Nafiz Zaman Shuva

Education

• Ph.D. (Library and Information Science), Western University, London, Canada. 2020

• Master in Digital Library Learning (DILL), Oslo and Akershus University College of Applied Sciences, Norway; Tallinn University, Estonia; Parma University, Italy. 2011

• MA in Information Science and Library Management, University of Dhaka, Bangladesh. 2005

• BA (Honours) in Information Science and Library Management, University of Dhaka, Bangladesh. 2004

Work Experience

• Assistant Professor, Graduate School of Library and Information Studies (GSLIS), Queens College, City University of New York (CUNY), 2022-

• Assistant Professor (limited duties), Faculty of Information and Media Studies (FIMS), Western University, 2020-2022

• Professor (part-time), Lawrence Kinlin School of Business, Fanshawe College, London, Canada, 2020-2021

• Instructor, Faculty of Information and Media Studies (FIMS), Western University, 2018-2020 

• Assistant Professor, Department of Information Science and Library Management, University of Dhaka, Bangladesh, 2012-2014

• Lecturer, Department of Information Science and Library Management, University of Dhaka, Bangladesh, 2008-2012

Previous Courses Taught

• Applied research methods (Business)

• Automation of information institutions

• Computer hardware maintenance and troubleshooting

• Development and customization of library management software

• Digital library system 

• Information sources and services

• New technologies and current trends in information systems

• Organization of knowledge (Classification Theory)

• Public library services for newcomers and immigrants

• Research methods and statistics

Invited Guest Lectures

• University of Zadar, Department of Information Sciences, Croatia, “Information experiences, information sharing fear, and Bangladeshi immigrants” (March 2023)

• Oslo Metropolitan University, Norway, “Information experiences of Bangladeshi immigrants” (November 2022)

• University of Zadar, Department of Information Science, Organization and management of information institutions, “Public libraries, immigrants, and settlement in Canada” (December 2020)

• Western University, Faculty of Information and Media Studies, LIS 9003 Information Sources and Services, “Public library services for immigrants and newcomers in Canada” (February 2019)

• Western University, Faculty of Information and Media Studies, LIS 9350 An Introduction to Information Behaviour (June 2018)

• Western University, Faculty of Information and Media Studies, LIS 9004 Research Methods and Statistics (March 2017)

• Western University, Faculty of Information and Media Studies, LIS 9878 Human Information Practices (doctoral elective) (October 2016)

• Western University, Faculty of Information and Media Studies, LIS 9003 Information Sources and Services, “Everyday life information behaviour of Bangladeshi women immigrant” (February 2016)

Research & Professional Interests

The central focus of my teaching and research agendas has always been social justice, diversity, equity, and inclusion. I have always tried to be a voice for marginalized people through my scholarly research. I have critiqued the “information service culture” (i.e., offering information to only educated classes, the dominant group of the society) and advocated for designing services for all members of the society, including the most powerless. For the last ten years of my research career, I have particularly focused on digital inclusion, the information behavior of extremely marginalized populations (such as repatriated migrant and sex workers,), and most recently, on the information behavior of immigrants. My doctoral research is a comprehensive example of my information science research on equity, diversity, and social justice. I researched Bangladeshi immigrants living in various cities of Southern Ontario, Canada with diverse socioeconomic backgrounds (for example, employed and unemployed, with or without Canadian education). The findings of my doctoral study indicate that people move to Canada with the hope that they will find a professional job that is commensurate with their previous education and skills (as most were moving as “skilled immigrant”). However, after they arrive, they realize that the reality of Canadian life before arrival does not match, especially, their expectations related to employment. My study shows that highly qualified immigrants (such as doctors, engineers) end up doing survival jobs (such as driving for Uber, delivering pizza) sometimes resulting in serious mental health issues. My study also found not all sources of information are useful for newcomers. Though historically friends and families have been one of the most consulted information sources for newcomers, my study shows the inappropriate use of friends and family members (especially, members of specific ethnic communities) as a core information source may misguide or even discourage newcomers looking for a professional job. The findings of my doctoral study also highlight a disconnect between the strategies of social institutions (for example, government agencies) with the settlement information available to and required by newcomers. I argue that by not offering timely, need-based services to newcomers with diverse talents, skills, and knowledge, we are excluding them from being able to be successful in the Canadian society resulting in a huge economic loss for the host country and for the immigrants themselves.

