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2025 BCLA Conference

A flock of birds flying in formation, silhouetted against a sunrise with mountains and ocean below. Text block reads: Navigating Together. 2025 BC Library Conference. May 7-9, 2025.

Dates

May 7-9, 2025

Venue

Vancouver Island Conference Centre

Location

Territory of the Snuneymuxw First Nation, in Nanaimo.

Theme

Our conference theme for 2025 is Navigating Together, inspired by the setting – a harbour city on an island – and by the birds that live there. This theme reflects not just the location where we will gather, but how we can navigate our current reality.

Many species of birds choose to travel together on long or dangerous journeys. They do this because it benefits them. When they fly together, they are safer, and they can go further and faster with less effort. They share leadership: when one gets tired, it drops back to rest and another steps up to lead. Different species will even flock together, leveraging their different traits for the benefit of all.

In libraries we are dealing with rapid technological evolution combined with social, economic and environmental challenges and pressures. As we face these challenges, we can benefit from emulating the way birds navigate collectively. During conference you may lead by presenting a session, sharing your strength with colleagues. You will also draw on the strengths of others, attending presentations and learning from your colleagues’ work, and from the different perspectives of those in other kinds of libraries.

We come together for conference not just out of tradition, but out of necessity and opportunity. In a time of rapid change and complex challenges, we navigate better together than we ever could alone.

Keynote Speakers

Khari Wendell McClelland, 2025 BC Library Conference Opening Keynote

Khari Wendell McClelland

Kaetrena Davis Kendrick, 2025 BC Library Conference Closing Keynote

Kaetrena Davis Kendrick