All members are appointed for 2 years (aligned with BCLA board terms), with the exception of Board members, who will be replaced as their Board term ends. If members are unable to serve the entire term, vacancies will be filled on a rolling basis using a call for expressions of interest.
Jane Jun, BCLA Director at Large, Committee Co-chair
I am the Southern Medical Program Librarian at UBC Okanagan, which is situated on the unceded, ancestral, and currently occupied lands of the Syilx Okanagan Nation (Kelowna). As an embedded librarian, I work closely with the medical program as well as Health and Exercise Sciences delivering instructional and research services and support, particularly for knowledge syntheses. I am an active member of the ALA and MLA and the CE & Programming Director at HLABC. I have a BEd and MLIS from UBC with a background in language education (EN, DE) and am currently learning nsyilxcən. I love book clubs and am currently one of the organizers for an anti-racism book club at our library. Please ask me about it!
Shideh Taleban, Committee Co-chair
Shideh Taleban (she/her) is an experienced library professional who has been living and working on the traditional, ancestral, and unceded lands of the Coast Salish Peoples, including the territories of the Skwxwú7mesh (Squamish) and səl̓ílwətaʔɬ (Tsleil-Waututh) Nations, since immigrating from Iran in 2009. She earned her second MLIS degree from the University of British Columbia in 2015. Shideh has held various roles in different libraries throughout her career. Currently, she serves as the Library Services Coordinator for Community, Learning, and Access Services at the North Vancouver City Library. Her personal experience as an immigrant and her extensive training in Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion (EDI) enhance her contributions to this committee.
Antón Dounts, BCLA Incoming President
Antón Dounts (he/him) is an experienced public library professional with over a decade of leadership in library and public sector management, currently building on this foundation through his pursuit of the certification as a Chartered Professional in Human Resources. Most recently, Antón served as the Manager of Library Services for the Cariboo Regional District, and prior to that as the Area Librarian at the Williams Lake Library Branch. His earlier professional experience includes work at the Department of Fisheries and Oceans Library in Nova Scotia and a variety of library positions in Montreal, where he completed his studies at McGill’s School of Information Studies. Over the past decade, Antón has maintained active engagement with library organizations across the province, including serving as Chair of the Library Directors Advisory Group of the North Central Library Federation (Trustee), chairing the Sitka Business Function Group of the BC Libraries Cooperative, volunteering in BCLA’s Mentorship Program, and collaborating as a member of the Association of BC Public Library Directors.
Karleen Delaurier-Lyle
Karleen Delaurier-Lyle (she/her) is the Information Services Librarian at Xwi7xwa Library; she is an Indigiqueer Anishinaabe and member of Berens River First Nation. She was born and raised on the unceded territory of the Syilx people.
Maia Sinegal
Maia Sinegal (she/her) works as a Library Assistant at the Sooke Branch of the Vancouver Island Regional Library. She is grateful to live and work on the unceded, traditional territory of the T’Sou-ke nation, who take their name from the SENĆOŦEN word for the Stickleback fish that live in the estuary of the river. Maia is relatively new to library work; however, in her three years of service she has been fortunate to be able to channel her passion for safety and DEI work into serving on the JOHS committee and an Employee Resource Group. Maia is an “American” biracial Black woman who has lived in “Canada” for seven years. Her perspective on life and work has been shaped by growing up as a third culture kid and working with animals, food, and customer service. She is delighted to take this opportunity to connect with the wider “BC” library community.
Maki Cairns
Maki Cairns (she/her) works as a library information clerk at Burnaby Public Library and a library assistant at New Westminster Public Library. She has been a grassroots, community organizer in the Filipino community for over 5 years focusing on gender and migrant issues. Maki is passionate about engaging with communities and empowering marginalized individuals through equipping them with knowledge and resources. She hopes to weave her grassroots, community organizing experience into libraries to create a more inclusive, welcoming space for marginalized groups.
Mari Paz Vera, BCLA Treasurer
Mari Paz Vera (she/her) is the Library Department Head at Vancouver Community College. Since 2007, she has held several roles at VCC, including Public Services Librarian, Assistant Department Head, Records Management and Archives Coordinator, and now Department Head. Prior to this role, Mari Paz was s Science and Business Librarian at Vancouver Public Library Central Branch.
