Community Development Days return this November for its second year to generate discussion about community development and related topics in an informal setting, with the purpose of knowledge sharing and learning from speakers’ experiences. This free, two-day event is open to all library workers and students around BC; however, library workers and students from other provinces and territories are also welcome to attend.
Community Development Days 2023 are taking place on November 2 and 3, 10 am – 12 pm and 1 – 3 pm. All times are Pacific Daylight Time zone. Courtesy of BCLA, this event will be hosted over BCLA’s Zoom account in a webinar format and none of the sessions will be recorded.
Registration for 2023 Community Development Days is now closed.
November 2, 2023
Session One, 10 am – 12 pm
Intro to Community-led Work: Learning and Advocating – Led by Jorge Cardenas and Nicole Sousa
Have you ever wondered what the term “community-led librarianship” means in practice? Join our conversation about what community-led work is like, and what it isn’t, at some local public library systems. Learn about the journeys our libraries have taken to better serve our communities. Led by an adjunct instructor who teaches community development at UBC’s iSchool and by a community development specialist.
Speakers:
Nicole Sousa (she/her) is Community Librarian at the Burnaby Public Library, where she has developed strong relationships with several community members and groups, has coached staff on community-led work, and has developed services based on community needs.
Jorge Cardenas (he/his) is the Head of the Belzberg Library at the Simon Fraser University. Before that, he worked in public libraries in several positions, always with a community development approach. He also teaches community development at the UBC School of Information.
Session Two, 1 – 3 pm
Accessibility and Community work – Led by Tara Thompson and Noreen Ma
The BC Accessibility Act establishes a legal framework to identify, remove, and prevent barriers to the full and equal participation of people with disabilities in BC. Learn how two different library systems have worked to implement the regulations and how community-led principles intersect with accessibility work.
Speakers:
Noreen Ma (she/her) is Manager, Community Development at the Burnaby Public Library. Previously, she was the Branch Head at the Britannia Branch at the Vancouver Public Library where she also coordinated Connection to Kith and Kin – a community-led service that assists Indigenous folks to research their ancestry.
Tara Thompson (she/her) is the Okanagan Regional Library’s (ORL) Community Engagement Coordinator. Tara is a dedicated system librarian, supporting all 30 branches in the ORL system. Her primary areas of focus include promoting accessibility, enhancing adult services, and fostering strong community connections. Tara’s journey in the world of libraries began as a page in high school. Over the years, she’s taken on various roles, including serving as the Branch Head of the Vernon Branch and the Community Librarian of the Peachland Branch.
November 3, 2023
Session three, 10 am – 12 pm
Community work and Academic Libraries – Led by Donna Langille (UBC), Carolyn Caseñas (SFU), David Gill (Vancouver Island University), Melissa Smith (Kwantlen Polytechnic University) and moderated by Jorge Cardenas (SFU)
Join this inaugural session to learn from the experiences of 4 academic librarians doing community work. Each will share about their roles and how community work is informed by the different needs of their respective institutions. This moderated panel discussion will include mini lightning talks, panel questions and general discussion.
Speakers:
Donna Langille (she/they) lives and works as an uninvited settler on the unceded traditional territory of the Syilx Okanagan peoples. She is the Community Engagement and Open Education Librarian, as well as the subject liaison librarian for film studies, theatre, media studies, and the digital humanities at the University of British Columbia Okanagan (UBCO). Their work includes connecting the wider community with UBCO Library resources and providing support to students, staff, and faculty working on open educational resources (OER), and building advocacy and awareness of OER at her institution. They are also a PhD student in Interdisciplinary Studies at UBCO. Prior to this degree, she earned her Honours B.A. in English and Gender, Sexuality, and Women’s Studies from Simon Fraser University.
Carolyn Caseñas (she/her) is the User Services and Engagement Librarian and Assistant Head, Fraser Library at Simon Fraser University Library. A BIPOC librarian of Filipino heritage, she previously worked in programming and community engagement in public libraries. In addition to connecting libraries with their communities, her interests include mentorship, coaching and training. Carolyn serves as a ViMLoC and APALA mentor and co-facilitates the Canadian Association of Professional Academic Librarians (CAPAL) Displays, Outreach and Engagement Community of Practice. She is a 2022-2023 ARL Leadership and Career Development (LCDP) Program Fellow.
David Gill (he/him/his) is the temporary Librarian, Student Engagement and Outreach at Vancouver Island University. David is a cishet and autistic South Asian librarian and has worked in multiple libraries as a library student and professional librarian. David is passionate about delivering service to the library community. He is the current Chair of the BC Academic Libraries Section and a member on BCLA’s board. David also serves as a mentor for IDEAS@UBC and ViMLoC for library students and new library professionals of colour.
Melissa Smith (she/her) is the Student Success Librarian as well as the subject liaison librarian for Education and Entertainment Arts, at Kwantlen Polytechnic University Library on the unceded traditional territory of the Kwantlen, Musqueam, Katzie, Semiahmoo, Tsawwassen, Qayqayt and Kwikwetlem peoples. Melissa has a strong interest in first year experience and providing meaningful, engaging, and compassion driven library programming to all library users.
Jorge Cárdenas (he/him) is the Head of the Belzberg Library at the Simon Fraser University. Before that, he worked in public libraries in several positions, always with a community development approach. He also teaches community development at the UBC School of Information.
Session four, 1 – 3 pm
Building relationships in community work – Led by Saara Itkonen & Claire Badali
Beginning with the specific experience of working with teens at the library, this session will look at both the smaller details of relationship building as well as broader thinking about relationships in the community as a whole through the managerial lens. Participants will hopefully come away from this session with some practical tools and tips as well as a larger framework and lens for assessing and planning long-term relationship work.
Speakers:
Saara Itkonen (she/her) is the Library Director at Creston Valley Public Library, on the unceded territories of the Yaqan Nukiy people of the Ktunaxa Nation. Previous to working in Creston, Saara was a Children’s and Teen Librarian at Vancouver Public Library for over 8 years. Her favourite part of her work is identifying and removing barriers for underserved communities to better inform and access their library’s services.
Claire Badali (she/her) is currently the Mobile Library Coordinator at Surrey Libraries, in which Surrey will be launching their first ever ‘bookmobile’ service. Previously, Claire was a Teen Librarian along with a focus on outreach in the community for women and children. Claire has also worked at Vancouver Public Library and Fraser Valley Regional Library in various positions.
Registration for 2023 Community Development Days is now closed.
For questions about the event, please email Shideh Taleban.
For questions about your registration, email BCLA.