As part of the preparation of the 2024 Trend Report, we are calling on IFLA members, volunteers and the wider library field to share their views on which trends will matter most in the years to come, as well as how you see them working together. Deadline: 29 August 2024.

One of the highlights of the IFLA Information Futures Summit, to be held in Brisbane, Australia, on 30 September – 3 October, will be the launch of the Trend Report. The preparation of the Report is made possible by support by Stichting IFLA Global Libraries (SIGL).

Following on from the model of the original edition in 2013, as well as subsequent updates, this is designed to provide the library field with a vital tool for planning for the future. This is the first major revision of the Report since the original – an exciting opportunity to go back to basics.

The first phase of the 2024 Report is a literature review, drawing on insights from across disciplines and around the world, into what may be driving the future of information and knowledge. This focus – wider than libraries, but not so wide as to cover everything – is intended to provide a key reference point for our field, both in our own work, and our collaboration with others.

The review is the work of Professor Michael Dezuanni and Dr Kim Osman, at the Digital Media Research Centre in the School of Communication at Queensland University of Technology. Both will be speaking at the Information Futures Summit.

The review identifies seven high-level trends, each of which has both positive and negative aspects:

  • Trend 1: Knowledge practices are changing, and the future holds both opportunities and challenges for equity in knowledge systems
  • Trend 2: AI and other technologies are transforming society, and how we create, share and use information
  • Trend 3: Trust is being renegotiated, especially in government and media
  • Trend 4: Skills and abilities are becoming more complex, but also essential
  • Trend 5: Digital technologies and their benefits are unevenly distributed
  • Trend 6: Information systems are using more resources, impacting the planet
  • Trend 7: People are seeking community connections – spaces to share are key

The next phase of the Trend Report as a whole will focus on the definition of a set of scenarios of potential futures for information and knowledge. These will offer reference points for institutions and individuals to reflect on how to prepare for a future that could take many different forms.

To do this, we need your help! We are asking you to answer a survey, in order to build an understanding of how far you think that each of the trends will affect societies and libraries, as well as being positive or negative. We then ask you to think about which trends are strongly connected, and how. Your responses will help us define these scenarios.

Respond to the survey here.

We welcome responses to the survey by 29 August 2024.