ACRL News Issue (B) of College & Research Libraries 3 2 4 /C&RL News Conference Circuit Facing the challenge of democratization B y E liz a b e th S m ith The In te r n a tio n a l S e m in a r on L ibrary M a n a g e m e n t Library leaders from six former communist countries attended the International Semi­ nar on Library Management, sponsored by the Copernicus University Library in Torun, Poland, November 6– 1 2 , 1994. The seminar—conducted in English and funded by American, British, and Polish funds— included participants from Esto­ nia, Slovakia, Lithuania, Latvia, Hungary, and Poland, with speakers from the U.S. and Britain. The purpose of the seminar was to address the new challenges facing libraries from previ­ ously communist countries, and the changes they must embrace to become effective orga­ nizations within the new democratic systems. As the group exchanged information, it b e­ came evident that some of the problems facing libraries in newly democratic nations of Europe are similar to those in the U.S. As we in the U.S. struggle to meet users’ needs with increased costs, smaller budgets, and downsizing, our counterparts in Eastern Europe are struggling to adapt to new demands and expectations of users, generated by the new political systems. The problems facing these libraries are monumental, as they are forced to rewrite their missions and policies. Democracy gave library users the freedom to demand and expect bet­ ter resources and services, and libraries are re­ sponding enthusiastically. Areas most under scrutiny are collection development, reference, budget management, new services, reorgani­ zation, human resources management, library education, and open access to collections since most libraries have closed stacks. An immedi­ ate problem facing many libraries is delivering business information to users. The economic reforms and privatization have placed great demands on libraries for business and trade information. Managing library budgets with depleting fi­ nances generated much discussion after my presentation on the topic. The solutions from participants did not differ greatly from deci­ sions we make in the U.S. Frequently cited were cancelling periodicals, selective book acquisi­ tion and resource sharing, downsizing, and leaner organizational structures. Ideas on in­ creasing revenues were also abundant, includ­ ing charging business users for services, rent­ ing videos to the public, and leasing space for community activities. The concept o f allocat­ ing monies and resources by formula caught much attention when explained in detail by Geoffrey Weston (University o f Hull, Britain). A general consensus among participants was that restructuring library education, especially for library managers, is prerequisite to improv­ ing services. New services and improved meth­ ods o f resource sharing were seen as essential to meeting user needs. C o n v e rs io n to o p e n s ta c k s w as on everybody’s mind after the informative presen­ tation by Andrew McDonald (University of Newcastle, Britain) on library space. His slides of library buildings, layouts, and space alloca­ tion, and his expert responses and advice to questions highlighted the seminar. Ian Mowat (University o f Newcastle) took the group through the principles of TQM and the role of management in a modern academic library. His focus on decision-making, team­ work, and open communications generated many questions and solutions to the problems o f bureaucracies. The immediate need for the new democracies is training library directors to develop democratic and conducive work envi­ ronments where expertise, decision-making Elizabeth Smith is d ea n o f learning resources a t Collin County Community College, Plano, Texas; e-m ail: zsesmith@express.ccccd.edu mailto:zsesmith@express.ccccd.edu May 1 9 9 5 /3 2 5 skills, creativity, incentive, flexibility, teamwork, and problem-solving skills are incorporated. The seminar’s participants were well in­ formed on issues of American and British li brarianship. They were enthusiastic and com­ mitted to their jobs, eager to make the necessary changes, receptive to ideas, and had viable solutions to their problems. Most have e-mail addresses and are eager to establish contact with libraries abroad. The majority o f represented libraries are automated or will be soon. I was very impressed with the Copernicus University Library, a leader among Polish li­ braries and a pioneer on several fronts. Under the dynamic leadership of director Stefan Czaja, it is the first library in Poland that changed its organization into a less bureaucratic, more democratic and user-friendly one. After an in depth study of integrated library systems, it pur­ chased the one meeting its specific needs. The library, now preparing to convert to open stacks, will be the first library in Poland, perhaps in Eastern/Central Europe, to do so. Our hospitable and gracious hosts organized a tour to the beautiful University of Gdansk Library and the Solidarity Plaza and Monument. We visited the magnificent cathedral at Pelplin and saw the “Gutenberg Bible.” We attended a concert on the ancient organs at the cathedral in Oliwa, and another one by the Torun Or­ chestra where a Russian female soloist played Chopin exquisitely. Very impressive was the visit to the Teutonic Knights medieval castle in Malbork dating back to the 13th century. And the ancient town of Torun, the birthplace of Nicholas Copernicus, gave us much to ponder. Since my last visit to the Copernicus Library in May 1993 many user-friendly changes oc­ curred. Most striking were increases in auto­ mation, signage, and the establishment of ref­ erence services. I came back convinced that contact with European libraries is beneficial and enriching to all, and welcome by our colleagues abroad. It is evident that our common missions, goals, problems, and solutions far outweigh our differences. (Internet cont. fr o m p a g e 3 21) ment. Two indexes assist in locating specific documents available for retrieval, and the in­ dex to award abstracts is searchable. Ftp sites for software and documents • C om puter-O riented Geological Soci­ ety (COGS). A ccess: ftp://ftp.csn.net/. • National Spatial Data In frastru ctu re (N SD I) M e ta D a ta S ite s . A c c e s s : ftp:// ftp.blm.gov/pub/gis/nsdi.html. Clearinghouse provides a pathway to find information, or metadata, about geospatial data available from USGS. Internet finding tools • EINet G alaxy . A ccess: http://galaxy. einet.net/galaxy/Science/Geosciences.html. • WWW Virtual Library. A ccess: http:// www.geo.ucalgary.ca:80/VL-EarthSciences.html. • Y ah o o Server at Stanford University. Access: http://akebono.stanford.edu/yahoo/Sci ence/Geology_and_Geophysics/. Usenet groups and mailing lists Usenet news groups and electronic mailing lists create a means for practitioners in the field to share research findings, discuss problems, an­ nounce conferences and events in the field, and pose questions to groups of people with common interests and expertise. U senet g r o u p s • s c i . g e o . g e o l o g y . This is the primary newsgroup for geology with discussion of gen­ eral interest geological topics. • s c i .g e o .h y d r o l o g y . Discussion forum for topics in surface and groundwater hydrology. • s c i .g e o .e a r t h q u a k e s . Discussion list for seismological topics and earthquake activity. M ailing lists • GEOLOGY. S u bscribe: listserv@ptearn. bitnet. • GEONET-L. S u bscribe: listserv@iubvm. bitnet. Geoscience librarians and information specialists. • HYDROLOGY. S u bscribe: listserv@eng. monash.edu.au. Hydrology topics from Monash University in Australia. • QUAKE-L. A ccess: ftp://vml.nodak.edu/ LISTARCH/QUAKE-L and listserv@vml.nodak. edu or listserv@ndsuvml.bitnet. General earth­ quake discussion. • SEISMD-L. S u bscribe: listserv@bingvmb or listserv@bingvmb.cc.binghamton.edu. Seis­ mological discussion. ftp://ftp.csn.net/ ftp://ftp.blm.gov/pub/gis/nsdi.html http://galaxy http://www.geo.ucalgary.ca:80/VL-EarthSciences.html http://akebono.stanford.edu/yahoo/Sci- ftp://vml.nodak.edu/ mailto:listserv@bingvmb.cc.binghamton.edu