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7th International Evidence Based Library and Information Practice Conference awarded to Saskatchewan, Canada for 2013

EBLIP7, the seventh in the successful series of International Conferences to promote evidence based approaches to library and information practice has been awarded to Saskatchewan, Canada to take place in Summer 2013.  A strong team, coordinated by the University of Saskatchewan Library, successfully shook off a challenge from a well-presented South American competitor to secure the votes of the International Selection Committee.

Sheffield, England, December 20th, 2011 -- The International Advisory Committee (IAC) for the International Evidence Based Library and Information Practice Conference Series [1] unanimously awarded the EBLIP7 Conference to the Saskatoon bid [2], coordinated by Virginia Wilson, Client Services Librarian, at the Murray Library, University of Saskatchewan.
 
Criteria for selection included the location, facilities, regional and national support, the strength of the organising team and unique selling points. Saskatchewan was commended for the overall quality of its proposal including a good understanding of the requirements of the conference, excellent support for the EBLIP movement and its recognition of the need to offer a spectrum of cost options.
 
Andrew Booth, Reader in Evidence Based Information Practice at the University of Sheffield, Convenor for the IAC, stated that “while the International Advisory Committee collectively felt a great deal of good will regarding opening up the movement to new areas of the world and to new sectors it soon became readily apparent that it was impossible to ignore the compelling business case and well-prepared portfolio from the Canadian team”.    
 
Welcoming the Committee’s verdict Virginia Wilson, a long-time supporter of the EBLIP movement, both internationally and within Canada, said that the Saskatchewan Local Organising Committee “are honoured to be chosen and very excited to host the international EBLIP community in 2013”.

Ongoing information on the EBLIP7 Conference will be shared with the international community during 2012 and 2013 via the open access journal, Evidence Based Library and Information Practice, the principal organ of the EBLIP community, and the evidence-based-libraries jiscmail (http://www.jiscmail.ac.uk/lists/EVIDENCE-BASED-LIBRARIES.html) discussion list.

About the EBLIP Conference Series:

The EBLIP Conference is a biennial conference designed to promote the use of best available evidence to improve library and information practice in all types of libraries. It aims to bring together practitioners, researchers and students involved in critical and reflective information practice to think through new ways to address contemporary issues of evidence based practice in less isolated, more collaborative, ways. The first EBL(IP) Conference took place in Sheffield, UK in 2001. Subsequent conferences have been hosted in Edmonton (Canada, 2003), Brisbane (Australia, 2005), Chapel Hill (USA, 2007), Stockholm (Sweden, 2009) and Salford (UK, 2011).

Contact:

Andrew Booth,

Convenor of the International Advisory Committee,

c/o ScHARR, University of Sheffield

+44(0)114 222 0705

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Notes for Editors:

1.       The International Advisory Committee for the International Evidence Based Library and Information Practice Conference Series is comprised of representatives from all previous conference hosting sites – Denise Koufogiannakis (Edmonton, 2003), Helen Partridge (Brisbane, 2005), Joanne Marshall (North Carolina, 2007), Lotta Haglund (Stockholm, 2009) and Maria Grant/Alison Brettle (Salford, 2011). Selection of the EBLIP7 venue was co-ordinated by Andrew Booth (Sheffield, 2001), a non-voting convenor.

2.     Saskatoon is the largest city (population-wise) in the province of Saskatchewan, Canada, located just east of Alberta and the Rocky Mountains and just west of Manitoba. Saskatoon is in the central area of the province, approximately 250km north of the capital city of Regina. Saskatoon is 620km from Calgary, Alberta, 1677km from Vancouver, British Columbia, and 2927km from Toronto, Ontario. The Saskatoon John G. Diefenbaker International Airport serves the City of Saskatoon. There is non-stop service to Toronto, Ottawa, Winnipeg, Calgary, Edmonton, Vancouver, Minneapolis, Denver, and Chicago. There is one-stop, connecting service to most major Canadian, US, and international destinations via Minneapolis/St.Paul, Toronto, Calgary, Vancouver, Denver, Chicago & Las Vegas.

3.      The University Library, University of Saskatchewan, will be the host institution for EBLIP7. The Local Organizing Committee’s first choice is to hold the conference on the University of Saskatchewan campus. The University has both the facilities and the ability to create a sense of community that is perfect for conferences. It is well equipped to host an international conference with spacious, functional rooms available for plenary and concurrent sessions, and campus Information technology Services (ITS) on site. Additionally, the University’s guest wireless network internet service is available at no cost for conference delegates. There are accommodations on campus in the clean, comfortable, and convenient Voyageur Place Residences, or for those who wish to stay in a hotel, downtown hotel accommodations are a mere 5-10 minute cab ride, a short bus ride, or a 15-25 minute walk away.  

4.   Virginia Wilson is an academic librarian working at the University of Saskatchewan. She was the co-convenor for the Canadian Library Association's Evidence Based Librarianship Interest Group and created a toolkit on evidence based librarianship for public libraries. She has written evidence summaries for the journal Evidence Based Library and Information Practice and currently writes the EBL 101 column for that journal. Research is an important part of Virginia’s practice: she has established a program of research, conducting research as a faculty member and using research evidence to inform her practice.