At Queens College, CUNY, I will continue to focus on conducting research on the information behavior of equity deserving populations (e.g., migrants), the role public libraries play in the lives of marginalized populations, digital inclusion, and social media. I am also passionate about conducting some collaborative global studies on the role public libraries play in our society.

Selected Publications

Papers in Refereed Journals

Shuva, N.Z. (2022). “Everybody thinks public libraries have only books”: Public library usage and settlement of Bangladeshi immigrants in Canada. Public Library Quarterly, 1-26. https://doi.org/10.1080/01616846.2022.2074244

Shuva, N.Z. (2021). “The journey will be relaxed. You will watch television. Just like a VIP”: Misinformation, secrecy, and the information behaviour of repatriated migrants in Bangladesh. Open Information Science, 5(1): 233-249. https://www.degruyter.com/document/doi/10.1515/opis-2020-0123/html 

Shuva, N.Z. (2021). Internet, social media, and settlement: A study on Bangladeshi immigrants in Canada. Canadian Journal of Information and Library Science, 43(3):291-315. https://muse.jhu.edu/article/781389  

Shuva, N.Z. (2021). “I actually got my first job through my ex-colleague”: Employment-related information seeking of Bangladeshi immigrants in Canada. Journal of Librarianship and Information Science. doi: https://doi.org/10.1177/0961000621992806

Shuva, N.Z. (2020). Information experiences of Bangladeshi immigrants in Canada. Journal of Documentation, 77(2):479-500. doi: https://doi.org/10.1108/JD-08-2020-0137

Shuva, N.Z. (2017). The information practices of the fishermen in the Bay of Bengal, Bangladesh. Open Information Science, 1, 19-38. doi: 10.1515/opis-2017-0002

Shuva, N.Z., & Taisir, R. (2016). Faculty members’ perceptions and use of open access journals: Bangladesh perspective. IFLA Journal, 42(1), 36-48. doi: 10.1177/0340035216628879 

Audunson, R.A. & Shuva, N.Z. (2016). Digital library education in Europe. A Survey. Sage Open, January-March, 1-17. doi:10.1177/2158244015622538. doi: http://sgo.sagepub.com/content/spsgo/6/1/2158244015622538.full.pdf

Shuva, N.Z. (2014). Are university libraries in Bangladesh ready to be digital? OCLC System and Services, 30(2), 108-131. doi: https://doi.org/10.1108/OCLC-04-2013-0010 

Shuva, N.Z. (2012) Building digital libraries in Bangladesh: A developing country perspective, International Information and Library Review, 44(3), 132-146. doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.iilr.2012.07.002

Shuva, N.Z. & Akter, R. (2012). Status of non-government public libraries in Bangladesh. The Eastern Librarian, 23(1), 91-104. doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.3329/el.v23i1.12119

Shuva, N.Z., Akter, R. (2011). Internet usage by the students of Faculty of Arts, University of Dhaka (Bangladesh). PEARL - A Journal of Library and Information Science, 5 (1),14-22.

Shuva, N.Z. & Akter, R. (2011), Bridging digital divide through public, school and college libraries: A case study of Bangladesh. Journal of the Bangladesh Association of Young Researchers (JBAYR), 1 (1),49-79.

Islam, M.S. & Shuva, N.Z. (2010). Barcode technology and its use and applications: A study of selected libraries of Bangladesh. International Information and Library Review, 42(1), 1-7.

Ahmed, S.M.Z. & Shuva, N.Z. (2009). Author productivity in library and information research of Bangladesh: testing Lotka’s law and related phenomena. The Dhaka University Studies.

