Classes using VisionPort data visualization equipment 

Classes using the VisionPort data visualization equipment in the Ralph Brown Draughon Library of Auburn University immerse students in an exciting learning experience engaging their senses with large, interactive images and sound. 

MIA Library Supporting Afghan Refugees Post Covid  

In September 2021, the government changed in Afghanistan.  All of a sudden, thousands of people left the country, by whatever means possible, and as refugees began to look for a better life.  Qatar has transported and supported these refugees and we are honored that the Museum of Islamic Art was invited to work with the families and provide activities for them whilst they waited in Qatar to move on to other countries.  We worked at two sites and watched thousands of people pass through our workshops—they have had a profound and lasting impact on us, and we hope that we have done the same by bringing moments of joy in to their difficult days and encouraging them to express themselves through art and storytelling.  

We Believe in the Community Libraries’ Power of Change  

Inspired by the philanthropist Andrew Carnegie, Riecken Libraries promote the American principles of inclusion, tolerance, democratic participation, and meritocracy. Community libraries are safe and friendly spaces for inclusion. The library model is based on local volunteers and the proactive participation of local leaders and librarians.
There are spaces to learn better.
Boys and girls improve their literacy learning skills using the resources of the libraries.
There are spaces that promote a better life. In health issues, early childhood caregivers learn better eating habits and teach their children through reading books.
Borders are broken down in libraries. Free access to computers, Internet and other multimedia resources and training which includes: young people learn to write a resume, and novice adults with limited technology experience learn from librarians. There are spaces to undertake and improve. Groups of women and young people strengthen their entrepreneurship skills; they have organized savings groups to make their projects a reality. There are spaces to lead and propose. With reading, girls promote their leadership skills and the appropriation of their rights to support community social cohesion. 

Anatolian Tales for children   

During the pandemic period-as everywhere else-our library was also closed to reader services resulting in the end of our library events.  We started to brainstorm ideas on how not to lose our users/readers and not forget the library culture. As a librarian, that was our duty. We had to keep the library culture alive, take a place in life despite everything. At that moment, the most important and perhaps the only step we could take was using our library social media accounts. We started with reading storybooks for children. We soon discovered that copyright was an issue with some of the publishers. While we were thinking about next step, "Anatolian Tales" came to mind. There was no copyright issue and it belonged to our culture, our essence. And why not pass it on to our children? We started to present "Anatolian Tales "as a drama/by enlivening  with paper puppets and toys that we made with our own dexterity." Our title is" come on kids, fairy tale hour". But that wasn't enough. So, we started another new event with origami and three-dimensional images creating videos. Our title is "Come on kids, it's event time''. We did a total of 42 activities, including "tale time" and "activity time" once a week. 

The Night with Leonardo  

Libraries address different target groups and prepare a wide variety of activities for them. The target group for whom we would like to be more frequent and active in libraries are teenagers. Areas that are less frequently represented in library activities are natural and technical fields. We responded to both challenges with a project prepared as part of the European Researchers' Night - "The Night with Leonardo", which addresses young people between 12 and 15 years of age. In one night, we prepare a series of events dedicated to science, natural sciences and technology, and direct them to natural and scientific literacy, with an emphasis on a critical understanding of the new reality due to the coronavirus epidemic. 

Libraries are the backbone of autonomy and lifelong learning   

During height of the epidemic, the National Central Library continued to offer serves by delivering library services, discharging its social responsibility and performing its role. In the cultivation of librarians’ professional consciousness, online international forums and online education and training courses are offered. World-renowned experts and scholars are invited to give lectures to educate library colleagues on new trends, in addition to professional training courses to teach new skills . In the promotion of national reading habits, a number of services, such as online literary performances and online cinemas, have been launched to allow the public to enjoy literary performances and film works online during the pandemic, in order to relieve tension. This is the backbone of national autonomy, lifelong learning, and accompaniment of the public as it endures the epidemic prevention period. 

AAPI Heritage Month Kick-off with the Linda Lindas  

To highlight diversity in our community, the Los Angeles Public Library plans events for all ages during the annual heritage months, including Asian American Pacific Islander Heritage Month in May. In 2021 when libraries in our system had not yet reopened, we planned a special virtual TeenTastic Tuesday—a performance of local teenaged punk band The Linda Lindas at our Cypress Park Branch. The Asian and Latinx band members played several high-energy numbers. After the program with The Linda Lindas streamed, we posted a clip of their original song, “Racist, Sexist Boy,” and the Internet exploded. The video clip went viral, appealing to a far broader audience. We featured that song to draw attention to hate crimes against the Asian American community. “Racist, Sexist Boy” hit a nerve, and the clip eventually received more than 20 million views across our social media channels, increasing our followers and engagement. The video also received extensive media coverage, including the Washington Post, New York and Los Angeles Times, and Rolling Stone, with all stories noting their viral library performance as the moment that propelled the band into the public eye, cementing LAPL as a vibrant and relevant institution that serves our community. 

