BCLA Information Policy Committee

Salons

Introduction

In the autumn of 1997 the Information Policy Committee of BCLA instituted a series of 'salons.' These events are low-key educational and social events for members of the British Columbia Library Association. Held in committee members' homes, the salons have proved to be a very popular way of discussing current issues in information policy.

Upcoming salons will be announced on the BCLA listserv. Contact Sylvia Roberts for more information or phone (604) 291-3681.

SALON XVI September 26, 2003

Topic: Open Access, Libraries, and Library Associations

Location: 2762 Trinity St., Vancouver (near Hastings and Renfrew)

Potluck supper at 6:00 pm; presentation & discussion at 7:00 pm.

Speaker: Dr. John Willinsky, Pacific Press Professor of Literacy and Technology at the University of British Columbia and author of If Only We Knew: Increasing the Public Value of the Social Sciences (Routledge) and Technologies of Knowing (Beacon), among other books. His work with the Public Knowledge Project is currently supported by the MacArthur Foundation. For a working preview of the publishing software, as well as access to Willinsky's papers on these themes, see the Public Knowledge Project.

Dr. Willinsky will talk about local leadership in the open access movement and the changing role of libraries, as well as what professional associations are doing to support open access.

Space is limited, so please rsvp to Sylvia Roberts ([email protected]).

SALON XV Friday November 15th, 2002

at #23, 2137 West 1st Avenue (bet. Arbutus and Yew). The potluck is at 6:00 pm; speaker and discussion at 7:00 pm.

The topic for the Nov. 15th salon is "Stop the Gutting of Canadian School Libraries". The speaker will be Keith McPherson, faculty member, Language and Literacy Education Research Centre, UBC. Keith will look at what is happening to school libraries in Canada and elsewhere, and examine what this means to education. He will also share his ideas for an action plan to reverse these trends.

Space is limited, so please rsvp to Sylvia Roberts ([email protected]). More information re: transit route or parking will be sent to you, if needed.

SALON XIV Friday February 22nd, 2002

at 2762 Trinity St., near Hastings and Renfrew. Potluck supper @ 6:00 pm; speaker and discussion @ 7:00 pm.

Colleen Alstad (MLS student, SLAIS, UBC) will present the findings of her research "Antidotes to Spin Doctors: Librarians vs. Global Media" at the next BCLA Information Policy Committee salon. Friday, February 22nd @ a home in East Vancouver ( 2762 Trinity St., near Renfrew and Hastings).

Click here for the presentation.

SALON XIII Saturday December 1st, 2001

at 2762 Trinity St., near Hastings and Renfrew. Potluck supper @ 6:00 pm; speaker and discussion @ 7:00 pm.

The topic will be "Puzzling Evidence: making sense of information in the wake of September 11th." The speaker is John McFetrick, School of Communications, SFU. McFetrick has been part of a graduate class completing comprehensive media analyses of coverage of the events of September 11th in the U.S. and subsequent war in Afghanistan, and discussing access to information in a time of crisis.

Questions or to rsvp "yes" right now, please contact Sylvia Roberts ([email protected]) Everyone welcome!

SALON XIII Friday October 26, 2001

At a home in East Vancouver --easy to find by car or public transit; Potluck supper @ 6 PM; Speaker @ 7 PM

Our guest will be Darrell Evans, Executive Director, B.C.Freedom of Information and Privacy Association. Evans will talk about current privacy issues in B.C. and Canada, with a focus on health information privacy, and the possible impact of the September 11th events in the U.S. on privacy in Canada.

Please send your "rsvp-yes" to Sylvia Roberts ([email protected]), who will send you the address and be able to answer any questions.

SALON XII May 11, 2001

Potluck supper at 6 pm; presentation & discussion at 7 pm.

Our speaker is Brian Campbell (librarian, and longtime advocate for libraries, community networks, & access to information). He will be speaking about Cuban libraries, the status of the "independent libraries", recent discussions in the the U.S. library community on this issue, and his own observations in visiting Cuba as part of the tour organized by local librarian, Susan Weber, in conjunction with the Cuban Arts Project. Susan also plans to attend and will participate in the discussion.

