The 26th EBILDA Council and EBLIDA-NAPLE Conference will be held in Strasbourg, France, on 30 and 31 May.
The Council meeting will take place during the morning of 30 May and the Conference will be a lunchtime to lunchtime event from 30 to 31 May.
26th EBLIDA Annual Council 30 May 2018 (morning)
EBLIDA-NAPLE Conference, 30 and 31 May 2018 "Libraries bridging borders"
The title of the conference is "Libraries bridging borders", a theme that suits Strasbourg perfectly, in itself an international city right at the heart of Europe.
Conference Concept:
Europe is at a crossroads in its history. Over the past couple of years, political tensions have risen among the citizens of Europe and globally. Governments throughout Europe have been taking various steps and measures to open or close down their borders to refugees. Meanwhile, terrorism has had a huge impact throughout the continent, challenging the free circulation of people in the EU.
At the same time, the mass digitisation of our world, and the advancement of the sharing economy is impacting the way citizens access culture and challenges the notion of borders itself.
There is a strong global demand from citizens for access to content anywhere any time.
As Prime Minister Jüri Ratas (Estonia) mentioned in a declaration in February 2017 before Estonia took over the Presidency of the Council of the EU, “Striving towards a seamless physical and digital connectivity is in the interest of the whole European Union as economic success cannot be separated from the free movement of goods, services, people, capital, and knowledge”.
Libraries and librarians are increasingly working in a cross-border environment, be it related to countries, disciplines, preservation, knowledge, copyright or any of the issues in relation to free access to information. For free movement of knowledge to happen, we need libraries bridging borders.
Strasbourg, an international city hosting many European institutions such as the European Parliament, the Council of Europe or the European Court of Human Rights, is the perfect choice for our annual conference.
Strasbourg is also part of the European Campus (EUCOR) “created against the backdrop of longstanding cooperation between the universities on the Upper Rhine. In 1989 they teamed up to form an international network called Eucor (European Confederation of Universities on the Upper Rhine). By establishing the European Campus, the five universities aim to take this cross-border cooperation in research and teaching to a new level in order to gain a key advantage in the international competition for the best minds and ideas”. Read more.
The city also shares a border with Germany, and developed strong links with the city of Kehl, reachable by the same public transport system in only 25 minutes.
Strasbourg hosts an amazing network of public libraries, world class university libraries and a unique National and University Library, as well as a national school for training head civil servants with a dedicated 18 month training course for future head librarians (INET), fab labs, etc.
The city is very accessible and boasts a good public transport system, as well as also offering amazing architectural treasures, such as the cathedral and the city centre (the Island), which is on UNESCO’s World Heritage list.
The city also lies at the heart of the Alsace and has a lot to offer in terms of gastronomy.
We invite you to check out the tourist information desk to learn more about the city.
NOTE: Because the conference will be hosted at the same time as a European Parliament Plenary Session, we recommend that you book your hotel room as soon as possible.