She has a strong commitment to justice, equity, diversity, and inclusion. She served for many years as Chair of VCC’s Positive Space Committee and continues to be an active member. She is also a member of the College’s Justice, Equity, Diversity and Inclusion Committee as well as the Environment and Sustainability Committee.
Mari Paz holds a Master of Library and Information Studies from UBC and a Master of Science in Management from the University of Bath.
Sandhya Ghai
As the inaugural Director of Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion at Simon Fraser University Library, Sandhya Ghai (she/her) brings a perspective shaped across sectors and grounded in years of experience advancing mindful inclusion and creating relational spaces for learning, unlearning, and relearning. Three years into her journey in the world of libraries, she is grateful to be learning and working on the lands of the xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam), Sḵwx̱wú7mesh (Squamish), and səl̓ilw̓ətaʔɬ (Tsleil-Waututh) Nations, alongside colleagues and leaders who are committed to advancing equity-centred approaches amid ongoing local and global challenges. Currently pursuing doctoral studies, she explores the illusion of systemic inclusion and what it takes to move equity work beyond performative practices toward meaningful, sustainable, and systemic change. Her work asks how we might create cultures where equity and belonging are not simply expressed as institutional commitments, but lived through everyday relationships, decisions, and practices.
Sierra Cook
Sierra Cook (she/her) is a Public Service Librarian for the Okanagan Regional Library. She is currently living on the unceded and traditional territory of the Syilx peoples of the Okanagan Nation, but her ancestry comes from the Interior Salish people, specifically the Líl̓wat Nation. Sierra has worked across the province, having spent time with the Cariboo Regional Library, Prince George Public Library, Thompson-Nicola Regional Library and now working in the Okanagan. Having worked in public libraries since she was a teenager, Sierra has touched many aspects of public library work from circulation, collection development, community engagement, and management. Her passion lies in Indigenization and reconciliation of public libraries.
Suzanne Rackover, BCLA President
Suzanne Rackover (she/her) has been Director, Library & Academic Success Centre, and CAPER-BC at Langara College since February 2023. Prior to that she was University Librarian at Emily Carr University of Art + Design in Vancouver (2016-2023). Suzanne has been actively involved in a variety of professional organizations and consortia including being on the board of the BC Libraries Co-op, the Executive Board of the Art Libraries Society of North America (ARLIS/NA), and two terms as President of the Council of Post Secondary Library Directors of BC (CPSLD). Originally from Montreal, Suzanne completed a Master of Library and Information Studies from McGill University and a Bachelor and Master of Art History from Concordia University.
Sze Wann Lim, BCLA Director at Large
I am a branch circulation supervisor at the Vancouver Public Library, on the unceded lands of the Musqueam, Squamish, and Tsleil-Waututh Nations. My work in public libraries has brought me to engage in areas I care deeply about. Public libraries exist in community, and I’ve contributed to making service more empathetic and accessible as a developer and trainer of our patron-centred service training for staff. Within our organization, we need a commitment to equity for all staff. I facilitated engagement as chair of the staff EDI working group to create our organization’s action plan. And our workplace needs to be safe; I have spent the past 5 years on our OHS committee addressing challenges that public library workers face in our daily work.
Rina Hadziev, BCLA Executive Director (ex officio)
Rina Hadziev (she/her) is the Executive Director of the British Columbia Library Association; she is a white settler who lives and works in Victoria on the traditional territory of the lək̓ʷəŋən Peoples, specifically the Songhees and Esquimalt Nations. Rina has spent over 20 years in library leadership, primarily in public libraries, with a focus on collections, technical services, and accessibility. Rina’s approach to her work is informed by both her professional experiences and her personal experiences growing up in a blue-collar family as the daughter and granddaughter of immigrants. Rina is passionate about advocating for libraries and library workers, and creating opportunities for people to connect, share, and support one another.
Previous Committee Members
- Caroline Dick (member from 2024-2025)
- Kisun Kim (member from 2024-2025)
- Sajni Lacey (member from 2024-2025)
- Tracey Therrien (member from 2024-2025)
- Ann Johannes (member from 2024-2026)
- Ignacio Albarracin (member from 2024-2026)
- Mar González Palacios (member from 2024-2026)
- Sunita Lakhanpal (member from 2024-2026)