Shuva, N.Z. (2005). Implementing information and communication technology in public libraries of Bangladesh, International Information & Library Review, 37(3), 159-168. 

Papers in Refereed Conference Proceedings

Shuva, N.Z. (2010). Integrating ICT into university curriculum: a proposal for the Faculty of Arts, University of Dhaka, Bangladesh. In Proceedings of Informing Science & IT Education Conference (InSITE) 2010, 487-502. Available at http://proceedings.informingscience.org/InSITE2010/InSITE10p487-502Shuva843.pdf

Shuva, N.Z., Consonni, C. & Lee, H.J. (2010). Implementing instant messaging reference service in libraries and information centres In Proceedings of the ETTLIS-2010, India.

Shuva, N.Z. (2010). Internationalization of library and information science curriculum: Case study of Bangladesh. In Cooperation and Collaboration in Teaching and Research: Trends in Library and Information Studies Education. Retrieved from http://conf.euclid-lis.eu/index.php/IFLA2010/IFLA2010/paper/view/14

Shuva, N.Z. (2008). Integrating information literacy into the university curriculum of Bangladesh: A proposal [In] Proceedings of the International Symposium on Emerging Trends and Technologies in Library and Information Services, December 18-20, 2008, JIIT University, Noida, India.

Chapters in Books

Shuva, N.Z. & Audunson, R.A. (2014). Curriculum contents of digital library education in Europe. In Susmita Chakraborty & Anup Kumar Das, Collaboration in International and Comparative Librarianship (257-280). Hershey, PA: IGI Global. DOI: 10.4018/978-1-4666-4365-9, ISBN13: 9781466643659.

Shuva, N.Z. (2010). Enhancing library access through the use of mobile technology: Case study of information services provided by six mobile companies in Bangladesh. In Mohamed Ally and Gill Needham (Ed.), M-libraries 2: a virtual library in everyone’s pocket (pp. 221-233), London: Facet Publishing.

Papers in Non-refereed Journals or Proceedings

Shuva, N.Z. (2009). Creating and managing digital collection at the National Archives of Bangladesh: A Developing Country Perspective. In Conference Proceedings of Archiving-2009 Conference, Arlington, VA, USA, May 2009, Vol. 6, pp. 192-196.

Abstracts and/or Papers Read 

“A mixed method study on the information behavior of Bangladeshi female sex workers (FSWs)” at the BOBCATSSS 2023, Oslo, Norway [peer-reviewed, virtual]

“Exploring the complex and culturally situated information behaviour of Bangladeshi immigrants in Canada” at the Western Complex Systems Conference 2022, March 30th [Virtual].

“Online ethnic social media and newcomers’ settlement: Results from a mixed-method study on Bangladeshi immigrants in Canada” at the Pathways to Prosperity 2021 National Conference, Canada, November 9th at 3:00 pm [Virtual].

““You made a great mistake…you left the [your] job and moved to Canada”: A study on the information experiences of Bangladeshi immigrants in Canada” at the Proceedings of the Annual Conference of CAIS / Actes du congrès annuel de l'ACSI, Western University, September 18, 2020. [peer-reviewed, virtual]

“I probably would never get this job if I would not do this degree [in Canada]”: Post-secondary education and job prospects for newcomers to Canada at the International Metropolis Conference, Ottawa, June 25, 2019. [peer-reviewed]

 “Bangladeshi immigrant women in Canada: Results of a pilot study on settlement information needs and information sources” at the Migration and Ethnic Relations 2016 Graduate Student Conference, Centre for Research on Migration and Ethnic Relations, Western University, April 7, 2016. [peer-reviewed]

“Digital libraries for digital nation” held on October 17-18, 2012 at the Bangabandhu International Conference Centre (BICC), Dhaka, Bangladesh. [invited keynote; International]

“Promoting use of e-resources in Bangladesh: A developing country perspective” at Electronic Resources and Libraries conference-2010 held on February 1st-3rd, 2010 in Austin, Texas, USA.

