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February 2004 Members Council meeting summary

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Challenges to libraries and World Summit discussed

Delegates also participated in discussions with international library leaders who offered insight into some of the challenges they face in their libraries. Christine Deschamps, Past President, International Federation of Library Associations, and former OCLC Members Council delegate and Board of Trustees member, reported to council her experiences as a participant in the World Summit on the Information Society, held in Geneva, Switzerland, Dec. 10-12, 2003.

The Summit, organized by the United Nations Secretary General's office and the International Telecommunications Union, provided a unique opportunity for key stakeholders to assemble at a high-level gathering and develop a better understanding of the global information revolution and its impact on the international community.

"We are, indeed, in the midst of a revolution, perhaps the greatest humanity has ever experienced," said Mme. Deschamps. "To benefit the world community, the successful and continued growth of these new dynamics requires global discussion and harmonization in appropriate areas. The summit offered a unique opportunity for the global community to reflect, discuss and give shape to our common destiny."

In anticipation of the Summit, a series of regional preparatory meetings were held. "Libraries were well represented in every phase of the preparation as well as the Summit itself, to the point where one of the delegates was heard to say he was ‘sick of hearing about libraries all the time,'" said Mme. Deschamps.

Libraries' most common, shared interests included: capacity building; inclusiveness; building an enabling environment; training and education; equipment and infrastructure. The most controversial issues were: Internet governance, freedom of expression in some countries, and copyright matters.

A plan of action from the Summit included unqualified acceptance of the fundamental importance of human rights, and especially freedom of expression and information. Internet governance and funding mechanisms to address the digital divide were issues left unresolved.

Mme. Deschamps concluded her presentation by quoting the new IFLA president, Kay Raseroka, from Botswana, who said, "The World Summit on the Information Society is only the beginning of a process to make sure that people across the globe have the information they need for their lives, prosperity and freedom." A follow-up summit is planned for 2005 in Tunis, Tunisia, to assess progress that has been made and to refine a plan of action.

Following the presentation by Mme. Deschamps, a panel of distinguished librarians from around the world provided perspective on the challenges they face in their countries. Panel participants included: Shirley Leung, Hong Kong Baptist University, Kowloon Tong, Hong Kong; Alvaro Quijano, Biblioteca Daniel Cosio Villegas El Colegio de Mexico; Norma Read,Chancellor Oppenheimer Library, University of Capetown, South Africa; and Benita Vassallo, Inter-American Development Bank, Washington, D.C.

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Innovative solutions to economic challenges

In keeping with the 2003/2004 Members Council theme, "Innovation, Risk-Taking, and the New Models of Service: Library Survival in the 21st Century," delegates heard from a variety of speakers who offered innovative solutions to challenges facing libraries today.

Paul Gherman, Director, Jean & Alexander Heard Library, Vanderbilt University, spoke about the efforts of the Association of Southeastern Research Libraries (ASERL) to create a cooperative virtual storage system that would allow participants to discard duplicate copies of seldom-used titles that are permanently held by other participating institutions.

"Why are we keeping this material, storing this material and building buildings for material that nobody wants to read—and material that we have available in a number of institutions anyway?" said Mr. Gherman.

The initial phase of the project under way will determine the number of multiple copies held in storage at ASERL institutions. OCLC is assisting this effort by providing collection analyses from WorldCat. Once it is determined how many unique items an institution holds, and the number of duplicate items held by a group, project participants can determine the feasibility of creating a process to discard duplicate copies and store some at a regional site where they could be borrowed or viewed.

Wim van Drimmelen, Director General, Koninklijke Bibliotheek (KB), The Netherlands, discussed the KB e-Depot, an archive designed to provide long-term preservation of electronic publications held by the KB.

"We should develop global arrangements for permanent archiving and permanent access to digital publications," said Mr. Van Drimmelen. "There must be a commitment to research and development of long-term preservation techniques and a commitment to exploring business models to recover costs of archiving these collections."

A panel led by Bruce Newell, Director, Montana State Library, discussed innovative strategies to overcome difficult economic situations. Panelists included Ernie Ingles, Associate Vice President, Learning Systems, University of Alberta Library, Canada; Jeff Baskin, Director, William F. Laman Public Library, North Little Rock, Arkansas; Shirley Baker, Vice Chancellor, Information Technology and Dean, University Libraries, Washington University, St. Louis, Missouri; and Barbara Gubbin, Director, Houston Public Library, and member, OCLC Board of Trustees.

