Dear all,

I am happy to have the opportunity to share an update on the preparations for the IFLA Information Futures Summit taking place in a little less than two months in our region.

It goes without saying that I’m really excited to be welcoming the global library field to my hometown, and to share all that Brisbane and its libraries have to offer.

As you may have seen, our programme also is getting richer and richer by the day. The combination of the expertise and experience our speakers can bring, and the session formats we’ll be using, promise to make this a really memorable and impactful event.

I am aware that some of you may still be working to make the case for attending. As I know each time I travel, Brisbane can feel like a long way from other places, including many inside Australia! Participating also means taking time away from families and the office.

So with this article, I wanted to share a few ideas about why I believe being involved will bring such benefits for participants, their colleagues and their employers.

Learn and develop: all conferences are an opportunity to update one’s knowledge and broaden one’s horizons, but we have made this a real priority in planning for the Summit. Participants will come away with knowledge and ideas from insight and outside our field that support strategic reflection. Employers and others will be able to see these new ideas applied in the workplace, as well as introduce colleagues to the tools presented at the Summit.

Stand up and speak: we have chosen session formats that step away from the classic panel discussion to give as many people as possible the chance to speak. Participants will build their profile and public speaking experience, while employers can be sure that their work is being discussed internationally. Moreover, they will have employees with the confidence and experience of representing their institution or organisation internationally.

Network and connect: the Information Futures Summit is the main event in the IFLA calendar this year, with a number of IFLA committees and related organisations also holding meetings in the margins. It will be an opportunity for participants to build and renew connections, as well as make links with the Australian library field. For employers, participation means stronger ties with peers around the world, as well as representation in this year’s most international library event.

Build and create: finally, the Summit has a strong focus not just on preparing for the future of information, but mobilising to shape it. Participants will help shape our Brisbane Declaration and advance in their own reflection. Employers, meanwhile, will see their experience contribute to these results, and in turn be able to use them in your own strategic planning and foresight.

These ideas are more fully described in our separate guide on making the case to participate in the Summit.

I know that some of you simply are not able to attend – you will certainly be missed – but we are hard at work looking at how to share key outputs and insights from the Summit with you so that they also help you in your practise.

The next weeks will be busy, but we’re working towards an event which will, I believe, help us make a big step forward in how we think about the future of information and our place in it.

I hope to see you in Brisbane!

Vicki McDonald
IFLA President 2023-25