74th IFLA General Conference and Council
10  -  14 August 2008

Introduction

The World Library and Information Congress and the IFLA General Conference (International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions) will take place in the city of Québec from August 10 to 14, 2008. This will provide Canadian libraries with an excellent opportunity to demonstrate the essential role they play in the education and liberation of its citizens.

The IFLA annual conference is the largest international meeting of librarians and information specialists in the world. Some 5,000 delegates from more than 150 countries are expected this year and will discuss ideas focusing on the theme "Libraries without Borders: Navigating towards global understanding."

I strongly urge you to attend this international conference taking place in Canada. It's an opportunity you won't want to miss!

Looking forward to seeing you there!

Ian E. Wilson
Librarian and Archivist of Canada

Library and Archives Canada is proud to participate in the following activities of the Congress:

• Organization of the Congress
  
  Several employees of Library and Archives Canada (LAC) are participating in the organization of the Congress, sessions and satellite meetings.

• Committees
  
  Some employees of LAC are members of the Executive, Advisory and Organizing Committees.

• Volunteers
  
  About 20 LAC employees will participate in the conference as volunteers, thereby availing themselves of an invaluable professional development opportunity.

• Satellite conferences
  
  Several LAC employees are participating in the organization of the following five satellite conferences:
  1. Genealogy and Local History for All: Research services for multicultural communities (August 6-7, 2008 in Ottawa).
     
     
  2. Navigating with Youth: In these days of technology, how can public libraries attract and keep their young clientele? (August 5-7, 2008 in Montréal).
     
     
  3. Multicultural to Intercultural: Libraries Connecting Communities. Examples of success stories in Canada and around the world (August 5-7, 2008 in Vancouver).
     
     
  4. Preserving Cultural Heritage: The Canadian View (August 6-8, 2008 in Ottawa).
     
     
  5. Library Statistics for the 21st Century World (August 18-19, 2008 in Montréal).
     
     

• Students
  
  Aware of its role to provide training opportunities to the Canadian library community and its concern over succession planning, Library and Archives Canada (LAC) has invited seven Canadian universities that offer courses in library and information science to chose one of their most promising students and allow him or her to take part in the Congress. Two LAC employees will act as mentors for these seven students during the Congress.

• Publication on Canadian libraries
  
  Still within the framework of the Congress, Library and Archives Canada (LAC) and Bibliothèque et Archives nationales du Québec (BAnQ) are preparing a flagship publication. The work will describe what Canadian libraries bring to the economic, political, social and cultural vitality of our society. It will explore in particular their innovative character as the best institutions for the democratization and accessibility to reading and knowledge, as instruments of education and personal development, as one-stop shops, as gathering places, as supporters of excellence, as sites of integration and as places to connect with our cultural heritage.
  
  This flagship publication will be distributed free of charge to the delegates at the 2008 IFLA Congress.

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