ACRL News Issue (B) of College & Research Libraries


106 / C&RL News ■ February 2002

CONFERENCE CIRCUIT

New roles and global collaboration

The fruits of international exchange

by Cynthia H. Comer and Alison S. Ricker

C hanging roles, emerging trends, and in­ternational collaboration among academic
libraries were the focal points o f an interna­
tional conference organized and cosponsored
by Oberlin College, Oberlin Shansi Memorial
Association, and Yunnan University in China.
The four-day event, held June 3 -6 , 2001,
b ro u g h t to ­
g e th e r m ore 
than 125 librar­
ians, administra­
tors, educators, 
and information 
p r o fe s s io n a ls  
from China, the 
United States,
India, and Indo­
nesia.

Yunnan Uni­ Participants enjoyed hearing presentations and exchanging
ideas during panel discussions.versity, located 

in the provincial capital city o f Kunming, 
China’s “City of Eternal Spring,” hosted the
conference.

T he o p en in g  ce re m o n y , in Y unnan
University’s new science building, was a de­
light for the senses, as delegates gathered in a
senate-like chamber filled with the fragrance
of flowers and a soft breeze from the open
courtyard. The back rows were crowded with
library school students enrolled in Yunnan
University’s Department of Information Man­

 

 
 
 
 

 

 

 
 
 
 
 

agement. He Fusheng, deputy director gen­
eral in the Yunnan Provincial Department of 
Education, welcomed the delegates as cups of 
green tea were served to each individual.

Keynote speakers followed, addressing 
delegates in a plenary session that spanned 
five hours, including an elegant lunch in the 

banquet hall of 
Yunnan Univer­
sity Hotel. The 
relatively small 
number of con­
ference partici­
pants afforded 
the opportunity 
fo r e x c e lle n t 
communal din­
ing, C h in e s e ­

 sty le, and 
strengthened tire 

camaraderie and potential tor collaboration.
Seven keynote presenters gave shape to 

the conference theme “Academic Librarianship 
in the New Millennium: Roles, Trends, and 
Global Collaboration,” and created a spirit of 
optim ism  and co o p e ra tio n  that carried 
through in the 28 presentations that followed.

The golden age o f libraries
Scott Bennett, Yale University librarian, as­
serted that the golden age of libraries is now,

A bout th e authors

Cynthia H. Comer is head o f  reference and instruction and Alison S. Ricker is science librarian a t Oberlin College, e-mail: 
cynthia.comer@oberlin.edu and alison.ricker@oberlin.edu

mailto:cynthia.comer@oberlin.edu
mailto:alison.ricker@oberlin.edu


C&RL N ews ■ Feb ruary 2002 / 107

and asked, “When has it ever been a better 
time to be a librarian?” Libraries play a major 
role in transforming culture, he noted, particu­
larly in regard to the revolutionary effect of 
desktop computers for “liberating the literacy 
o f individuals” through access to information.

Bennett identified three “grand challenges” 
for academic libraries: access, preservation, 
and scalability. Librarians must help ensure 
and promote communal access to informa­
tion, while seeking to preserve both print and 
digital collections, and use technology to in­
crease productivity and reduce cost in an in­
formation economy. Finally, librarians must 
dedicate themselves to educating users in the 
mastery and wise use o f information re­
sources.

The C h in a Higher Ed u catio n  
D o cu m en t G u aran tee  System
Zhu Qiang, deputy director of the Center for 
CALIS (China Academic Library and Informa­
tion System) and professor o f library science 
at Peking University, gave an overview of the 
academic resource network that CALIS began 
constructing in 1988.
In addition to provid­
ing access to com­
m ercial databases,
CALIS has built local 
databases, including 
tho se for national 
cataloging and inter- 
library loan, theses 
and d isse rtatio n s, 
digital resources, and 
specialized resources Bruce Richards (second from left), associate dean 

o f O b e rlin  C o lle g e , a d d re s s in g  c o n fe r e n c e  
participants at the opening ceremony.

to support work in 
engineering, agricul­
ture and forestry, and the arts and sciences.

