For my final adventure of the year, I travelled from Kaurna country to the lands of the Ngunnawal and Ngambri peoples, the Gadigal and Wanal peoples of the Eora Nation, and the Dharug peoples.
First stop was Canberra where I had arranged CPD and networking events for Canberran ALIA members to build enthusiasm around re-igniting a regional ALIA Group in the ACT.
A big thanks to Antoinette Buchanan and the team at the ACT Heritage Library for hosting a library tour. Here I met a group of over 20 interested people for an hour-long tour of this unique library which collects, preserves, promotes and provides access to the documents that tell the stories of the ACT and its communities.
.
Photo above – Canberran Library and Information professionals on a tour of the ACT Heritage Library
. 
Photos above (L-R) – ephemera in the ACT Heritage Library storage; ALIA’s Jacqui Lucas enjoying the library
. 
Photos above: a selection of games from the Library’s collection and Antoinette Buchanan showing the tour group through the ACT Heritage Library collections.
Next up was networking drinks at the Capital Brewing Co. Taproom Bar, where our tour group was met by others from the Canberra library community. This was a great chance to connect over dinner and drinks, celebrate 2023, and plan for 2024.
Photo above – Networking at the Capital Brewing Taproom
If you’re interested in joining the ALIA ACT Group as part of the executive or broader committee, please complete this online EOI before December 11th. A Group in the Canberra region will create further opportunities for connections, collaboration & community for library people (and will be a lot of fun).
From Canberra, I travelled to Sydney and to another event at the State Library of New South Wales Library Bar. You can read more about the regional engagement activities in the greater Sydney regions here.
. 
Photos above (L-R) – Directions to the Library Bar at the State Library of NSW; Guests at the ALIA NSW end of year celebration.
These events demonstrated the desire for ALIA Members to network and engage in CPD and the comradery that exists in the library community. Regional Groups for ALIA members in the ACT and across the whole of NSW have not existed for several years, and it's exciting to see a renewed enthusiasm for Group activity in 2024.
Emily Wilson
Regional Engagement Manager