The BCLA Nominations Committee has prepared a slate of candidates for Board positions with terms beginning June 19, 2026. A strong Board of Directors, committed to the goals of the Association’s purpose, strategic plan, and core values, is essential to the growth and stability of BCLA. In considering potential candidates the Nominations Committee considered BCLA values and anticipated board work for the coming year, as well as striving for a board that reflects of variety of professional and personal lived experiences.
The 2026 Nominations Committee for the BCLA Board is chaired by BCLA President Suzanne Rackover and includes BCLA Board members Anton Dounts, Ann Johannes, Mari Paz Vera, Mar González Palacios, Sarah Tarcea, and Rina Hadziev (ex officio).
2026-27 Slate of Candidates
Incoming Treasurer/Treasurer (two year term)
Sze Wann Lim (she/her)
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.
Two Director-at-Large positions (each a two year term)
Elizabeth Cardoso Fernandes (she/her/ella/ela)
I am the Humanities and Social Sciences (HSS) Librarian for Virtual Reference at the University of British Columbia, on the traditional, ancestral, unceded territory of the xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam) First Nation. In my role, I’m responsible for co-coordinating the AskAway service at UBC Library and liaising with the Latin American Studies, Portuguese, Psychology and Spanish programs. Prior to coming to Canada, I worked as a librarian at public and government libraries in Brazil.
I love connecting (with) people and believe that fostering a stronger, kinder and welcoming environment is my way of giving back to our information community. I do this by participating in associations, affinity groups, mentoring programs and connecting with professionals across the globe – including my BCLA colleagues!
Emily Guerrero (they/them)
I am a Community Librarian at Burnaby Public Library, on the unceded territories of the xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam), Sḵwx̱wú7mesh (Squamish), səlilwətaɬ (Tsleil-Waututh), and kʷikʷəƛ̓əm (Kwikwetlem) Peoples. At BPL, I work with community members who face barriers to accessing library services. I provide services outside the walls of the library, build relationships with community partners, and identify how we can change our internal library policies and practices to be more equitable and inclusive. I’m also the Chair of the BCLA Multicultural Services Interest Group.
As a library worker, I’m most interested in how we can collectively address the racism and colonialism that undergird our profession, and how we can create new models of working together with our patrons and one another. Outside of work, I hang out with my kid, read a lot of queer/trans books, and try and write when I can.
Call for Additional Nominations
In accordance with BCLA practice, this announcement is an opportunity to call for additional nominations for these positions on the BCLA Board.
Nominations can be submitted via the online nomination form. A nominee must be an individual member of BCLA, and their nomination must be supported by three other individual BCLA Members. In the event of multiple candidates for open Board positions, BCLA will mount an election. Nominations for Board positions must be completed and submitted by June 2, 2026.
If you are interested in applying for a BCLA Board position and would like more information, please contact Rina Hadziev, Executive Director using the subject line: BCLA Board Position.