Annual Report 2022-2023: IT Section

Abstract

We held two successful AI Satellite meetings, the most recent one happening as a joint mid-term meeting in Singapore in March. Another regional AI symposium happened in South Africa in September. This work followed up on the first AI Satellite in Ireland in conjunction with WLIC 2022 and reached out to additional regions to engage more librarians on this important subject. The Communication Team led the TILT newsletter (Trends and Issues in Library Technology) with two issues published per year. The last two years they have produced thematic issues related to topics on Big Data, Agile methods, and AI. The Communication Team leads an active Facebook presence as well as a Twitter account. During conferences they coordinate live tweeting and have shown an increase in engagement with the membership. The AI symposium was held at North-West University, Potchefstroom, South Africa on 5 - 7 September 2023, IT Section member, Chipa Maimela reported at WLIC that the planning team was wellorganized and had lots of interest and local participation. A pre-conference site visit had been completed, and the venue was excellent. The topic of AI has shown how robust regional interest is in conferences and we can develop this as a model. We have continued collaboration with the Subject Analysis and Access Section who share an interest in AI and automating methods of working with data. This year we expanded to include partnering with the Cataloguing Section on two joint programs. We continue to work with the Continuing Professional Development and Workplace Learning Section on projects such as bringing Library Carpentry and other IT skills to the IFLA membership. The AI SIG has also begun to build partnerships with others interested in this popular topic, with joint sessions with several Sections focused on AI governance, ethics, and freedom of information.