Search

In this paper, we will investigate how an academic library, the University of Bergen Library in Norway, handled the challenges following the Covid-19 pandemic when the University of Bergen closed the campus on short notice and the Library immediately had to go fully digital in all its services to academics and students. The academics and students were helped by more and automated access to electronic books and services, and we show the numbers of usage. The e-mail and chat-functions were expanded, with librarians working from home. As for the Library staff, having to start working from home offices with less than ideal infrastructure, the main issues were missing their colleagues. How did the Library return to (almost) normal services?

Libraries need to use several different methods when determining the needs and wishes of students and academic patrons for future academic libraries and documentation centers. In this paper, the authors report findings from a survey in Romania and interviews in Norway, on what innovative issues students are imagining in future libraries. Among the trends students and academics are foreseeing are found green libraries, including green information literacy, bibliometrics/scientometrics, library as "home", makerspace (3D-printing) and libraries as centers for documentation, for academic writing and for other necessary skills.

Strategic planning in academic and public libraries is vital and gaining importance in libraries all over the world. In this research project –using the qualitative method of documentary research based on “convenience sampling” –33 strategies from libraries from eleven countries are analysed regarding their time period, vision and mission, as well as values of the libraries, and their strategic programs. This research analyses only 33 libraries from eleven different countries, as not every library has published its strategy and a lot of libraries do not have a strategy at all. As such the results of this research are limited and cannot be transferred to all libraries, however interesting results could still be found. Of the analysed libraries one-third have not formulated a vision, about two-thirds did not write down their mission and more than half of them did not express their values. All libraries have developed strategic ideas and programs to develop their library, their staff as well as their services. Another interesting aspect is that not all aspects of the libraries’ values have been considered and are included in the libraries’ strategic programs.There are good and complete library strategies published, but more can be done in developing and implementing strategies in libraries –probably worldwide. This documentary research is helpful, as not only can be seen where libraries are heading in the future, but it can also help library leaders of libraries without a current strategy to gain ideas and transfer those to their own libraries .

Existe una creciente necesidad de que las bibliotecas utilicen datos confiables y accesibles para mostrar qué tan bien funcionan y en comparación con otras bibliotecas, ya que hay una reducción constante y cierre de instalaciones en todo el mundo. Un recurso para la evaluación son las estadísticas nacionales. Al investigar en cinco países, comparando 22 bibliotecas públicas y académicas, los investigadores tuvieron dificultades para encontrar indicadores clave de rendimiento en las estadísticas nacionales. Por lo tanto, comenzó otro proyecto de investigación que compara indicadores seleccionados de estas cinco estadísticas nacionales, describe los indicadores, compara su calidad y analiza qué indicadores faltan en algunos países. También se analizan otros aspectos: qué preguntas no pueden responder las estadísticas nacionales, pero qué significa que no todas las bibliotecas participan y entregan sus datos para su estadística nacional. A medida que crece la importancia de comparar los datos de las bibliotecas, también se realizará una breve exploración del Mapa de Bibliotecas del Mundo de la IFLA.