Equity

We are working to ensure that any and everyone in Australia can join a library, borrow books, use PCs, seek the expert help of library staff and source the information they need. There are still some barriers to library membership, for example fines for overdue books and the need to have a permanent address to register, but these have been removed in some locations and are being tackled in others.

Privacy

Libraries promote the right to privacy in the digital age. We are concerned about excessive data collection, hacking and harvesting of personal information, for political and commercial gain. At the same time, we support aggregated data, stripped of personal identifiers, being made available to researchers for social benefits – for example, in the health sector.

Open Access

We support the principle of open access, especially for government-funded research. Open access enables the reuse of data, building on the work of others and advancing the world’s knowledge at a faster rate than has been possible before. Quality metadata, applied by librarians, makes this data more easily discoverable.

Collaboration

Librarianship is an ethical profession and one that thrives on partnerships, collaboration and sharing. We work with government, academia, corporate and civil society organisations as a force for good. This makes libraries a natural partner in the 17 Sustainable Development Goals identified in the UN 2030 Agenda.

The Australian Library and Information Association (ALIA) and FAIR are pleased to announce that we will be running the Truth, Integrity, Knowledge (TIK) campaign throughout 2019. The campaign will focus on how and why librarianship is one of the most trusted professions in Australia. It will remind users that, in a society driven by fake news and the 24-hour media cycle, they can rely on library and information professionals to hold the integrity to be the bastion of truth and to have obtained the skills to be able share the knowledge that they look after.

The ABC has decided to close sound and reference libraries in Adelaide, Hobart and Perth, to reduce the service in Sydney, and to make 10 specialist librarians redundant, as reported in The Guardian (Tuesday 30 January) “ABC dismantles sound libraries and axes staff to improve budgets” and The Guardian (Tuesday 6 February) “ABC plans to send entire book collection to Samoa to save money”. This decision has caused deep concern among ABC staff, libraries and cultural institutions.

On Thursday 7 December, 2017, ALIA Board members made the following statement regarding the passing of the Same Sex Marriage Bill. 

ALIA NGAC Members Elizabeth Smith and James McGoran have authored a discussion piece on professional advocacy and the free flow of ideas.

Elizabeth and James examine the recent Marriage Law Postal Survey and advocacy in a LIS context.

ALIA NGAC Member Evanthia Samaras recently wrote an article examining the responsiblity of librarians to act as allies and fight discrimination faced by patrons.