Abstract

The article presents the characteristics of the Instituto Cervantes Library Network in relation with the cooperation existing between them, as well as the two main projects under development. Firstly, there is an introduction to the frame of action of the 61 special libraries as an international network. The two aforementioned projects are explained in detail: a common database for knowledge management and a cooperative plan for periodicals administration. There is a final point considering the value of cooperation between libraries.

Abstract

The Women’s Documentation Centres and Libraries Network, formally established in 1995, links and coordinates 41 Spanish information units which are associated to various entities and are characterised by collections specializing in gender studies, feminism and women in general. Its purpose is to strengthen professional support for staff, library cooperation, solutions to common problems and the development of tools to facilitate the work of these centres. We present its origins, its evolution and development, structure and operation, plus a SWOT analysis that shows the external situation of the network and its internal features.

Abstract

Reflection on the interaction between national information policies and development cooperation projects in the field ofacademic and research libraries. The evolution of the information policy concept, its relation to development cooperation, and the central role that for nearly seventy years Unesco  has played on those matters are analyzed. Finally, cooperation scenarios in which professionals of university and research libraries in developing countries could develop projects aligned with national information policies are examined.

Abstract

It is argued that despite the many changes being experienced by research and specialized libraries, and documentation centers, which cause them doubts about their future, there are some certainties that allow these centers to properly address their activities. It is proposed to distinguish between minor and profound changes and it is affirmed that, for information centers, the fundamental change has been to go from a situation in which information was scarce and the time to look for it abundant, to another in which time to look for information is scarce and information is abundant. This should help redirect the activities of the information centers -following M. Buckland- to stop focusing on the ‘information- as-an-object’ to concentrate on the ‘information-as-a-process’. Two consolidated movements should help them to guide their future: the Open Science and the Digital Humanities. Some information products that reflect a change in the ways people approach and use information are examined: Museo del Prado’s The Collection, Transcribe Bentham, eBird and Mapa Literari Català. Finally, the author recommends to documentation centers, and specialized and research libraries to guide their services to digitize their heritage collections in an enriched manner, to promote citizen participation, and to create and strengthen communities.

Abstract

In Spain, the laws of heritage, both national and those of autonomous regions do not make specific references to the lesbian, gay, transgender, bisexual and intersex (LGTBI) heritage. The few references that we can find refer to the regional laws on LGTBI equality. The present investigation has three main objectives: 1) to analyze, categorize and compare the presence and considerations on LGTBI heritage in the 9 Autonomous Communities that have legislated in terms of equality and non-discrimination in relation to LGTBI people; 2) to know if the mentions of heritage have to do with material or intangible historical heritage and historical sites in a context of timelessness, or, conversely, if allusions have to do with assets related to Francoism or of recent creation; and 3) to analyze the possible provisions that these laws may make on the presence of LGTBI-themed funds in libraries and the creation of specialized documentation centers. The methodology used is qualitative and comparative.