Rsvp to Barbara Jo May [email protected] tel. 990-5804

SALON XII March 2, 2001

In celebration of "Freedom to Read Week," the theme is "'Alternate' Media: Ensuring a Space for All Voices, All Stories".

The speakers are Peter Royce (Executive Director, Vancouver Community Network) and Mordecai Bremberg (Producer, Co-op Radio), who will talk widely about commercialization of the Internet, the continuing need for community networks and non-commercial radio, the importance of projects such as PovNet, and independent film production and distribution.

SALON XI February 2, 2001

Our speaker will be Yuezhi Zhao, assistant professor in the School of Communication at Simon Fraser University, who will discuss information policy in China. Zhao received a BA in journalism in China and came to Canada on a Chinese government scholarship for graduate studies. She has taught at the Department of Communication at the University of California in San Diego and is the author of Media, Market, and Democracy in China (1998) and co-author of Sustaining Democracy? Journalism and the Politics of Objectivity (1998, with Bob Hackett). She currently teaches courses on the political economy of Canadian and international communication and is working on a research project entitled "China's information and telecommunication policies in the age of globalization".

SALON X December 14, 2000

SALON IX February 11, 2000

The first BCLA Information Policy Salon of this millennium was "The WTO Battle in Seattle and After! Eye witness reports". The American Library Association followed the lead of CLA and BCLA by endorsing the IFLA position on the WTO. Paul Whitney, Chief Librarian, Burnaby Public Library (IFLA representative), Brian Campbell, Systems and Technical Services Director,
Vancouver Public Library (CLA representative), and others from the BCLA Information Policy committee will report on the WTO meettings in Seattle and their consequences. Speakers will also discuss the next stages of the WTO negotiations and their potential impact on libraries and municipalities.

SALON VIII November 19, 1999

Donald Gutstein, co-director of the NewsWatch project <http://newswatch.cprost.sfu.ca/>, talked about the impact of corporate media concentration on the news we receive, with reference to recent research at the SFU School of Communication. Gutstein is a senior lecturer at the SFU School of Communication and has recently published a book titled "E.con: How the Internet undermines democracy" (10/99 Stoddart).

SALON VII October 1, 1999

This month's topic was an update on the WTO and the impact on the General Agreement on Trade in Services on public libraries. Our speakers are Ellen Gould and Murray Dobbin, who have written extensively on these topics. Murray Dobbin is an author and broadcaster, and a research associate with the B.C. office of the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives. His most recent book, The Myth of the Good Corporate Citizen, is available in bookstores. Ellen Gould is a political journalist and editor of Reform - Watch, the newsletter that keeps a critical eye on the Reform Party.

SALON VI February 26, 1999

Our featured speaker was Sid Shniad, of the Canadian Telecommunications Workers Union, who spoke about "Recovergence in the Telecommunications Sector - Public Interest or Corporate Interest". The TWU web site <http://www.journet.com/twu/> is a great source for important information policy news, both local and global.

SALON V January 22, 1999

Our featured speaker will be Ellen Balka, Associate Professor of Communications at Simon Fraser University. Ms. Balka will be discussing Gender and Information Access, a subject which speaks specifically to the impact of technology on our profession. For more information see her homepage at <http://www.sfu.ca/~ebalka/>.

SALON IV May 1, 1998

Information Policy Salon IV focussed on directions and roles for libraries and community networks. Guest speakers were Barbara Greeniaus, Director of the Library Services Branch, BC Ministry of Municipal Affairs, and Penny Goldsmith, president of the Vancouver Community Network and coordinator of PovNet.

SALON III March 6, 1998

Steven Shrybman spoke on the Impact of Globalization on Information Policy, using the example of the Multi-lateral Agreement on Investment. Steven is the Executive Director of the West CoastEnvironmental Law Association and a former Ottawa policy analyst.

SALON II January 16, 1998

The second Salon was held January 16, 1998. The guest speaker was Dick Gathercole of the BC Public Interest Advocacy Centre who spoke about the impact of recent CRTC decisions on the telecommunications environment and the implications for the public, including libraries

SALON I October 23, 1997

The first Salon was held in October 23, 1997. The guest speaker was Darrel Evans, Executive Director of the B.C. Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Association, who spoke about the current provincial government review of the BC Freedom of Information and Privacy Act.

This page last updated 19 September 2003

Back to Information Policy Home Page