“Enhancing library access through the use of mobile technology: case study of information services provided by six mobile companies in Bangladesh” at the m-libraries Conference-2009 held on June 23rd-24th at the University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada. 

Poster Presentation (Peer-reviewed) 

“Immigrants and public library usage in Canada: A case study of Bangladeshi immigrants” at the OLA Super Conference 2018 (held in Toronto from January 31st to February 3rd, 2018). Available at http://www.olasuperconference.ca/SC2018/wp-content/uploads/2017/12/OLA_Poster_2018_Final_Print_Jan-31_NafizShuva.pdf 

“The everyday life information behaviour of immigrants: A case of Bangladeshi women” at the Diversity by Design Symposium (https://www.idiversitybydesign.com/) held on September 13-14, 2017 at the Ontario Trillium Foundation, Toronto.

“Settlement information needs and services: A pilot study with Bangladeshi immigrant women in Canada” at the Western Research Forum, March 10, 2017.

“Everyday life information behaviour of Bangladeshi immigrant women in Canada” at the Information Seeking in Context (ISIC)-2016 Conference, Zadar, Croatia from September 20-23, 2016. (also invited to participate in the pre-conference doctoral seminar)

“Building and managing SAARC digital repository: A South Asian regional perspective” at BOBCATSSS, January 31, 2011, Szombathely, Hungary. 

“Bridging digital divide: Case study of Bangladesh” at BOBCATSSS, January 25, 2010, Parma University, Italy.

Other

The Information behaviour of South Asian immigrants in Canada, Information Seeking in Context (ISIC)-2016 Conference, Zadar, Croatia from September 20-23, 2016 [pre-conference doctoral workshop presentation]

Volunteering, halal and immigration: advice for international students in Canada. Canadian Bureau for International Education (CBIE). Available at http://cbie.ca/advice-for-international-students/ [blog-post]

Bangladesh: A country with huge publishing potential. International Network for the Availability of Scientific Publications (INASP). Available at http://blog.inasp.info/author/nafiz/ [blog post]

Reviewer for Journals/Conferences

Canadian Journal of Information and Library Science, 2019-

Digital Library Perspective (Emerald), 2019-

Global Knowledge, Memory & Communications (Emerald), 2020-

Journal of Library Administration, 2022-

Sage Open, 2021-

Reviewer, BOBCATSSS, European conference in Library and Information Science organized by LIS students in Europe, 2011

Professional Membership and Services (Selected)

ALA, IRRT Membership Committee, Co-chair, July 2022-

ASIS&T, DEIA (Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Accessibility) Taskforce, Aug. 2022-

BOBCATSSS 2023, Proceedings and Publication Committee, Chair, Apr. 2022-

IFLA Regional Division Committee for North America (Regional advocacy on Digital Inclusion, Team Leader), Sept. 2021-

Honors and Awards

Queens College, Collaborative Online International Learning (COIL) Faculty Fellowship, 2022-2023

Canadian Association for Information Science (CAIS), Student to CAIS/ACSI Award (based on work conducted while I was a doctoral candidate at FIMS) CAD$ 1,000, 2022

Fantastic FIMS Award, Western University, Fall 2021

Western Graduate Research Scholarship (WGRS), CAD$ 30,000+ annually, 2014- 2019

Manjunath and Roja Pendakur South Asian Student Scholarship in Library and Information Science, Faculty of Information and Media Studies, Western University, 2019

PSAC Local 610 Academic Achievement Scholarship, Western University, 2019

PSAC 610 Outstanding Research Contributions Scholarship, Western University, 2017

PSAC Local 610 Academic Achievement Scholarship, Western University, 2016

Manjunath and Roja Pendakur South Asian Student Scholarship in Library and Information Science, Faculty of Information and Media Studies, Western University, 2015

Erasmus Mundus Scholarship for master’s in International Master in Digital Library Learning (DILL), (Norway, Estonia, Italy), €42000, 2009-2011