Conversations with Leading Academic and Research Library Directors

Patrick Lo is currently serving as Associate Professor at the Faculty of Library, Information & Media Science, the University of Tsukuba in Japan. He earned his Doctor of Education from the University of Bristol (U.K.), and has a Master of Arts in Design Management from the Hong Kong Polytechnic University, a Master of Library & Information Science from McGill University (Canada), and a Bachelor of Fine Arts from Mount Allison University (Canada). He also took part in a one-year academic exchange at the University of Tübingen in Germany from 1990-91. He is efficient in Chinese (both Cantonese and Putonghua), English and German. Dr. Patrick Lo has presented about 100 research papers and project reports focusing on librarianship, humanities, and education at different local and international workgroup meetings, seminars, conferences, etc., including: Mainland China, Hong Kong, Austria, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Korea, Turkey, United States, and Sweden, and at institutions including the Library of Congress (U.S.), Austrian National Library (Vienna), University of Vienna, National Library of France (Paris), National Institute of Informatics (Japan), Konrad-Zuse-Center for Information Technology (Berlin), etc. His research interests and areas of specialty include: comparative studies in library and information science (LIS); art and design librarianship and information literacy. Dickson Chiu currently teaches at the University of Hong Kong. He holds a PhD, and MSc in Computer Science from Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (HKUST). Chiu started his own computer company while studying part-time. He has published numerous papers in international journals and proceedings, edited over 15 books and proceedings, and is the founding Editor-in-chief of the International Journal on Systems and Service-Oriented Engineering. His research interests include librarianship and cross-disciplinary approaches in information management involving workflows, software engineering, information technologies, management, security, and databases. Allan Cho is an academic librarian at the University of British Columbia, Canada, in the Humanities and Social Sciences division. His subject liaison areas include Digital Humanities, Asian Studies, English, and Library and Information Science. His work also supports the community engagement initiatives and cultural programming at the Irving K. Barber Learning Centre. He is also an instructor in the Department of Library and Information Technology at the University of Fraser Valley in British Columbia, Canada. Cho holds MLIS, MA and M.Ed. degrees from the University of British Columbia. His research focuses on digital media, digital humanities, and emerging technologies in libraries. Bradley Allard is currently a Reference and Outreach Librarian at the Clark County Public Library (Winchester, Kentucky). He received an MLIS from the University of Kentucky, an MA in Japanese Language and Literature from Washington University in St. Louis, and a BA in English Literature from the University of Kentucky. He has also spent time studying in Japan as an exchange student particularly at the International Christian University and the University of Tsukuba. His research interests focus on services to disadvantaged groups in public libraries, services to international students, and the internationalization of academic libraries.

"This book appeals to library leaders and those who aspire to library leadership, but it also provides useful insights into the future of libraries for any library professional or library student. The book is neatly structured, with each chapter dedicated to one library director and taking an easy-to-read question-and-answer format." --Hong Kong Library Association News"The role, function, place and design of libraries has changed and continues to evolve as definitions of and conceptions about knowledge, information, and texts shift. In the midst of this shifting universe, this timely volume offers a unique opportunity to learn from a veritable who’s who in library management from some of the best universities and institutions of higher education in the world. Each author in this collection speaks with insight and authority, bringing rich experiences and deep understanding from multiple perspectives and nations to bear on ever-complex questions of what it means to learn and know in the 21stcentury." --Prof A. Lin Goodwin, Dean, Faculty of Education, The University of Hong Kong"In an era of information acceleration that the world has never seen, this book provides fascinating insights from the front line professionals about how they navigated the transformation and mastered the management of university collections and research libraries. By reading each case across so many countries, one can begin to see the global story of how a profession has sustained and improved the essential service to students, scholars, and scientists amidst challenges never imagined in the pre-cyber age. The authors and contributors should be congratulated for this collection of personal experience based on years of leadership and professional practice." --Prof Gerald A. Postiglione, Chair Professor of Studies in Higher Education

• 1. Dr. Sarah Thomas, Vice President for the Harvard Library and University Librarian; Roy E. Larsen Librarian for the Faculty of Arts and Sciences2. Dr. Susan Gibbons, University Librarian, Deputy Provost, Collections & Scholarly Communication, Yale University　3. Dr. Gregory Eow, Associate Director for Collections, MIT Libraries, Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT)　4. Virginia Steel, University Librarian, University of California, Los Angeles5. Dr. Deborah Jakubs, University Librarian & Vice Provost for Library Affairs, Duke University 6. Dr. James Hilton, Vice Provost for Academic Innovation, University Librarian and Dean of Libraries, University Library, University of Michigan　7. Dr Winston Tabb, Sheridan Dean of University Libraries and Museums at Johns Hopkins University8. Michael Gorman, University Librarian Emeritus, Henry Madden Library, California State University, Fresno9. Richard Ovenden, Bodley’s Librarian, University of Oxford 　10. Mark Purcell, Deputy Director, Research Collections, Cambridge University Library　11. Jirka Kende, Director, Free University Berlin Library　12. Prof. Dr. Andreas Degkwitz, Director, Library of the Humboldt University of Berlin 　13. Dr. Rafael Ball, Director of Library, Swiss Federal Institute of Technology Zurich (ETH)14. Wilma van Wezenbeek, Director, TU Delft Library (Delft, Netherlands)15. Helen Shenton, University Librarian, Trinity College Dublin16. Diane Bruxvoort, University Librarian & Director, University of Aberdeen17. Wilhelm Widmark, Library Director, Stockholm University Library 18. Philip Gregory Kent, University Librarian at the University of Melbourne19. Howard Amos, University Librarian, University of Otago (Dunedin, New Zealand)　20. Qiang Zhu, Director, Peking University Library 21. Peter Sidorko, University Librarian, University of Hong Kong22. Louise Jones, University Librarian, Chinese University of Hong Kong23. Gulcin Cribb, University Librarian, Singapore Management University 　24. Dr. Buhle Mbambo-Thata, former Executive Director, Library Services, University of South Africa25. Christopher D. Barth, Librarian and Associate Dean, United States Military Academy 　26. Daniel De Simone, Eric Weinmann Librarian, Folger Shakespeare Library　27. Dr. Linda Harris Mehr, Director, Margaret Herrick Library, Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences　28. Dr. Dietrich Nelle, Director, German National Library of Medicine　29. Elena Ivanova, Head, Joint Institute for Nuclear Research Scientific Library (Moscow)30. Professor Nikolay Kalenov, Director, Library for Natural Sciences of Russian Academy of Sciences (LNS RAS)Conclusion