Dear Members,

On behalf of the CASBAH Project I am writing to request information from any
members of this list who manage library collections containing research
resources that are used to support teaching, post-graduate research, or
academic staff  publications in Caribbean Studies and  the study of Black
and Asian peoples in Britain.

For information, CASBAH (Caribbean Studies; Black and Asian History) is a
demonstrator project that was established in January 2000 to identify and
map national research resources for Caribbean studies and the history of
Black and Asian people in Britain. Funded by the Research Support Libraries
Programme (RSLP), and based at the Institute of Commonwealth Studies
(University of London) the project is in the process of conducting surveys
in repositories throughout the UK in order to uncover collections of
archival resources, printed sources and audio-visual materials pertinent to
the CASBAH subject areas. Ultimately the results of this survey work will be
displayed on a web-accessible database, due to be made available via the
CASBAH web site http://www.casbah.ac.uk in May 2002.

Having almost completed the project's archive-based research, CASBAH staff
are now preparing to conduct a UK-wide survey of academic, special and
public libraries in order to identify and map significant collections of
printed sources and audio-visual materials for Caribbean studies and the
history of Black and Asian people in Britain. As a prelude to this work we
are seeking the views and opinions of librarians and other information
professionals who have experience of managing UK-based printed sources
collections in these subject areas.  The information we receive from you
will assist us in developing a targeted survey strategy and, ultimately, a
representative dataset for the web site.

We would be interested to receive your responses to the following questions:

(A) CARIBBEAN STUDIES RESOURCES:
1.  Please list the names of any UK-based academic libraries that you have
worked in (or are aware of) that offer support for Caribbean studies:
specifically resources for investigating the geography, politics,
socio-economic structure, and history of specific countries in the Caribbean
and the region as a whole  (including information about past and present
links between the Caribbean region and the UK).
2. For each library that you have identified in response to point (1),
please give your opinions on the main strengths of the collection(s) (i.e.
size of the collection, the range of subjects covered, the numbers/names of
journals collected of relevance to Caribbean studies, topicality, the
library's collection policy in this area, whether the collection is relevant
for contemporary studies or historical research, form of the collection,
date range covered by the collection, etc.)
3. Do you know any printed sources or audio-visual collections housed in
public libraries in the UK that researchers might also find useful for
Caribbean studies?
4. Do you know of any business, commercial or other 'special' libraries
belonging to organisations other than academic institutions or local
authority libraries that have sizeable/significant collections researchers
might use for Caribbean studies (e.g. the library of a UK-based charitable
or commercial organisation with long-established connections with the
Caribbean region)?

(B) BLACK AND ASIAN BRITISH HISTORY RESOURCES:
1. Please list the names of any UK-based academic libraries that you have
worked in (or are aware of) that offer the greatest support for researching
the history of Black and Asian people in Britain?
2. Please give your opinions on the main strengths of the collection(s)
identified above.
3. Do you know any printed sources or audio-visual collections housed in
public libraries in the UK that researchers might also find useful for
conducting research into the history of Black and Asian people in Britain?
4. Do you know of any business, commercial or other 'special' libraries
belonging to organisations other than academic institutions or local
authority libraries that house sizeable/significant collections pertinent to
research about the history of Black and Asian people in Britain?

Please send your responses to any of the above questions, and any other
comments you have on these issues, to Carol Dixon c/o The CASBAH Project
(see full contact details below).

The survey questionnaires are due to be distributed to libraries in May
2001, so we would be grateful for your comments and suggestions as soon as
possible.

Thank you, in advance, for your support.

Carol Dixon
Project Officer
CASBAH Project (Caribbean Studies; Black and Asian History)
Institute of Commonwealth Studies
28 Russell Square
London WC1B 5DS

Direct line: 020 7862 8824
Email: [log in to unmask]
Website: http://www.casbah.ac.uk