Continuing Education Opportunities

Donald Taylor (SFU) and Trish Mau (Burnaby Public Library) are members of the CFLA-FCAB Copyright Committee and BCLA is pleased to share that they are available to present on the latest copyright news and issues, and that attendees are encouraged to bring their questions! Join us on Zoom on Wednesday, April 23rd at 2pm-3pm. Don and Trish discuss current copyright issues and advocacy in the areas of accessibility, public lending right, contact override and the copyright implications of AI here in Canada. Register today!

Every year, attendees from the BC Library Conference recommend their favourite sessions. In the “Conference Virtual Reboot” series, BCLA is inviting a selection of presenters to replicate or reimagine their conference session as a webinar, staggering these events throughout the coming year. The next event is a workshop on Tues. April 29th at 10am called “Steps for Organizational Survival Before an Emergency” with Kaitlyn Vecchio and Melanie Reaveley.

The AI Exploration Series has begun with the intention of enabling library workers to better understand, build confidence, and utilize Artificial Intelligence, machine learning, and ChatGPT in their daily work and in their support of library patrons. We will aim to provide practical, hands-on tutorials as well as keynote speakers on a range of issues, and discussion-based workshops that openly consider the pros and cons of this constantly evolving technology. Our next event is back to the basics with UVic Librarian, Rich McCue. The session is called “Generative AI for Research: The Basics” on Thursday May 22 at 1:30pm-3:00pm. Registration is now open!

Untapped Accessibility is a leading BC-based accessibility consulting firm who offer customized training from a lens of lived experience. BCLA has partnered with Untapped Accessibility in the past to cultivate positive interactions with library patrons who have a disability, and we are pleased to announce a new training opportunity on Wednesday, January 22nd 2025 called “Accessibility in the Employee Life Cycle.” Registration is now closed.

A Year-End Keynote speaker will present on a topic intended to inspire library workers in preparation of a new year. In 2024, we were pleased to host Professor R. David Lankes with his presentation called “Artificial Intelligence: why is it writing my termp paper when it should be doing my laundry?” The recording is posted below. We will announce our 2025 presenter in October and always grateful for your suggestions.