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A need to manage and preserve indigenous knowledge is widely recognised. This is because it is understood to have the potential to promote sustainable development while also preserving indigenous peoples' rights, interests, and cultural identity. To understand the challenges of preserving and integrating digitized indigenous knowledge into open science platforms, a qualitative study was carried out. The study's theoretical underpinnings were based on the ideas that data must be discoverable, accessible, interoperable, and usable (FAIR) and that indigenous people have the power to control their data and the duty to disclose how it is used to advance and defend their rights and general well-being (CARE). The data were analysed thematically. The results demonstrate that indigenous knowledge is stored in separate databases at institutions in various countries. Additionally, there was no standardization in the organizations that were collecting the metadata. Because of a lack of metadata, the digital divide, and poor digital and indigenous librarian abilities, indigenous knowledge and data were practically inaccessible and unfindable. In the aftermath of the digital revolution and open research, this article brings a new viewpoint to the conversation about maintaining indigenous knowledge in sub-Saharan Africa. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Neutrality in librarianship is a nonsensical concept that libraries of all kinds (e.g., public, academic, special, etc.) should not strive to embody in any shape or form. The following paper investigates the intricate relationships between neutrality and racism as they are demonstrated by tangible and intangible forms in library and information science (LIS) spaces. Ian Williams' book chapter, "More Than Half of Americans Can't Swim", from his book, Disorientation: Being Black in the World (2021), is utilized to critically reflect on Blackness as identity and some ways in which antiracist practices clash with neutrality within LIS spaces. I conclude with urgent reminders of how detrimental neutrality can be if it is not thoroughly rooted out and supplanted with antiracist practices that the LIS field is in dire need of. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper critically analyses the effects of predatory publishing as a major contributor to misinformation and disinformation amongst academicians and learners in developing countries. The paper notes that predatory publishing poses a major hindrance in the struggles to enhance academic excellence. This paper established that predatory publishing has great consequences in the spread of misinformation and disinformation amongst academicians and Learners in Developing Countries. Some of the reasons that necessitate the increase in predatory publishing in developing countries are; the lack of proper policies or guidance on where research articles should or should not be published, the failure to embrace open access initiatives for visibility and dissemination of research outputs so as to discourage academic malpractice and unethical behaviors, lack of funds, poor or limited information literacy among other factors. The paper is unique in that it comprehensively analyses the concept of predatory journals with misinformation and disinformation in academic circles in the developing world, putting into consideration that most academic staff or researchers assume that whatever is on the web is genuine and absolute true information. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article models the rational incentives involved in providing an informative evaluation for a knowledge management system when the evaluation has some consequences to the evaluator. The analysis is carried out in the context of the peer review process that is currently used to select articles for publication in scientific journals. The article uses the model to evaluate some proposed and implemented improvements to the peer review process. In conclusion, the article outlines other approaches that can result in improvements to the peer review process and invites further empirical research. While the article focuses on academic publishing in the sciences, there is some discussion on how its conclusions could be extended into the humanities or inter-disciplinary scholarship. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Fobazi Ettarh presented a cautionary tale regarding the future of libraries in her Vision Session at the 2021 NASIG Conference. Rather than painting an unrealistically optimistic picture of the future, Fobazi highlighted numerous concerns surrounding libraries and the increasingly lofty demands placed on library workers. Between the pandemic and growing societal concerns surrounding race and equity, libraries need to unite to form a better future that emphasizes individual care and self-love which will ultimately go further in achieving goals that positively impact the communities they serve. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Privacy should be a factor in every decision made around library services and the provision of resources. With staffing stretched to the breaking point, and only more so as a result of the pandemic, what strategies and tools could best help libraries ensure good privacy practices? This session will draw upon current scholarship, grant projects, and policy making in librarianship to highlight ways that librarians are engaging with these important issues. The panel features editors and authors from a special issue of Serials Librarian focused on library privacy. Highlights include discussing physical equivalent privacy, third-party tracking systems, and the development of model privacy license language for vendor negotiations. In this session, participants will talk about the latest concerns and what you might do in your library to assure your faculty, staff, and students that their privacy is front of mind. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In her NASIG Vision Session, Twanna Hodge of the University of Florida Libraries addressed a wide range of questions and concerns: What does the future hold in regard to diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI)? Who are the responsible parties? What needs to be done? When are we done? Or better yet, can we ever be done? Where are we going? Why are we here now? The mission of NASIG is about working to advance and transform the management of information resources. What steps have we taken to advance DEI? What transformative steps still need to be taken? What would it take to transform our profession to where DEI is embedded into everything? What resources and efforts are required? What needs to be discarded? What needs to be changed? How do we define success? How do we hold ourselves accountable? How do we fail forward? We are envisioning and working to create a world that doesn't exist. Creating an inclusive, equitable, and welcoming future requires acknowledging a dark, painful, and traumatic past and present rooted in exclusionary standards and practices, foundations of white supremacy culture, settler colonialism, and more. In her address, Twanna Hodge began to answer these questions and explained her cautious optimism about this work. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper aims to analyze the quality characteristics of Open Access Journals (OAJs) in Library and Information Science (LIS) published in India. The study assesses three OA journals, namely. International Journal of Information Dissemination and Technology (IJIDT), International Journal of Library and Information Studies (IJLIS), and International Research: Journal of Library and Information Science (IRJLIS). The analysis is performed in two parts. The first part is qualitative. The researchers measured parameters like basic information pertaining to the selected journals, publication trends, composition of the editorial board, and quality measures such as peer review and indexing. The second part of the analysis deals with citing journal sources, where the researchers evaluates the quality of citations received by the selected journals. The finding of the study reveals that all three OAJs established themselves as preferred sources to publish LIS research articles. The analysis of citing sources reveals that 73% of the citing journals are OAJs only. The results also show that only 50% of journals are from the core LIS subject, and the majority of the citing journals are from India. The study also revealed that there are many citing OA journals in the domain of LIS, which is not indexed in leading indexing and abstracting databases. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article provides information on the Annual NASIG 36th Annual Conference, held from May 18 to 21, 2021. It states that the conference was inaugurated by Twanna Hodge from the University of Florida Libraries. It also mentions that Moon Kim of Ohio State University and Kristen Twardowski of Michigan Publishing moderated a panel discussion on equity and inclusion, sharing strategies for creating more inclusive library environments.