Library trends

In the second half of 2022 ALIA held a series of small functions across Australia with members and leaders in the library and information services industry. The purpose was to facilitate discussion about industry trends, challenges and opportunities from the perspective of those working across all sectors, from schools to universities and from public libraries to special libraries as well as LIS educators and researchers. ALIA also wanted to hear feedback on its performance and where members thought it should be focusing its efforts into the future.

The Australian Public Library Alliance (APLA) is part of the Australian Library and Information Association (ALIA) and represents 94% of all public libraries across Australia.

This report was created in an interactive process in Victoria in 2017 where 12 library leaders participated in a conversation about how a united library field can tackle the challenges of the future.

This report was created following a meeting of eight staff of the Australian Library and Information Association (ALIA) in Canberra who participated in a conversation about how a united library field can tackle the challenges of the future. Together we represent 395 years of library experience, as all of us have been library users from an early age.

This survey was conducted in 2017 to elicite views on how a united library field can tackle the challenges of the future.

In 2015, the Executive of the Australian Government Libraries and Information Network (AGLIN) commissioned a study into Commonwealth Government library and research services. Following a literature review discussing the issues and challenges facing contemporary government information services (Hallam & Faraker, 2016), relevant organisational data about the individual services was collected through an online service, and library staff shared their views and insights in a series of focus groups.

There are 246 TAFE libraries in Australia, supporting VET students in every State and Territory. At the beginning of 2016, ALIA's Vocational Education and Training Libraries Advisory Committee (VLAC) sought feedback about how changes in structure and funding have affected TAFE libraries and the library and information professionals who run them.

TAFE libraries were asked to complete an online questionnaire with 32 questions relating to changes in collection format, staffing, funding, space and the size of population served. The survey ran from 1 to 25 February 2016.

There are 246 TAFE libraries in Australia, supporting VET students in every State and Territory. At the beginning of 2019, ALIA's Vocational Education and Training Libraries Advisory Committee (VLAC), chaired by Brenda Burr, sought feedback about how changes in structure and funding have affected TAFE libraries and the library and information professionals who run them.

Asia-Pacific Library and Information Conference 2018, 30 July - 2 August 2018 Gold Coast: Roar Leap Dare

This conference paper discusses the opportunities for libraries to create new user experiences through augumented reality (AR) technology.

AR technology embeds virtual information into the real world environment. A collaboration between Kāpiti Coast District Libraries, Wellington City Libraries, and a local tech start-up ScimitAR, led to the development of an AR “ScavengAR Hunt”, launched in both libraries during the October school holidays. Our aims were to:

National 2016 Conference, 29 August-2 September 2016 Adelaide: Engage Create Lead

This conference presentation (PowerPoint slides) supports the keynote address on the future of libraries.

National Library and Information Technicians Symposium, 27-29 September 2017 North Sydney: bridge to knowledge

This conference paper discusses the challenges and opportunities for library and information professionals working in the GLAMR sector.