Submission deadline: 22 February 2024

The IFLA Bibliography Section is seeking submissions for its newly launched virtual event series “Topics in National Bibliographies” Track 1: Inside National Bibliographic Agencies”.

We invite you to submit proposals for presentations for a webinar in 2 parts on “Building a National Bibliography: Foundations and Cases”. The webinar will explore the practicalities of establishing and operating a national bibliography, drawing inspiration from successful models around the world.

By delving deeper into models and exploring the nuances of national bibliographies setup, our webinar strives to inspire and guide the development of national bibliographies in various settings and landscapes.

We welcome proposals for presentations in one of two panels: Frameworks and Foundations, or Cases Studies.

Frameworks and Foundations of National Bibliographies:

In this panel we seek proposals about National Bibliographies set up models covering all or few of the following subtopics:

  • Legal and policy frameworks for establishing national bibliographies (e.g., national library acts, deposit laws)
  • Building institutional capacity and staffing within the national bibliographic agency
  • Coverage policies of the national output (e.g. exhaustive or selective coverage, formats, subjects, …)
  • Developing and implementing data collection and acquisition strategies (e.g., legal deposit, publisher outreach, …)
  • Sustainability and funding models for national bibliographic services
  • Setting national bibliographic standards and metadata formats for producing and sharing the National bibliography

Comprehensiveness of coverage of as many as possible of the points above is a key factor for covering the foundations and framework aimed for this panel.

Case Studies:

In this panel we seek proposals showcasing examples from diverse countries with different development stages and contexts. Specifically:

  • Case studies featuring specific implementation challenges each country or institution encountered and solutions they developed
  • Case studies highlighting unique approaches and innovative practices, practical implementation strategies for national bibliographies
  • Case studies about facing challenges of budget cutdown, restructuring of services, change of laws or affiliations, …

In this panel, the case study proposal can cover only one of the above cases.

Submission guidelines:

Submit your proposal in a Word file enclosing the following information in the same order:

  • Proposed title of your presentation
  • Your selected panel (Frameworks and Foundations OR Case Study)
  • Names, affiliations, emails addresses of presenter(s)
  • An abstract of your proposed presentation (250-300 words) clearly outlining your topic, key points, and intended audience.
  • A brief bios of presenters (max. 100 words each), in a new page

Proposals should be submitted no later than 22 February 2024 to:
Isabel Ayres Maringelli, Bibliography Section Information Coordinator
Maud Henry, Bibliography Section Secretary

Selection criteria:
  • Proposals will be reviewed by a panel of experts based on their relevance to the webinar theme, originality, clarity, and potential impact.
  • We aim to provide a diverse and international program that reflects the various perspectives and experiences in national bibliography development.

About Topics in National Bibliographies series

To stay updated about the Bibliography Section work and activities, subscribe to our mailing list: bibmail@iflalist.org.