(via Dr. Clara M. Chu, Director and Mortenson Distinguished Professor, Mortenson Center for International Library Programs – University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign)
Join us in a discussion on How can libraries better serve refugees and asylum seekers?
Web-conference sessions:
- November 28, 2016, noon-1:00 pm CT
- December 2, 2016 10:30-11:30 am CT
Participant link: http://tinyurl.com/pw-room
- Best used with headset and high speed internet on the Chrome browser, or another browser with Flash Player
Twitter chat sessions:
- November 29, 2016; 1:00-2:00 pm CT
- December 5, 2016; 8:00-9:00 pm CT
Join the Twitter discussion @MortensonCenter using the hashtag #libraries4refugees
- Use the hashtag #welcomepitch to share announcements, resources, CFPs, etc relevant to chat topic or refugees and asylum seekers
Use https://www.timeanddate.com/worldclock/converter.html to determine your local time.
The Mortenson Center for International Library Programs has partnered with ALA on the IMLS-funded Project Welcome: Libraries and Community Anchors Planning for Resettlement and Integration of Refugees and Asylum Seekers (https://publish.illinois.edu/projectwelcome/). Project Welcome is a one-year planning grant (May 2016 – April 2017) that aims to learn about and articulate ways libraries can address the information needs of refugees and asylum seekers in order to support and empower them in their resettlement and integration process. We are assessing the information needs and gaps in library services by learning from US and international librarians, international and national governmental agencies, and domestic resettlement and social services to develop recommendations and an action agenda on information resources, services, training, and research needed to support the resettlement and integration of refugees and asylum seekers in the United States.
As part of the planning grant, we are holding listening sessions to learn from the library and information community: How can libraries better serve refugees and asylum seekers? The input will be incorporated into a thought paper, that will be used to provide background for the 2-day collaborative learning space/meeting to explore library and information solutions, including a 1-day public summit (February 6, 2017; Cambria Chicago Hotel)
If you have questions, please e-mail projectwelcome01@gmail.com
Project Coordinators: Clara M. Chu and Susan Schnuer, Mortenson Center for International Library Program
Project Partners: Michael Dowling and Jody Gray, American Library Association