NCLibTV Services Delivered to Your Home 

NCLibTV is an OTT TV smart library specially designed for home users. It uses smart TV as a service transmission channel. To take advantage of the library’s digital services and content on television, viewers can download it at home through set-top boxes provided by cable TV providers. NCLibTV provides digital content and services such as e-books on TV, digital audio and video, book reservations in the regional resource center library, and good book recommendations. During the pandemic in 2021, the public used NCLibTV to select and peruse e-books on TV and access digital audio and video, resulting in an increase of 160.9 percent. 

Parkour Mobile Library has arrived! 

“Wow! The parkour mobile library has arrived!

“Wow! This is a book I’ve always wanted to read!”

The prelude to the one-day mobile library activity began with the excitement of school children arriving en masse.

Taichung Public Library actively penetrates communities and public spaces, and cooperates with temples, markets, scenic spots, parks, hospitals, universities and other strategic entities to promote reading and select books in accordance with their needs, shortening the distance between the library and the public. During the epidemic, the librarians’ selections of books, thoroughly friendly services, and picture book storytelling activities conveyed the beauty of reading, cultivated children’s fondness for reading, and, through reading, healed children’s anxiety caused by the spread of the epidemic; public and private reading services united in a common effort to achieve an effect in which “the whole city is my study!" 

Children’s reading bags 

Under the COVID-19 pandemic, public libraries are facing the challenge of having to close their reading spaces. This photo depicts New Taipei City Library under the pandemic lockdown. The library is providing the creative “blind lending” service of “reading convenience bags.” The bag is like a mysterious library version of a lucky bag, awaiting unpacking with surprise by little readers who can’t enter the children’s story house. Such service measures are provided to enable parents to satisfy children who cannot learn because of school closures during the pandemic period and are thereby able to return to the time of family reading. With library spaces currently empty amid the tense pandemic situation, using “reading convenience bags” satisfies every child’s sailing of the oceans of books and maintains the beauty of reading. 

Our Mobile Library with EBA Mobile Support Tool, is on the Road 

In 2020, as the increased effect of the pandemic in the world and in Türkiye, disruptions were experienced in education as in many areas of life. Libraries have also played a major role in meeting the information needs of the society. So, we set out with our mobile library to bring information to our users who are far from us.

In order to ensure equal opportunity in education, we provided EBA Mobile Support Service with our mobile library to our users who cannot benefit from the built-in library service. (During the pandemic, when schools were closed, the Ministry of Education continued education through the EBA platform which is a social educational electronic content network.)

While there was great interest in the EBA mobile support through the mobile library, students were also given robotic coding training. While they were doing their homework, they also benefited from our collection. They had a good time with our educational games too. We are proud of fulfilling one of the biggest functions of our mobile library by providing access to the information accurately when and whenever they need even if they are in the farthest village of our province.

Libraries are Full of Life, Library Everywhere 

Our library continued to serve for users during the pandemic. The members used our library as a third place and we tried to keep its continuity.

We help the developmental support of babies and early literacy skills with our book-reading activities. Our preschool groups' social skills, motivation activities and communication skills continue to be supported by books and games.

We continue to raise awareness about children's rights among students through games, activities and books. We aim to help secondary and high school students gain self-concept skills through the "make a difference with drama" event.

With our adult users, we aim to support their social skills with the "know your past, shape your future. story writing and drama" activity. Disabled users also continue to use every area in our library to improve their self-confidence and communication skills.

Family seminars were held for parents who had children in their infancy with a training of games and materials.

We tried to raise awareness about drug addiction among our adults as part of the "Best Narcotics Police Mother" project of Karabük Police Department.

Additionally, our library lends books to the prisoners at regular intervals within the signed protocol with the Penal Institution.

Journey From A Book To Drama: General Directorate of Libraries and Publications Book Club and I Read With Drama Project  

General Directorate of Libraries and Publications (KYGM) is the administrative center of all public libraries in Türkiye. It also provides free services to citizens with equality of opportunity in libraries in malls, airports, stations, as well as baby libraries, literature museum libraries and mobile libraries.

KYGM leads all libraries in Türkiye with pilot projects. It has initiated to develop the reading culture even during the pandemic process.

Through "Active Library" mobile application, citizens were able to access thousands of free e-books during the pandemic. Additionally, online activities were held through social media accounts.

Online “KYGM Book Club” was established to increase the motivation and the literary socialization of employees. 13 participants came together with a moderator every 15 days via Zoom. To know cultures and literatures of different countries better, in each session, the author and the subject of the chosen book was discussed by all the participants.

In the second phase of this project, cooperation was made with the Contemporary Drama Association, and "I'm Reading with Drama" project was carried out in three public libraries. This project, which brings the reading experiences with drama techniques together for all citizens, especially disadvantaged groups, has been expanded throughout Türkiye.

During COVID-19 "On-Site-Virtual Service" at MEF Library  

MEF Library started to offer an "On-Site-Virtual Library" service according to the technological infrastructure of MEF University in April 2021. In this system, a computer with Google Meeting session open is kept ready at the circulation desk to provide reference service to incoming users while the library staff is working in the office. Except for the check-out process, all other circulation and reference services could be provided via this computer without having an in-person service.

