Showing posts with label librarian research. Show all posts

Wednesday, September 13, 2017

A Simple Fix for Cringeworthy Crown Copyright

Sonya Betz Wednesday, September 13, 2017 , No comments :

There’s a provision in Canada’s Copyright Act that makes University of Alberta Copyright Librarian, Amanda Wakaruk, cringe. The clause (section 12 of the Act), states that:
Without prejudice to any rights or privileges of the Crown, where any work is, or has been, prepared or published by or under the direction or control of Her Majesty or any government department, the copyright in the work shall, subject to any agreement with the author, belong to Her Majesty and in that case shall continue for the remainder of the calendar year of the first publication of the work and for a period of fifty years following the end of that calendar year.
After multiple years of experiencing difficulty gaining permission for institutions like the U of A Libraries to digitally harvest and distribute publicly accessible government documents for research and study, Wakaruk has channelled her observations and angst about Crown Copyright into a House of Commons e-petition, sponsored by Saskatoon West MP, Sheri Benson. 

The premise of the petition - that information created and published by a government should be accessible to its people - is not unusual. In the United States, federal government publications have been in the public domain since the 1890s. And although the United Kingdom has retained its Crown Copyright provision, the provision has been updated and the country allows broad use and sharing of most public government publications under the terms of an Open Government Licence. Canada’s equivalent federal licence is more restrictive and applied inconsistently across government agencies. 

In Canada, Crown Copyright remains a significant barrier for institutions and individuals who need to use and reuse Canadian parliamentary proceedings, government reports, press releases, and statistical publications. Researchers and librarians are frustrated by the inconsistent interpretation of section 12 by government employees and by having to ask for permission to use these works in ways that should be not only allowed but encouraged in a liberal democracy.

The solution to fix Crown Copyright is simple: the petition calls for the addition of a clause (12.1) that removes copyright protection for government works once they’ve been made publicly available.

Wakaruk sees an important role for librarians in critiquing government information policy and how it affects the public good, and she’s not alone. Her petition is being supported by organizations and individuals from across Canada, and had gained over 1000 signatures at the time of this post.


For more information about Crown Copyright, and to view the e-Petition, which closes on September 23, visit www.fixcrowncopyright.ca.

More information about Amanda’s work on this issue can be found here: https://sites.google.com/a/ualberta.ca/wakaruk/presentations.

Monday, January 18, 2016

Showcase of Librarian Research and Practice at Rutherford Library

Hanne Pearce Monday, January 18, 2016 , , No comments :
Librarians at the University of Alberta Libraries are active practitioners who through the course of their work often develop new and interesting methods and start new initiatives that are widely recognized. To share some of this great work, the Libraries is hosting an exhibit of librarian conference posters from the past two years at the Rutherford Library from January 15-29th. These posters showcase the variety of knowledge University of Alberta librarians have to share, from original research-generated contributions to lessons learned through practice and project-based innovation.



The exhibit includes posters that were displayed at conferences such as: The International Academy of Nursing Editors Annual Conference, 8th International Evidence Based Library and Information Practice Conference, Open Repositories 2015 and the Art Libraries Society of North America Annual Conference, to name just a few. You can see the full list of posters and authors at the bottom of this post.

Please do take the time to wander through Rutherford Galleria sometime in the next two weeks to view this work. These posters show our librarians' commitment to sharing their knowledge with the greater community.

The Posters Include:

Does the Personal Librarian Program help make the University of Alberta Libraries more relevant and supportive for students in specific populations? Nancy Goebel, Head Librarian Augustana Campus Library

Disabilities and library accessibility: Partnering for success
Denis Lacroix, Public Services Librarian
Maria Tan Medical Librarian, Knowledge Resource Service, Alberta Health Services - Cross Cancer Institute

Perilous possibilities: Exploring the implementation of publication best practices in a competitive nursing academic environment
Thane Chambers Public Services Librarian,
Lori Walter, Scholarly Communications Librarian, University of British Columbia Okanagan

Hydra North: University of Alberta’s Hydra DAMS implementation
Peter Binkley, Digital Initiatives Technology Librarian
Piyapong Charoenwattana, Programmer Analyst
Sharon Farnel, Metadata Coordinator
Leah Vanderjagt, Digital Repository Services Librarian

Systematic reviews in LIS: Identifying evidence and gaps for practice
Dr. Denise Koufogiannakis, Collections and Acquisitions Coordinator
Dr. Alison Brettle, Reader in Evidence Based Practice, University of Salford, UK

The influence of aesthetics on young people’s trust of information
Allison Sivak, Public Services Librarian

Hydra North: Moving forward with 10 years of repository history -- baby steps to a solid centralized Digital Asset Management System
Weiwei Shi, Digital Initiatives Applications Librarian
Sharon Farnel, Metadata Coordinator

Design students unlock Open Access

Sarah Polkinghorne, Public Services Librarian

Friday, May 22, 2015

Sarah Polkinghorne Selected as Peer Mentor for Librarians' Research Institute

Anonymous Friday, May 22, 2015 , No comments :
The Canadian Association of Research Libraries [CARL] recently announced the 2015 Peer Mentors for this year's Librarians' Research Institute [LRI], which will be hosted by Simon Fraser University in June.  We are very pleased to share that Sarah Polkinghorne, Subject Librarian for Art & Design, Drama, and Psychology in UAL's Rutherford Library, has been selected to serve in this capacity.

LRI Peer Mentors have a proven research record and an active, sustained research agenda.  In consultation with program leaders, they develop and deliver the content to participants. The Institute also provides an opportunity for Peer Mentors to connect with the other librarians doing a similar level of research in Canada, and meet institute participants from across the country.

Sarah will be one of five Peer Mentors who provide support to 30 LRI participants.  As a graduate of the program herself, Sarah will offer support and advice from an informed perspective.   She has a strong track record of research, and her current interests relate to librarians' experiences of teaching and the role of information in everyday life. Sarah is a two-time recipient of the award for Best Paper by a Practitioner from the Canadian Association for Information Science. In 2013, she received an award to present her work in Aberdeen at the Information: Interactions and Impact conference.

"It is very encouraging to see continued interest from the academic library community to develop research skills among practicing librarians." said Gwendolyn Ebbett, Chair of the CARL Research Libraries Committee and University Librarian at the University of Windsor. "It is encouraging to see research being published from past Peer Mentors and participants, and we continue to support this important part of our community."



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