Call for Papers

Reference and Information Services Section

Theme:
Surprise Yourselves! New Models of Reference and Information Services

The Reference and Information Services Section (RISS) invites proposals for papers to be presented at a two-hour session at the next IFLA General Conference in August 2015 in Cape Town.

Highly engaging papers will approach the topic by illustrating main themes with reference to case studies that illustrate best practices. During the session we hope to have between 4 and 6 speakers, presenting a paper in advance of the Congress see important dates below - but also giving a 15 to 20 minute summary during the RISS Session. You can select any theme from our Call for Papers, although we retain the option to ask for changes if there is serious overlap with the other speakers.

The annual IFLA Conference attracts nearly 4,000 delegates from over 100 countries.  Speakers, therefore, have the opportunity to address a large and diverse audience, plus any papers given are published on the IFLA Library.

Topics of interest could include:

  • Transforming reference services during a time of budget restraint
  • The benefits of the human interaction as we balance access to both print and digital resources
  • Sustainable development of reference services
  • The reference librarian as a partner in community service (career advisor, tutor, local Government information, homework coaching, etc)
  • The role of the reference librarian in the development of discovery services

Proposals should include:

  • Title of presentation
  • Abstract of approx 300 words in English
  • Name, e-mail address, position (title) of presenter(s), plus a brief presenter(s) biography
  • Presenter(s) employer or affiliate institution

Please send your proposal for papers by email, headed IFLA RISS Papers to both:

Jane Weller, Secretary RISS
Email: janeweller9@btinternet.com
and
Marydee Ojala
Email: marydee@xmission.com

Important dates and timelines

6 February  2015 Deadline for submitting Proposals for Papers plus a very brief biography of the Speaker(s)
16 March    2015 Successful Speakers will be notified, and IFLA forms completed by RISS and the Speakers
20 April 2015 Deadline for Abstract of Paper to be approximately 300 words
18 May 2015 Deadline for submission of completed Paper to RISS. The paper should be no more than 3000 words in length. The paper should be in one of the IFLA official languages, but the conference language is English. If the paper is in any of the other official IFLA languages than English, an accompanying translation in English must be attached.
18 June 2015 Speakers must produce the Power Point presentation by this date.

Both abstracts and full papers should be submitted as an MS Word file by e-mail. Proposed papers must be original and not have been published elsewhere.

The RISS Committee looks forward to hearing from you with your Proposals for Papers.

Submissions

All proposals must be in before 6 February 2015.

Please note

All papers that are presented at the WLIC 2015 will be made available online via the IFLA Library under the Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 license. Authors of accepted papers must complete the IFLA Author Form.

All expenses, including registration for the conference, travel, accommodation etc., are the responsibility of the authors/presenters. No financial support can be provided by IFLA, but a special invitation letter can be issued to authors.

Congress Participation Grants

List of opportunities for support is available on our Conference Participation Grants webpage.

Last update: 17 December 2014