The in-person interaction between the librarian and the patron can be minimized, and technology-based protection can be taken regarding COVID-19. Libraries, which can quickly adapt to pandemic conditions and technology, can effectively use all possibilities to open the doors of unlimited access to information for their patrons. Apart from the library services offered online, the needs of patrons who want to access print resources can be met in the library environment. Libraries have shown that they can always find a way for their customers to have unlimited access to information. And the libraries can continue their services uninterruptedly by taking advantage of the positive returns while struggling with the negative returns of the changing world.

Global Comics Lecture Series 

The Ohio State University Libraries Global Comics Lecture Series was a grant-funded activity resulting in a series of nine lectures on the theme of Global Comics from January 2020 to May 2021. The series built on collection strengths, faculty expertise, and librarian experience developing programming related to comics. Following the onset of the pandemic, the series was moved to an virtual environment and extended with five additional speakers. By moving to an online presentation platform, the total attendance was more than three times the anticipated number (over 1,000 attendees), with numbers continuing to rise through the availability of recordings on the University Libraries’ YouTube channel. 

We feel that the success of this library program, which used comics to examine migration/immigration from Latin American and Japanese perspectives, disability in Russia, street art activism in the Middle East, the stories that flea market finds can tell about Eastern European and World War II history, slavery and the struggle for freedom in Brazil, art, culture and mythology of Brazil and Latin America, healing trauma through art, and the real-life impact of a Chinese comic character, has demonstrated that comics are a powerful means of story-telling and tool for global citizenship instruction. 

International Library Conference Profession Librarian – Librarian in direct services

On June 16, 2021, a library conference with international participation was held in the Regional Library Karvina, which is intended for the professional public, founders and students. This year was focused on the role of the librarian in direct services. The conference was divided into five thematic blocks reflecting the competencies and demands of 21st century librarians. On the conference experts from the Czech Republic, Poland and Slovakia were spoken. A broadcast background for lecturers was created in the library cinema hall, and participants could watch the live broadcast via the library's YouTube channel (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aM3XUlTk4T0). The recording of the conference can be viewed by everyone on the YouTube channel of the library, it is publicly accessible. The library also adapted in the organization of conference to the fact that at a time of various restrictions, it was not possible to meet in person in larger groups. The conference program was divided into five thematic blocks reflecting the competencies and demands of 21st century librarians – Librarian as a communicative worker, Librarian as a teacher, Librarian as a creative person, Librarian as a community worker and Librarian as a "smart" worker.

VIP Reference

When the pandemic closure began in March 2020, Research and Instructional Services (RIS) suspended our live in-person reference and research appointment services out of safety concerns. When it became apparent that this restriction would continue indefinitely, we explored ways to restore these services with as close to an in-person experience as possible while maintaining proper public heath safety measures. The results were our Virtual In-Person Reference (VIP for short) and Online Research Appointments. VIP used an online conferencing software (similar to Zoom) and was conducted through a live internet session monitored remotely by a single reference librarian who could support a guest from either campus. Our Online Research Appointments allowed students and faculty to schedule individual or small group sessions with a librarian that centered their unique research needs.

Stress Free Zone

Pre-pandemic, Kent State University Libraries provided a stress-free zone during Finals week that featured Therapy dogs, snacks and beverages for students. Speaking of this event, Jasmine Jefferson, First-Year Experience librarian said: “The therapy dogs at the Stress-Free Zone are such an important part of the event because they really do calm the students, even if only for a few moments. Students have said to us that just petting the dogs helps them relax and even reminds them of some of their own pets back home.” 

During the Pandemic, Kent State University offered a virtual version of the event on their Facebook page called “Pause for Pets”, which featured pictures of pets. The virtual photos featured not just therapy dogs but Assistance Dogs such as Maverick and other pets such as Terry (Hamster) and Rafiki and Mel, (cats) shown in the photos here.  A study done by Towergate insurance and shared in an article by Psychreg showed that nearly one-quarter of  the people surveyed said that during the pandemic they took more pictures of their pets than ever before.

Library Virtual Tour

The National Library of Indonesia provides a library virtual tour service to increase library promotions during the pandemic that can be accessed through the website and Android application. This virtual tour starts from the outside view of the library to facilities inside the library, from the first floor to the 24th floor of the main library building to the cultural heritage building. Visitors who visit the library virtual tour can feel the library environment as if they are present directly. Through this service, visitors can fully see the existing facilities, see the atmosphere at the National Library, and directly choose the service they want to visit. In addition, in this era of social distancing, library virtual tours can allow more people to get to know the library in more detail and as a means of recreation for the public. The virtual tour also features views of the iconic Jakarta, Monas area, which can be seen on the top floor of the National Library.

Hehe Book Bar

As an innovative use of Credit-Reading, Hehe Book Bar is a new public reading space integrating intelligent bookcase, digital reading and library business self-service, which has various functions such as book borrowing and returning, borrowing information query, e-book borrowing, audio book borrowing as well as book reservation and delivery, and it has already linked up the library network all over Taizhou. It not only meets people’s diversified reading needs in digital age, but also the demand for contactless borrowing in the normalization stage of epidemic prevention and control. Hehe Book Bar successfully meets the intellectual and cultural needs of citizen readers while fully considering the health and safety of them.