Minnesota Library Futures Initiative Update: 3/1/11
The Minnesota Library Futurists are continuing with their exciting work. Their last meeting was held at the Plymouth branch library on February 11th. A portion of the day was used to discuss marketing and advocacy for libraries, while the majority of the meeting focused on planning, logistics, and outcomes. The Futurists plan to revisit the topic of marketing and advocacy in the near future.
The January meeting was held on January 21st at the St. Paul Academy and Summit School. The discussion focused on the topic of technology in libraries. Additionally, the group benefited from a panel of four forward-thinking professionals from a variety of backgrounds. The conversation between the panelists and the Futurists explored real world conflicts that information professionals face when using technology in libraries — and the world beyond. For more detailed information about this and past meetings, please visit the MNLFI website. A Twitter feed (@MNLFI2025) has been added to the site and the blog continues to abound with innovative posts and ideas.
The next MNLFI meeting will be held on Saturday, March 19th at Saint Mary’s University’s graduate campus in Minneapolis. The focus for the day is Education and Information Literacy. Guest speakers include Doug Johnson, Director of Media and Technology at Mankato Schools, and Tom Eland, Librarian from Minneapolis Community and Technical College. This free event, from 9:30-11:30AM, is open to the library community, but space is limited. If you plan to attend, please RSVP. If you have any questions about this event, please contact Kate Peterson (katep@umn.edu, 612-626-3746).
How’s this for quirky? A Senior Library Assistant at the Museum of Modern Art Library in New York City began her performance of “Smelling the Books” in early 2010. She started with the first LC call number in their collection, and has now been recording the call number, title, and smell of each book she picks up. So far she’s smelled around 150 books out of MoMA’s collection of 300,000. Her intention “…is to foster a discussion of the future of print media, the ways we read, methods of classification, and the way in which smell is entwined with memory”. Check it out here http://www.moma.org/explore/inside_out/2011/03/07/smelling-the-books/
