFLA Publications, 127)
ISBN 978-3-598-22033-3

ISO/FDIS 11620
Information and Documentation: Library Performance Indicators
Draft published in 2007.
http://www.iso.org/iso/iso_catalogue/catalogue_tc/catalogue_detail.htm?csnumber=37853
Please note that a “derived” draft standard for National Libraries is currently being
circulated for consultation until May 2008.

British Library Key Performance Indicators
Examples of the practical use of key performance indicators can be found in the
British Library’s annual report 2005-06
http://www.bl.uk/about/annual/2005to2006/pdf/kpis.pdf

SCONUL Performance Portal
This site has been developed to create and encourage a community of practice in
library performance, measurement, assessment and evaluation.
http://vamp.diglib.shrivenham.cranfield.ac.uk/

Standards for Libraries in Higher Education
Approved by the ACRL (Assotiation of College and Research Libraries) Board of Directors, June 2004
http://www.ala.org/ala/mgrps/divs/acrl/standards/standardslibraries.cfm

Learning from other libraries: benchmarking to assess library performance
by Paula Deutsch, Barbara P Silcox
http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m0FWE/is_7_7/ai_105515114

If you would like to suggest other relevant links, valuable in a European context, please contact suzanne.jouguelet@culture.gouv.fr and aem43@cam.ac.uk

LIBER Architecture Expert Group

Under the Association, each Professional Division was entitled to establish Expert Committees to assist with its work.

The LIBER Architecture Group was set up under the LIBER Library Management and Administration Division. It was composed of:

Dr Ulrich Niederer (Chairman)

Zentral-& Hochschulbibliothek, Luzern, Switzerland; email: ulrich.niederer@zhbluzern.ch

MEMBERS

• Dr Alessandro Bertoni, Università Ca’ Foscari di Venezia, Venice, Italy; email: bertoni@unive.it
• Ms Isabelle Boudet, Bibliothèque Sainte-Barbe, Paris, France; email: isabelle.boudet@univ-paris3.fr
• Mr Steen Bille Larsen, The Royal Library, Copenhagen, Denmark,; email: sbl@kb.dk
• Ms Marie-Françoise Bisbrouck, Université Paris-Sorbonne (Paris IV), France; email: marie-francoise.bisbrouck@paris-sorbonne.fr
• Mr Graham Bulpitt, Kingston University, Kingston-upon-Thames, UK; email: g.bulpitt@kingston@ac.uk
• Dr Inken Feldsien-Sudhaus, Technische Universität Hamburg-Harburg, Germany; email: feldsien-sudhaus@tu-harburg.de
• Ms Ewa Kobierska-Maciuszko, Biblioteka Uniwersytecka,Warsaw, Poland; email: e.maciuszko@uw.edu.pl
• Drs Tanja Notten, Utrecht University Library, Utrecht, The Netherlands; email: t.notten@uu.nl
• Dr Sylvia van Peterghem, Ghent University Library, Ghent, Belgium; email: sylvia.vanpeterghem@ugent.be
• Dr Martá Virágos, University of Debrecen, Debrecen, Hungary; email: marta@lib.unideb.hu
• Professor Dr Elmar Mittler (Corresponding Member), Niedersaechsische Staats- & Universitatsbibliothek, Goettingen, Germany; email: mittler@uni-goettingen.de or emittle@gwdg.de

Links to Expert Committees set up under the Division

LIBER Architecture Group

Digital Preservation

At the end of August 2008, the LIBER Access and Preservation Divisions submitted the LIFE 2 Report to the JISC. LIFE, Lifecycle Information For E-literature, has established Lifecycle and Generic Preservation costing formulae to help stakeholders ascertain the long-term costs of the curation of digital objects and their long term preservation.

Phase 2 of the LIFE project, funded by the JISC in the UK, has validated LIFE's approach to economic modelling and has tested the revised formulae on digital repositories, a prototype national digital preservation service in the UK, and the outputs of digitisation projects in the British Library, comparing analogue and digital preservation costs.

• LIFE 2 Report
• LIFE website
• LIBER Preservation Division website
• JISC website

At the 2007 LIBER Conference, LIBER and the e-Depot of the Koninklijke Bibliotheek, the National Library of the Netherlands, signed a Memorandum of Understanding to work together to investigate issues around the long-term digital curation of research content from Europe’s research libraries.

• Memorandum of Understanding

Programme of Work (2007-2008)

2.1. assessment and evaluation of existing surrogating processes with special emphasis on the assessment of digitizing as a surrogating technique (effectiveness, duration, cost and long-term implications will have to be considered).

2.2. study into the existence (or non-existence) and effectiveness of national preservation strategies and policies for library and archive material.

2.3. preservation education.

2.4. compilation of guidelines for the establishment of a preservation policy.

2.5. compilation of guidelines for good preservation practice.

2.6 assessment and evaluation of strategies and techniques for long term preservation of digital masters.

 

Liaison

Europe: EU DG XIII as a source of funding

USA: Commission on Preservation and Access

Division Committee Members

Preservation Division Committee 2007

Ms Helen Shenton (Chairman), The British Library, 96 Euston Road, London NW1 2DB, UK helen.shenton@bl.uk 

Ms Christiane Baryla, Bibliothèque Nationale de France, Quai François-Mauriac, 75706 Paris cedex 13, France christiane.baryla@bnf.fr 

Lars Björk, National Library of Sweden, Box 5039, 102 41 Stockholm, Sweden lars.bjork@kb.se 

Jonas Palm, National Archives, Sweden, P.O. Box 12541, Stockholm, Sweden jonas.palm@riksarkivet.ra.se 

Ms Henriette Reerink, (Secretary) Koninklijke Bibliotheek, PO Box 90407, 2509 LK Den Haag, Netherlands henriette.reerink@kb.nl 

Conferences

* 2007-05-24/25: LIBER 'Think Tank on the Future Value of the book as Artefact and the Future Value of Digital Documentary Heritage’. Hosted by the National Library of Sweden, Stockholm.

* 2008-05-20: LIBER Library Collection Security Conference, an international forum for sharing experience in managing risks to library collections, investigating incidents and preventing loss. Hosted by the British Library. For further details and powerpoint presentations, see: http://www.bl.uk/aboutus/stratpolprog/ccare/events/index.html

* 2008-07-02: afternoon session 'How to keep and use the essentially ephemeral?' organised by the Preservation Division as part of the 37th LIBER annual general conference. Hosted by Koc University, Istanbul, Turkey. This session focused on recent strategic and financial developments in the care of newspapers and ephemera.

- Phil Spence. Long-term storage, preservation and access to the British Library's newspaper collection.

- Pascal Sanz. Long-term preservation and access to the Bibliothèque nationale de France's newspaper collection.

- Eddy van der Noord. Digitization of cultural heritage in a public-private foundation. Click here for the summary.

- Marcel Ras. The KB e-Depot. Building and managing a safe place for e-journals.

* 2008-07-23: LIFE2 conference at the British Library, London, where the LIFE2 final project report was launched. LIFE2, a project supported by LIBER, has validated the LIFE economic approach and tested the formulae in a further series of case studies, looking at open access repositories and the outputs of digitisation projects, with a comparison of the costs of digital and analogue presrvation.