APSIG newsletter no. 59: November 2005

ALIA Canberra meeting

In preparation for the ALIA National Advisory Congress in late November, a series of informal regional meetings were held across Australia. Christina Flynn, APSIG committee member, attended the ACT Regional Meeting held at ALIA House on 5 October 2005. The meeting was chaired by Roxanne Missingham.

The purpose of the regional meetings 'provided an opportunity for members to participate in discussion on policy, planning and any topical issues relevant to the association.' The meeting ran for two hours and included an information session on a specific ALIA services and discussion of the issues on the NAC program.

Georgina Dale from ALIA gave a presentation on ALIA's Professional Development (PD) program. It is a worthwhile program but not very well known among members. There is a need to further promote the service to encourage participation.

Three events were selected as examples for ALIA's theme, Celebrating success. All events were very well attended, focused on professional development and identified national issues. They included:

• Australian Government Libraries Information Network (AGLIN) information sharing forums;
• ALIA/NLA Interlending Workshop; and
• Digital Amnesia conference.

Nominations were received for the ALIA Stars Program, which aims to highlight and promote success stories of members within and beyond the sector.

• Roxanne Missingham for her appointment as parliamentary librarian.
• The Australian Bureau of Statistics, particularly Dale Chatwin and Karen Vitullo for the work that led to ABS publications being made freely available on the internet.
• ACT Public Library for the redevelopment and refurbishment of the Kippax Library.

A new model has been proposed for the election of directors which allows for all members, both personal and institutional, to vote. Discussion of this item confirmed that those present did not find the existing model appropriate. A number of issues and ideas, relating to the governance of ALIA, were raised.

The final issue discussed was workforce planning and education. In particular there was much debate about mandatory qualifications for library jobs and the issue of attracting graduates to the profession. No consensus was reached on how ALIA should be addressing this issue. ALIA's role in promoting return on investment for libraries was considered. As was the need for further targeted research in the profession and the role that the Australian library journal should play in professional development.

It was a lively and fruitful meeting and well worth attending. Further information about the ALIA National Advisory Congress and regional meetings can be found on the ALIA website.

Christina Flynn, Menzies Library, ANU