ACRL College & Research Libraries News

College & Research Libraries News

Librarians and international development: Getting involved

By Alice Spitzer

Public Services Librarian Washington State University

and Elaine Brekke International Development Liaison Librarian Washington State University

A workshop on overseas consulting at WSU.

Librarians and International Development: Getting Involved” was the title of a workshop held May 7–8, 1986, by Washington State University Libraries in Pullman, Washington. The workshop was designed to inform librarians and to encourage greater library participation in this land grant university’s international development projects at home and overseas.

Although WSU librarians have been engaged in international development since the 1950s, there has been a great upsurge of activity in recent years. Librarians who work directly with projects and those who recently returned from overseas assignments in Jordan, Yemen Arab Republic, and Lesotho wanted to share their experiences. The resulting two-day workshop gave a broad introduction to the topic of librarians and international development. Among the subjects covered were what it means to be a library consultant overseas, crosscultural communication, stateside library support services for international development projects, project design, implementation and evaluation, culture shock, and how international development fits into the WSU Libraries’ overall goals. Guest speakers were drawn from WSU Libraries, WSU departments and the University of Idaho. A combination of lectures, panel discussions, films, role playing, and social activities kept participants on their toes.

Jan Noel, deputy director of WSU’s International Program Development Office, gave a challenging presentation on project design which had the participants actively involved in the process of sending a hypothetical library consultant to another country. The session participants were divided into groups in order to explore the various viewpoints of the many agencies (host government, donor, contractor, campus office) that were involved in the project.

Information presented by consultants who had returned from overseas assignment exposed participants to the challenges and rewards of working abroad. A lively discussion followed where panelists compared and contrasted their experiences. Mary Fahnestalk, WSU’s consultant to the Yemen Arab Republic, Rita Fisher, WSU’s consultant to Jordan, Donna Hanson, University of Idaho’s consultant to Pakistan, and Alice Spitzer, WSU’s consultant to Indonesia commented on the practical aspects and technical problems of working as a librarian in these developing countries. WSU’s Elaine Brekke chaired a panel discussion on library support services provided to project personnel by the home campus library.

Maureen Pastine, director of Washington State University Libraries, emphasized the important role that librarians can play by working on these development projects. Most land-grant universities are actively involved in overseas development projects and the universities’ libraries have a commitment to support these endeavors.

Two bibliographies were prepared especially for workshop participants, Living and Working Overseas: A Selected Bibliography and The Global Challenge: International Development (a bibliography of films and video). Displays included books and articles related to the theme of the workshop. For those unable to attend, a videotape of the workshop was made and will be available to interested persons both onand off-campus.

Participation in the workshop was regional and included librarians from universities that are members of the Consortium for International Development. Among those attending were librarians from the University of Idaho, Oregon State University, Kansas State University, University of Arizona, Gonzaga University, and California State Polytechnic University, Pomona.

The workshop was supported by WSU Libraries, the WSU International Program Development Office and through a Memorandum of Understanding/Program Support Grant from WSU. There was interest in expanding the topics covered and developing a future conference on librarians and international development.

If you would be interested in contributing to such a conference in the near future, or would like more information about the one just concluded, please contact Mary Fahnestalk or Alice Spitzer, Holland Library, Washington State University, Pullman, WA 99164-5610; (509) 335-2691.