40th Annual Conference: Day 2

Day 2 – Monday September 15
Opening session in SPC 
After opening remarks, welcomes, and thank yous by Mary-Clare, Sally, and Guillermina, Franck Magron, SPC IT technician, spoke about the difficulties of managing and distributing fisheries information to the fisheries managers in Pacific Island nations.  While a site might have a library they may not have a librarian and many have no catalog.  So the researchers working there don’t even know what they have.  Proposing online storage and dessimination to fishery officers but have to consider copyright and limits on public release.  Questions centered on how to make the metadata publicly available and how/who outside SPC might access the documents.

Kathy Heil then explained the Guin auction, distributed secret names, discussed payment (Kristen LaBonte thinks she may have PayPal set up by conference end – we are so progressive!) and opened the auction.  Some fun and interesting items appear to be available.  First big bid was on small bag of ketchup flavored potato chips – 1000 cfp or about $10US!

Morning break: coffee, tea, orange and mango juice, platters of pizza and small pastries (Danish, croissants, and chocolate croissants). Yum!!  No need eat breakfast if can wait for morning tea…

Next session begins!  Lead off speaker is Stephanie Watt of SPC.  Great description of SPC library and their charge and accomplishments.

Stephanie was followed by Ataban Kapule from Solomon Islands, Ministry of Fisheries library.  Ministry of Fisheries mostly concerned with inshore fishery.  Ataban talked about how difficult it is to run a library in the Solomon’s as there is little internal support. They are currently having problems with their Koha catalog but are being assisted by technicians from SPC.  Their library burned but PIMRIS is their backup and has been assisting them with replacement of their collection.

Hannah Russell from NIWA, New Zealand was last of morning speakers.  In 2011, a review of NIWA focused on centralization.  All physical services and collections were moved to Wellington and admin staff at other sites were delegated to serve as library liaisons.  Staff now reduced to 3 and changed the LMS from Sirsi/Dynix to Koha with Ebsco discovery layer. Ah, the demise of our libraries…

LUNCH! We sure are being fed well!  Served buffet style on a covered outdoor deck: lovely whitefish in a light sauce, saffron rice with pineapple and golden raisins, coleslaw, a ceviche, rolls and butter.  There was a light cream cake was offered for dessert.  Burp

Afternoon session started off with description of the current platform for the digital platform Univers NC and the problems faced and dreams for future.  Isabelle Gasser and David Aymonin also talked about importance of collaboration.  Startling number of scientific organization in a country of 300,000.  

I’m very interested in PIMRIS so I was quite looking forward to Susana Macanawai’s presentation.  She didn’t disappoint.  PIMRIS is regional network of marine/fisheries libraries or information centers.  The library is a branch of USP Laucala Library in Suva.  Major partners are USP, SPC, FFA, and SPREP.  Foster collaboration!  Funding is from USP and proposals written by Susana to international donors. Job is communication & delivery. Staff in various countries are employees of their ministries of fisheries.  The collaboration with PIMRIS is above and beyond their regulR work.  Funding raised is used to train these people.  Opportunities to contact people, deliver materials, invigorate the network are identified by knowing who is traveling where or who is working where that the PIMRIS staff and members can contact to continue the work to strengthen the network throughout the region. “Better together”

  Break time!  What’s not to like?  More tea… And oh my, cookies (aka biscuits) but I’m still full from lunch!  David Baca is not what one might call adventurous as he wouldn’t try a cookie until someone else tried one and gave him a taste description.  All I can say is, ” Mr Baca, I’m done being your canary!”

Dorene Naidu from SPC brought us back from break with an explanation of the library twinning project that brought some specialized knowledge training to participants from Pacific libraries by librarians from various Australian libraries.  Training included new computer skills, repositories, disaster planning and visits to major Australian libraries.  Great experience for everyone involved.

Last of the day but certainly not least, Lyra Pagulayan who, while working on her library degree, is the sole source maintaining Fishbase.  She did a study to see which organizations in Phillipines are sharing resources collaboratively.  Results: libraries usually collaborate, join partnership on project basis, limited sharing resources, limited level of trust, and low level of communication. SEAFDAC is only institution really in a position to share.  Really well designed study!

PIRG meeting and dinner in the evening.

Brought to you by Kris Anderson

September 15, 2014 · Filed under Announcements, Conference News

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