Webinar on Living Libraries

WebJunction are hosting a Webinar on Living Libraries on July 22nd

If you don't think you'll be up at 3 am to join in live (!), keep an eye on the Webinar archives page to read all about it later.

The Living Library is a unique event that brings together people who have special interests, beliefs or experiences to speak with people from different backgrounds and share their personal story. In this innovative program participants can "check out" Living Books for a personal conversation. Both the Bainbridge Island and Santa Monica Public Libraries executed two successful Living Library events. The Bainbridge Island event covered such diverse experiences as life as a quadriplegic, a female police officer, a young gay man and an atheist. Santa Monica Public Library's Living Books included a fat activist, a formerly homeless person, an ex-gangmember and a nudist. Join us for a free webinar with leads from these projects: Rebecca Judd from the Bainbridge Island (WA) branch of the Kitsap Regional Library System, and Julie MacDonald and Rachel Foyt from the Santa Monica Public Library in Santa Monica (CA). Hear how they planned and implemented the project in their libraries, and find out how you can create a Living Library in your community.
When: Wednesday, July 29, 2009 - 2:00 PM

Click here for Webinar Archive

Latest Living Library Information

Living Libraries Australia is proud to announce the national launch of a new resource for Living Library organisers, which also serves to promote Living Libraries to the general public. The web-movies can be viewed on the Living Library website from July 3, 2009 after noon, (or if any glitches shortly afterwards!) If you happen to be in the area, please drop in!

I will inform you as to the availability of the DVD soon, in the meantime, the website is the way to view it. I will send out the link when it is launched. You can also search for it on:
Link to video

Living Libraries in Action is a new DVD and web resource which will be used to increase community awareness about the power of Living Libraries to enhance inclusiveness, tolerance, and social harmony in Australian communities.
The films, consisting of seven mini-movies, capture the essence of the sort of conversations that are happening in Living Libraries across Australia and provide practical information for anyone interested in organising or participating in one.
The Living Libraries Australia Film Project, managed by Lismore City Council, is a creative collaboration between Living Libraries Australia and Lismore TAFE, Redland Libraries, Lismore’s Living Library, and Nimbin Aged Care and Respite Services. The film and production team is made up of students and staff from Lismore TAFE and Southern Cross University, and is supported by a community-based committee.
Living Libraries Australia is funded by the Australian Government Department of Immigration and Citizenship through the Diverse Australia Program.

Living Library

Blue Mountains City Council celebrated Harmony Day on the 20th March with a unique event called the Living Library.

Mayor Jim Angel said when launching the Harmony Day concert, “Harmony Day is about celebrating diversity and fostering respect and appreciation of that diversity. Our local Blue Mountains community has a diverse range of people from a variety of cultures, religions and races. Indigenous people, environmentalists, homeless people, refugees, people of diverse sexuality, retirees, performers and artists are all living here together. The Living Library provides the community with an amazing opportunity to borrow a person instead of a book and have a chat for about 30 minutes. What better way to learn about our cultural diversity than to hear the extraordinary stories of local people’s lives”.

The Living Library event was attended by over one hundred and fifty people including students from local schools. The idea of the Living Library is to promote acceptance and understanding of cultural difference by giving members of the public (Readers) the opportunity to talk to a Living Book and learn about their different experiences and lifestyles.

Twenty six Living Books from the local community participated in the event. They included members of the indigenous and migrant communities, a Holocaust survivor, Vietnam Veterans, people with disabilities and a Sufi. Many readers commented that hearing people’s stories face to face was an emotional experience. “Much more powerful than reading about them”, one said.

One young reader learnt about “the huge impacts alcohol and drugs can have on your life, family and work”. Another learnt of indigenous elder Carol Cooper’s childhood experience of racism. “Talking to Carol was very profound and moving”, she said.

For some of the Living Books the experience was equally moving. Olwen Leask spent much of her childhood living in institutions. One Reader told her: “Talking to you has changed my life”.

State MP Phil Koperberg, who launched the Living Library, talked about his own experience as a child living in many countries around the world. He applauded the initiative observing, “I’ve never quite understood why living together in harmony should be so difficult.” He volunteered to be a book in future Living Library events.

Phil Voysey from Cultural Connexions, one of the organisers of the event in partnership with Blue Mountains Council, hopes to make the Living Library an ongoing feature of life in the Blue Mountains. “There are lots of people in the community with interesting stories to share. Sharing stories is a powerful way to build community,” he said.

Blue Mountains City Council would like to acknowledge the invaluable help of Lismore Library in helping to make this event run smoothly. Lismore Library staff generously shared their experiences and operational knowledge of their own monthly Living Library.

Public Libraries Metropolitan - West South West Meeting

I have just returned from this meeting at Castle Hill Library and thought I would bring you up to date on some of the happenings in other libraries in our Zone.
Blacktown Library
Are getting a new branch library at Stanhope Gardens in April 2009. They are currently implementing RFID with Civica.
Baulkham Hills
Are doing a Trial Living Library for the next 6 months in partnership with Community Aid Information. They obtained money from CDSE. I will find out more so that we could go and have a look! Rouse Hill Library opening 6 March (1300 sq. m)
Auburn Library
Also doing a Living Library as a one off event with Western Area Health Service.
Bankstown Library
Huge Summer Reading Program. 500 children turn up to the Summer Reading Program presentation night.
Penrith Library
Penrith Library undergoing refurbishments. Strategic Plan being worked on. History of Penrith from 1850 onwards being written over the next 2 years.
Fairfield Library
Using special purpose grant for History of Fairfield to be written. Just gone through a restructure. Library Manager has reduced direct reports from 13 to 6. Whitlam Library is being refurbished and quotes have been sought from Brewster Hjorth and CK Design. Carolyn Bourke attended an IFLA conference in Pretoria, South Africa. Plans are underway to host a satellite conference of IFLA when it is hosted in Brisbane in 2010, in Sydney for multicultural librarians.
The next meeting is scheduled in late March at the new Rouse Hill Library!