Libraries for the Blind Section

Annual Report 2003-2004

Prepared by: Beatrice Christensen Sköld, Chair

Berlin 2003

During the WLIC in Berlin August 2003 Marijke van Bodengraven, FNB, The Netherlands was elected chair of the section and Helen Brazier, NLB, UK, who until then had been Acting Secretary, was elected Secretary. Both officers were elected for a period of two years.

Prior to the conference in Berlin the Section held a satellite meeting in Marburg, Germany. 105 persons attended the satellite Meeting.

During the WLIC the Section held joint Open session with the Public Library Section on Partners in lifelong learning: working with print-handicapped users and a workshop on what libraries need to know about serving print handicapped readers.

Marijke van Bodengraven resigned from the position as chair of the Standing Committee in May 2004. Beatrice Christensen was acting as chair until the first Standing Committee meeting in Buenos Aires when she was elected chair for one year. Lisa Kouzi was elected Information Coordinator in her place.

During the WLIC in Buenos the Section together with IFLA Libraries serving Disadvantaged Section held a session on Balance of copyright and licensing: access to information for print handicapped people.

Division 3 Coordinating Board meeting 2003-2004

Marijke van Bodengraven and Helen Brazier took part in the CB meeting of Division 3 in the Hague 14-15 March 2004. The Section Officers also took part in the CB meetings both in Berlin and Buenos Aires.

Midyear meeting in Vilnius 2004

The Standing Committee midyear meeting 2004 was held in Vilnius Lithuania. The meeting was hosted by the Lithuanian Library fro the Blind. SC members also gave presentations at the first Conference of the Baltic Libraries fro the Blind which was held simultaneously with the Midyear meeting.

Publications

The Section has published 2 issues of its Newsletter in English, Spanish and Russian. The English and the Spanish versions have also been printed in Braille.

Libraries for the Blind in the Information Age: Guidelines for Development, was completed and sent to IFLA HQ for furthering to the Publication Committee.

Ongoing Projects

A working group was formed in Berlin which hase been working with writing Guidelines for Integrated Library systems.

Ulverscroft/IFLA Libraries for the Blind Section: The Frederick Thorpe Award

In 2003 the Ulverscroft Foundation agreed to fund two Awards in memory of Frederick Thorpe. The Individual Awards 2003 was made jointly to Normathonga Bell, South Africa and Suvada Ruvic, Norway. The Organisational Award was made to professor Morayo Antimo of Ibadan University, Nigeria.
The Foundation has agreed to give awards also in 2004, however the decisions were made after the Buenos Aires WLIC.

Stockholm December 22, 2004