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A Message from Louise Jones

HKLA News

A Message from Louise Jones

2017 will be a busy year for HKLA as we gear up for our 60th anniversary celebration in 2018. As a new president I have been exploring the history of HKLA through its publications and by talking to members. I am struck by the dedication, enthusiasm and professionalism of members over many years, and I must particularly acknowledge the accomplishments of the previous Council and my predecessor, Mrs. Mary Cheng.

The same attributes are being shown in abundance by the current Council. We are working on two immediate projects. The first is a survey, which is available here. We very much want to hear from you as a member of HKLA, how beneficial are our current activities, what else should HKLA be doing in the future to support you? I encourage you all to complete the survey as it will help shape HKLA activities over the coming two years.

One of the Council’s aims is to make HKLA and its members the ‘go to’ people and place for information and expertise on librarianship in Hong Kong. HKLA’s website and use of social media is critical, and we plan to revamp the website in the coming months. If you have any ideas on how to improve the website please let us know.

Connecting HKLA with other library organizations in Hong Kong and the region is another Council objective. Annie Tam, our School Libraries Liaison Officer, Linda Lee, our Honorary Secretary, and I had a productive meeting with Mrs. Karen Ip, President of Hong Kong Teacher-Librarians’ Association, discussing how we might mutually support each other. It was my first visit to a school library in Hong Kong and I was impressed with the two libraries at the ISF Academy. Embedded librarians and teaching of information/digital literacy are themes which touch many library sectors in Hong Kong and we have much to learn from each other. We were also delighted to work with our good friends the Goethe-Institut Library on a design thinking talk that is the topic of an article in this newsletter.

Internationally, building on the 2016 HKLA overseas library visit to Singapore, recently Peter Sidorko, HKLA’s Vice President, Linda Lee and I met with the Library Association of Singapore President Mrs. Judy Ng and other LAS Council members, exploring how we might deepen ties. It was a fruitful meeting, and over the coming two years I hope we can strengthen our bonds with sister organizations.

One privilege of being HKLA President is visiting the innovative and beautiful libraries in Hong Kong. HKLA held its first local visit this year to Hong Kong University of Science and Technology Library and Hong Kong Design Institute. My sincere thanks to our hosts and I recommend having a look at HKLA’s Facebook site for photos. The other pleasure on the local visit was meeting HKLA members. I hope over the coming months I have the opportunity to meet with more of you and get discover more about the HKLA community as we plan for our 60th anniversary celebration.