[Pal-dc] Dynamic Coalition on Public Access in Libraries meeting at the 2013 IGF, Wednesday 23rd October, 16.30-18.00, Room 10

[Stuart Hamilton]

Dear colleagues

Apologies for cross-posting. This email is going out to those who have interacted with the Dynamic Coalition on Public Access in Libraries (DC-PAL) and library sessions at the IGF, WSIS and ECOSOC in recent years.

DC-PAL will meet for the second time at the IGF in Bali on Wednesday 23rd October, 16.30 - 18.00 in Room 10. At a time when issues such as good governance, transparency and public access to information are increasingly being explored in context of a new Post-2015 Development Framework, and core library issues such as user privacy and freedom of expression are receiving more attention across the world's media as a result of the Snowden revelations, I hope you will be able to come along to find out how libraries are continuing to provide access to the information sources people need to understand the world around them.

This year's meeting will tackle the following agenda:


1. Welcome and introductions

2. Review of DC-PAL activity since last meeting

3. Public Libraries and development: An update on the Beyond Access Campaign

4. Access to information and the Post-2015 Development Framework - Panel and Discussion

a.       Stuart Hamilton, IFLA (Chair)

b.      Duncan Edwards, ICT Innovations Manager, Knowledge Services Team, Institute of Development Studies (IDS)

c.       Diah S. Saminarsih, Assistant President's Special Envoy on MDGs, Office of President's Special Envoy on MDGs, Republic of Indonesia

d.      Janis Karklins, Assistant Director General for Communication and Information, UNESCO

5. The DC-PAL Work Programme for 2013-2014

The main part of the meeting will be devoted to a discussion on item 4, Access to information and the Post-2015 Development Framework. As you will be aware, the United Nations is presently reviewing the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) so that it can prepare a new development framework for the post-2015 period. The framework will guide developed and developing countries in improving living conditions for citizens. Concurrently, UNESCO and ITU are reviewing the World Summit on the Information Society Process (WSIS) to reflect upon its impact and to produce recommendations on WSIS beyond 2015 to the UN Secretary General in September 2014. It is currently thought that the WSIS recommendations will contribute to the Secretary General's thinking regarding any new development framework - but as far as we are aware there is as yet no formally agreed process to make this happen.

The library community believes that the post-2015 development framework should recognise access to information as a fundamental element supporting development<http://www.ifla.org/node/7982>, and we believe that public access to ICTs and information must be recognised as a key focus in the context of the WSIS review. If you are interested in the relationship between information, ICTs and development then please come along to the DC-PAL meeting to hear more on what libraries and other partners are doing to make access to information a key part of a post-2015 development framework - and to get involved in what happens next.

For your information, remote participation is available: http://www.intgovforum.org/cms/remote-participation

Kind regards,

Stuart



Stuart Hamilton
Director of Policy and Advocacy
International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions (IFLA)
P.O. Box 95312
2509 CH The Hague
Netherlands

00 31 70 314 0884

Twitter: @ifladpa



Stuart Hamilton
Director of Policy and Advocacy
International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions (IFLA)
P.O. Box 95312
2509 CH The Hague
Netherlands

00 31 70 314 0884

Twitter: @ifladpa

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