Mauro Guerrini Receives Milano Ambassador Award

Mauro Guerrini receives Milano Ambassador Award The Milano Ambassador Programme is a project to promote the City as location to host conferences of relevant and international importance. The organizers of this project are Milan Municipality and Fondazi- one Fiera Milano, with Lombardia Region and Milan Province. On May 15th, within the ambit of the above programme, Mauro Guerrini, President of the National Committee of the IFLA 2009 World Library and Information Congress, Milan, received a relevant award as “Ambassador of the City of Milan”. The award was the recogni- tion of the great care and the full engagement that was lavished by Mauro Guerrini and the National Committee to promote Milan as host of the IFLA 2009 Congress. The Mayor of Milan, Letizia Moratti, handed out the Award during a formal ceremony in Milan, at Palazzo Marino in the Alessi room, in the presence of several Milan and Lombardia Authorities. 1 Cultural Heritage and the Future of The final programme can result in a successful combination between two perspectives: the Libraries: The IFLA Milan Congress (mostly) Anglo-American perspective based Programme as an incentive to upon the epistemology of knowledge and the change the profession with an social role of libraries, and the Mediterranean perspective, rooted in the organisation and international perspective preservation of ancient and unique collections, as records and documentation of historical civilizations. Anna Maria Tammaro All participants of the next IFLA Congress in Milan University of Parma will experience the stimulating outcomes of this IFLA Governing Board combination, particularly the Italian libraries. In fact, the Milan Congress will carry out the vision of a deep renovation of the professional The theme of role, by rethinking its role and functions also cultural heritage is through the critical appraisal of the current an important one professional techniques, services and methods: in Southern Europe, as a matter of fact, the future of the libraries is although many the one which will fulfil the vision of services set IFLA colleagues forth in Milan. The future will not only be based from other parts of upon the technological development: this would the globe would be a merely technical and limited vision of the have willingly cut developments before us. the words “cultural heritage” from What can participants expect form the themes the title of the proposed by the IFLA Sections for the Milan Milan Conference, Conference? as it emerged From the IFLA point of view, the discussion about immediately since “cultural heritage” inside the different Sections the first rounds of discussion inside the IFLA has pressed to an international reasoning about Sections, even before the Congress in Quebec the future and the strategic themes for the in 2008. professional development, with an urgent need for change. The discussion on “cultural goods” has The term “cultural goods” in the English language led to wider aims and topics for the Conference, is understood strictly to define museums, art whereas in the past the Conference sessions were galleries, institutions in charge of the conservation often conducted on strictly technical issues. of cultural goods. This is to say that - at international level - it is not generally expected, as in Italy, Many of the IFLA Sections’ Programmes include that libraries are considered “public goods”. We new topics for discussion, linked to the professional can even say that many of the institutional IFLA strategies and the social role of the profession, members hold that “cultural goods” don’t play including among the cultural institutions also an important role in their institutional mission. other institutions and organisations apart from libraries and information centres, such as archives The Programme of the IFLA Congress in Milan and museums, and even publishers. The offsite (http://www.ifla.org/annual-conference/ifla75/ Sessions (that is, the Sessions organised outside programme2009-en.php) is a very interesting the official IFLA Conference venue) will stress dialectic solution for the issue about “cultural this strategic vision addressing the future of the goods”, both from the point of view of the Italian profession, as the one sponsored by ICCU on libraries, represented by AIB (Associazione italiana Digital Libraries, the one sponsored by University biblioteche = Italian Libraries Association), and of Milan on the professional education and the from the IFLA point of view. one sponsored by CEI (Conferenza Episcopale Italiana = Italian Episcopalian Conference) on Considering the IFLA Programme in Milan from Church Libraries. the viewpoint of AIB and the Italian libraries, this event represents a new perspective for re-thinking Some Sections have chosen to focus, in their the Italian libraries (and the librarians’ profession). programme, on the theme of “cultural heritage”, 2 understood in the traditional meaning, mainly as co-operated with the Information Technology preservation and conservation. For example, the Section and have underlined the possibility to Sections: use new technologies to increase the value of the “cultural goods”. For instance, the following * Art Libraries: Art libraries and cultural heritage: programmes will be particularly important: select, collect and connect * Bibliography: Promoting and preserving * Library Services to Multicultural Populations: national bibliographies, our testimony of cultural Creativity and the arts: libraries building on heritage multicultural heritage * Rare Books and Manuscripts, Preservation * Literacy and Reading and Information and Conservation andLibrary History: Dispersed Literacy:Libraries promoting twenty-first century cultural collections. Preservation, reconstruction literacies and access * E-Learning SIG: Lifelong e-learning and * Latin America and Caribbean: Preserving and libraries conserving the cultural heritage in Latin America * Copyright and other Legal Matters with and the Caribbean Academic and Research Libraries: Libraries and mass digitisation: Intellectual property Other Sections will stress in their programme the challenges need to focus on the future, also by involving other * Cataloguing: New principles, new rules for colleagues and experts outside the professional new catalogues community in brainstorming sessions. Issues like * UNIMARC: UNIMARC and the future of management are for instance very important in catalogues a period of change. These are for instance the * Division IV: New bibliographic control principles issues chosen by following IFLA Sections: and guidelines * Knowledge Management, Library and * Academic and Research Libraries: Hot topics Research Services for Parliaments and Information in academic and research libraries: discussion Technology: Social computing tools for learning with experts and colleagues and knowledge sharing * Public Libraries and Metropolitan Libraries: * Geography and Map Libraries, Science and The future of metropolitan public libraries Technology and Division of Special Libraries: * Management and Marketing andAcademic Cultural heritage preserved: the role of digital and Research Libraries: Where do we stand? maps Where do we want to be in 10 years? * Government Libraries: Transforming learning * Library and Research Services for Parliaments cultures: government libraries as the treasures and Library History: Changing visions: within parliamentary libraries past, present and the * Genealogy and Local History: Opening up future our cultural heritage through digitization and * Library and Research Services for Parliaments collaboration and Library History: Changing visions: parliamentary libraries past, present and the Finally, many IFLA Sections will focus on the future “Convergence among archives, libraries and * Libraries for Children and Young Adults and museums”, and will analyse the challenges LibraryBuildings and Equipment: If I was the implied in this phenomenon for professionals director now working separately, in the perspective of * Asia and Oceania: Preserving the past – an integration of services in the Internet, of basic creating the future and continuing professional development. For instance, on this point the following Sections’ Other IFLA Sections will highlight the role of programmes will be particularly important: services and, consequently, the improvement in the access to cultural heritage, particularly * IFLA PAC : Convergence in preservation thinking about the future. Particular attention will research between libraries, archives and be drawn to the central issue of Learning support museums as a role played by libraries. On the other hand, * LIS Education in Developing Countries SIG: the necessity of rethinking the foundations of the Preparing future librarians in developing countries: professional techniques, due to the development a vision for LIS education in the 21st century of the available technologies. Some Sections have * Copyright and other Legal Matters with 3 FAIFE: Libraries and the Internet: public policy A stamp for IFLA 2009 MILAN challenges The Vatican Library celebrates the 75th * Social Science Libraries: The convergence of World Congress of IFLA the social science libraries with libraries, archives and museums in preserving cultural heritage * Education and Training: The role of library and cultural institutions professionals in cultural heritage: education for the convergence of Libraries, Archives and Museums (LAM) In conclusion, all kind of libraries (national, university, research, parliamentary,

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