Future needs for the consortium include fo­
cusing on economic sustainability and expand­
ing the circle o f access to more universities in 
China.

Keynote speakers continued in this vein, 
offering pathways for re-visioning traditional 
service functions in the context o f a com­
bined digital and print environment.

The ten concurrent panel sessions were 
organized around broadly defined themes:

• Librarianship and management o f aca­
demic libraries;

• Issues in collection building and man­
agement;

• Development o f library technology and 
automation;

• Resource sharing and collections;
• The future o f library service in the 

Internet environment;
• Information technology and the con- 

struction o f digital librarianship;
• The development o f library holdings and 

the construction o f library databases;
• Issues o f preservation in archives and 

Libraries;
• Scholarly communication and intellec­

tual property; and
• Academic librarians and continuing edu­

cation.
A panel of six library directors focused on 

“Reform and development o f the academic 
library.” Library leaders responded to issues 
raised during the conference and offered sum­
maries of major concerns, challenges, and 
achievements at each o f their institutions.

Haipeng Li, reference librarian and outreach 
coordinator at Oberlin College, whose vision and 
perseverance were instrumental in organizing the 
conference, moderated the last segment, which 

was devoted to group 
discussions on col­
laboration. Partici­
pants were free to 
brainstorm and pro­
pose ideas for col­
laborative ventures. 
Jo in t d igitization 
projects, shared cre­
ation and use of data­
bases, exploration of 
funding and grant op­
portunities, and librar­
ian exchange, particu­

larly for staff development and training, were 
among the areas discussed.

Many sessions provided opportunities to cri­
tique best practices and learn about successful 
library programs in other countries. Delegates 
eagerly explored ways to strengthen coopera­
tion and the exchange o f scholarly informa­
tion among librarians internationally, address­
ing, among other issues, digitization projects 
and use o f digital information resources, the 
future of library services in the Internet envi­
ronment, copyright and intellectual property, 
collection development, and preservation.

Continuing education, staff development, 
and new roles for academic libraries in the



108 / C&RL News ■ February 2002

information age emerged as issues of particu­
lar interest. These themes were an undercur­
rent in many presentations, from the opening 
remarks of Wu Song, president of Yunnan Uni­
versity, to closing observations offered by Bruce 
Richards, associate dean of Oberlin College.

Song noted that libraries are at a critical 
juncture as they transition from traditional 
roles and services to key providers of infor­
mation in the electronic age. Richards spoke 
of libraries as educational institutions in and 
of themselves, encouraging librarians to em­
brace the concept of being “in the education 
business, not the information business,” as 
we strive to participate in the educational pro­
cess and seek better ways to serve faculty 
and students.

Participating in the conference was a won­
derful experience, made possible in large part 
by the Oberlin Shansi Memorial Foundation, 
established in 1908. The foundation aims to 
promote understanding and communication 
between Asians and Americans through edu­
cational programs, fellowships, exchanges of 
scholars, and community projects. We are 
grateful for their support, and for the support

provided by Yunnan University and Oberlin 
College.1

Note
1. Session presenters from Oberlin Co

lege included Alan Boyd, associate director; 
Eric Carpenter, collection development librar­
ian; Cynthia Comer, head o f reference and 
instruction; Gary Kornblith, professor o f his­
tory; Haipeng Li; and Ed Vermue, special col­
lections and preservation librarian. Yunnan 
University Press will publish the conference 
proceedings later this year. ■

In the D ecem b er 2Corectionr001 issue o f C&RL 
N ew s, th e URL fo r C a lifo rn ia  S tate 
University’s new  Inform ation Com pe­
tence Initiative was listed incorrectly. The 
correct URL is http://www.calstate.edu/ 
LS/infocomp.shtml. The editors regret the 
error.

l­

http://www.calstate.edu/