IFLA’s Management of Library Associations (MLAS) Section is pleased to collaborate with the Lebanese Library Association (LLA), the IFLA Middle East and North Africa (MENA) Regional Division, and the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia (UN ESCWA) to present Libraries and the Digital Preservation of Cultural Heritage, 6th Conference of the Lebanese Library Association, taking place from 14-17 May 2024 in Beirut, Lebanon

Member coordinators from IFLA MLAS: 

  • Dr. Imad Bachir, Professor in Library and Information Studies
    Lebanese University / Lebanese Library Association, former Chair IFLA MENA
  • Dr. Marwa El Sahn, Director of the Centre d’Activités Francophones (CAF)
    Bibliotheca Alexandrina, former IFLA Governing Board Member

See the Conference website for the latest details.

Call for Papers

Conference of the Lebanese Library Association (LLA)

In partnership with Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia

(ESCWA) and International Federation for Library Associations MLAS and MENA

Libraries and the Digital Preservation of Cultural Heritage

6th Conference, 14-17 May 2024

Beirut- Lebanon

Conference Theme

Libraries are considered custodians of knowledge, as they contain treasures of cultural heritage related to each country. The digitization of a huge number of documents, including intangible heritage, is proceeding at an unparalleled pace, which is considered extremely important for the world in general and for local communities in particular, due to the abundance of opportunities available to discover information through the Internet.

Based on this fact, we look forward, in this scientific conference, to presenting initiatives for digitization projects, and the expertise of academic, public and specialized libraries dealing with digitization. In addition, the conference will address emerging Generative Artificial Intelligence tools like ChatGPT, Bing AI and Gemini AI, etc.. and their capabilities in identifying, discovering, and preserving images of cultural heritage.

Chosen Subthemes

Digitization for Cultural Heritage Protection and knowledge Publication

  1. Cultural Heritage Conservation in Libraries, Archives and Museums
  2. Google Art And Culture in Protecting Cultural Heritage
  3. Risk Management of Cultural Heritage
  4. Intellectual Property for Digitized Production

Knowledge Economy and Publishing of Cultural heritage

  1. Role of Academic Institutions in Promoting Access to Cultural Heritage
  2. Managing Digitization of Theses and Dissertations and their availability
  3. Union List of Arabic Digitized Periodicals lists and projects

Digitization and Support for Cultural Heritage

  1. International and NGO’s Initiatives (IFLA and UNESCO) Support
  2. National Initiatives
  3. Platforms for Grants and Financial Support to Digitization Projects
  4. Generative Artificial Intelligence tools ChatGPT, Bing, Gemini, etc. for Image Recognition and Tagging

Non-Fungible Token (NFT) and New Services in Cultural Heritage

  1. Enriched Metadata for Identification of Art NFT in Cultural Heritage
  2. Legal Status of Intellectual Property for Cultural Heritage Art of NFTs
  3. Role of Libraries in the Depository of NFT

Libraries as Depository for Cultural Heritage

  1. Case Studies from national and International Libraries
  2. Use of Standardized Metadata Schemes for Archiving and Data Exchange SDG Goals and Public Access to Information of Cultural Heritage

Abstracts

Abstracts MUST BE RECEIVED no later than 18 February 2024

  • Accepted based on reviews by members of the Scientific Committee
  • Submitted in Arabic, the official language of the Conference, as well as in English;
  • Should be no longer than 500 words, including spaces and all text, not include graphs, tables, or charts;
  • Abstracts must include:
    1. Purpose of the paper, as well as its value and significance
    2. Design/methodology/approach
    3. Findings/conclusions
    4. Implications (practical, methodological, and/or theoretical)

Submission Guidelines

  • Abstracts must be submitted in electronic format (MS-Word format);
  • Font for Arabic Abstracts: Simplified Arabic, size 14; Font for English Abstracts: Times New Roman, size 12
  • Line Spacing: 1.5
  • Referencing style: American Psychological Association (APA style)
  • Approval of an Abstract does not automatically mean that the paper will be accepted.

IMPORTANT DATES:

  • Abstract submission deadline: 18 February 2024
  • Notification of Abstract Acceptance: 29 February 2024
  • Paper Submission Deadline: 15 April  2024
  • Notification of Paper Acceptance: 20 April 2024

PLEASE NOTE:

All expenses, including registration for the conference, travel tickets, visas, accommodation, etc., are the responsibility of the researcher. No financial support can be provided by LLA, but a special invitation letter can be issued.

Scientific Committee

  • Professor Ghassan Mourad (Chair) – Computational Linguistics and Digital Information – Lebanese University
  • Dr. Mohamad Zouhair Bakleh – Chief Librarian – ESCWA
  • Professor Imad Bachir – Faculty of Information – Lebanese University

Submission of Abstracts