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CILIPS Conference 2017 – Student Report

This article gathers the perceptions of three students attending the MSc in Information & Library Studies at the University of Strathclyde, after participating at the CILIPS Conference – Strategies for Success - held in Dundee on 6-7 June 2017. The authors provide an informative overview of the presentations and workshops delivered on the second day of the event, enriched by personal viewpoints. Learning outcomes of a first experience as attendees of a professional conference are outlined, together with a reflection on the current state and future developments of the information and library sector.

The importance of collaboration between stakeholders and librarians, as well as among librarians themselves, was made clear and would be the leitmotif in all the following thought-provoking speeches and workshops, as well as in the exhibition presenting the latest trends and technologies available to the library and information sector. The prize draw was a good way to encourage delegates to approach the representatives of each organisation in the exhibition room. The breaks in-between talks gave us the opportunity to meet with professionals from different sectors of the information and library environment, allowing a fruitful exchange of ideas, while offering discoveries of new products (such as software and design solutions) that libraries can implement to enhance the quality of their services. The fun, inspirational and entertaining plenary session by Dr Jane Secker and Chris Morrison on copyright literacy -The road to copyright literacy: a journey towards library empowerment -gave us an idea on how it is possible to approach a complex topic like copyright light-heartedly, and at the same time seriously, providing a picture of the most common perceptions on this challenging topic across the sector, based on research findings. The audience was taken through a journey towards an increased awareness of the potential behind copyright rules using an interactive quiz, audience polling and offering honest information on copyright to help dispel myths and fears. First, they explained the perceived characteristics of copyright: being considered often as a problem, it is seen as always changing and mutating, bearing unclear or incoherent messages, but also offering chances for cooperation and collaborations among librarians, and librarians and users. Then they stressed the importance of copyright literacy, more focused on education and less on training, balancing the importance of knowledge of the law with the approach necessary to understand it. As a matter of fact, learning to deal with copyright means working with non-binary situations in which answers are not a clear 'yes' or 'no'. The important message of this talk is that librarians need to cope with uncertainty when dealing with copyright issues, but at the same time, it is important to offer them better tools for a successful approach: one-day courses do not suffice anymore, and a proper education is needed. We exit the room with the idea that, as any other aspect of our profession, copyright requires education and keeping up-to-date with the latest developments, and this can be more easily achieved when knowledge and efforts are shared. The presentation left the audience energised and alive to a shared challenge for information professionals everywhere. visually impaired people (hence VIP). How to widen participation was identified as the most challenging part of the project. Since posters and banners were useless for obvious reasons, word of mouth was being chosen to promote the service through guide-dogs associations and audiobook meetings among others. A small concern was regarding the distribution of the service not covering all the libraries of the city, but that has been solved by some practical reasons we reviewed. To understand the reason behind the service not being used in certain libraries, seven focus groups took place and some issues were raised. For instance, not all libraries are close to bus stops or are relatively safe to reach considering crossings and traffic; also, not all library facilities or staff are ready to welcome VIP needs. Therefore, the seemingly limited coverage of the service is deceptive, because it reaches the wider pool of patrons possible in the most efficient way.
Following these sessions was a break for lunch, which allowed for networking, learning The keynote address of CILIP Chief Executive, Nick Poole, concluded the conference. It was an invitation to all information and library professionals to keep in mind that the results of inspiring speaker and the conference ended for us on a high note, full of hope for our chosen career path. This was a wonderful opportunity and looking forward to future conferences we know we will be better prepared, as we learned so much from this one.
Overall, we identified four main narratives in the conference talks, which we think will be important in our future practice: 1. Literacy strategy: from digital awareness, law knowledge to the use of specific, user-tailored tools, the future librarian needs to be a relevant figure and guide in the life of their patrons and make them aware of tools, risks and opportunities in the digital environment, and, at the same time, they themselves need to be aware. More training, though, seems to be needed, especially on more challenging matters, like copyright legislation. While there seems to be a lack in opportunities available for education, librarians need to be more proactive in seeking the necessary learning opportunities.

2.
Outreach strategy: to develop a better literacy strategy, a complementary outreach strategy needs to be implemented in everyday library activities. Therefore, events and services like the VIP project, Aberdeenshire New Scots project and the Comic Con in South Lanarkshire demonstrate some successful way to stretch out toward a hard-to-reach population who will benefit from library services, improving overall population wellness.

3.
Synergy strategy: starting with the CILIPS President's opening statement, all the interventions implied, or were based on, the importance of creating synergies with different stakeholders and among librarians. This Gestalt vision seems to bring more and more positive results for library outreach and inclusion activities, therefore it will be carried with pride in our future practice.

4.
"You can discover more about a person in an hour of play than in a year of conversation": Libraries should never forget to be more approachable and 'easy to read' in even the most serious matters (as demonstrated by the Comic Con experience, the lively talks on copyright and the workshop on fake news). It will be with that levity that a wider pool of users can be reached and literacy objectives can be achieved.
Our overall impression of the CILIPS conference was one of a tight-knit group of information professionals who are extremely supportive of each other. As postgraduate students, one suggestion for CILIPS going forward would be for more opportunities for students to network and meet with colleagues, future employers and mentors at these events. Being students working towards the MSc qualification, to be ready to enter the profession with the adequate set of skills and knowledge, attending the CILIPS conference made us realise that research is necessary to improve the library and information sector. The achievement of an academic qualification will be only the beginning; we are aware of the importance of Continuing Professional Development (CPD). We felt part of a bigger community of passionate and knowledgeable professionals, sharing the common final goal of advancing the information and library sector, through advocating and improving their expertise and skills. It was an inspiring, motivating context, not least an opportunity for expanding our networking and improving our knowledge of different aspects of the sector. If we were to choose tags to describe the conference, collaboration, sharing, research, advocacy, best practice, development, engagement