Among the panel recommendations for difficult economic times: Engage in or increase involvement in consortia; consider outsourcing options; use the political clout that many libraries maintain; and communicate with staff for more ideas.

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Reports from OCLC staff

Delegates heard from OCLC staff on a variety of issues.

Jay Jordan, OCLC President and CEO, and Phyllis B. Spies, Vice President, OCLC Worldwide Library Services, discussed OCLC pricing.

Mr. Jordan said that the OCLC pricing structure has been guided by OCLC's public purposes of furthering access to the world's information and reducing costs. He said OCLC's financial performance is not an end in itself, but a means to accommodate growth, replace and modernize technological infrastructure and facilities, and conduct research and development. "Pricing is the mechanism that we use to allocate the costs of the cooperative," said Mr. Jordan. "The concept of membership continues to influence OCLC's financial decisions and is a major characteristic that distinguishes the OCLC-user relationship from the traditional vendor-customer one."

Mr. Jordan said that by July 1, 2004, OCLC will offer subscription pricing for cataloging and interlibrary loan for all libraries—with transaction-based pricing still an option for those who are not ready to move to a subscription. "We will continue to simplify our pricing structure," said Mr. Jordan. "At the same time, pricing will continue to be part of our strategic discussions for our global cooperative. As OCLC continues to provide services to help libraries manage their collections, we must always strive to develop solutions that create greater value."

Council also heard OCLC reports from:

  • Rick Schwieterman, Vice President, Finance and Human Resources, who provided a financial report.
  • Mark Matson, Director, OCLC Corporate Human Resources, who spoke about OCLC's Inclusion Initiative.

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Reports from OCLC Research

Lorcan Dempsey, Vice President, OCLC Research, provided an update on OCLC research projects and plans.

"The possibilities are endless," said Mr. Dempsey, about the projects and potential in OCLC Research. "The environment in which we work is becoming more complex as more activities become networked. We have to be selective and choose the projects that will have the greatest impact on the OCLC members ship, and the library community."

Mr. Dempsey provided an overview of many of the Research projects under way in a variety of areas, including: Content Management, such as a project with Ohio State University to find out how and why students and faculty members use electronic information sources; System and Service Architecture, such as work to create a more integrated Web environment; Interoperability, projects to provide leadership in Internet and information standardization; and Knowledge Organization, such as work with the Functional Requirements for Bibliographic Records (FRBR) model.

Mr. Dempsey also spoke about OCLC ResearchWorks, a Web site that features demonstrations, prototypes and other interactive items that showcase the current work of OCLC researchers.

More information and detail on OCLC Research projects is available on its Web site.

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Improving communications

Emma Bradford Perry, Dean of Libraries, Southern University, and Chair of the Committee on Communication for the Collaborative, summarized the work, surveys and reports of the committee charged with improving Members Council communication. Dean Perry said the committee will prepare a final report and recommendations for Council's consideration in time for the May meeting.

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Preparations for May meeting

Also in May, the Members Council will discuss the 2003 OCLC Environmental Scan: Pattern Recognition, a report produced for the OCLC membership to examine significant issues and trends impacting OCLC, libraries, museums, archives and other allied organizations.

"The Environmental Scan is an impressive document that I believe is one of the most important pieces of library literature to appear in many years," said Bob Seal, Members Council President and University Librarian, Mary Couts Burnett Library, Texas Christian University. Mr. Seal said the Scan would be a focus of discussion for the May meeting.

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OCLC Board nominees

The Nominating Committee submitted the following slate of candidates for election of two members of the OCLC Board of Trustees at the May 23-25, Members Council meeting: Ernie Ingles (OCLC Canada), Vickey Johnson (OCLC Western), Emma Bradford Perry (SOLINET), and Bob Seal (Amigos Library Services) as candidates to serve on the OCLC Board of Trustees.

Delegates were also treated to a videotaped presentation of the 90th birthday celebration honoring Frederick G. Kilgour, founder and first president of OCLC, held on January 6 at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. The video will be available on the News and Events page of the OCLC Web site in March.

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