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ISSN 1039-3498 | no. 46 | August 2000


Library welcomes Pacific colleagues

Five Pacific Islands archivists and librarians were successful in obtaining sponsorship to attend the Pacific History Association Conference. This was arranged by the Centre for the Contemporary Pacific, Australian National University, through the Pacific Islands Senior Visiting Fellowship Scheme. The five colleagues were speakers at the conference and then had an extra week of visits to Canberra libraries and archives.

The National Library welcomed the group on Monday 3 July for a tour of the Library, the special collection areas and a visit to the conservation laboratory.

The visitors were Mr Simeon Adelbai, Belau National Museum; Ms Elizabeth Fong, University of the South Pacific Library; Mr Tom Sakias, National Archives of Vanuatu; Mr Kunei Etekiera, Kiribati National Library and Archives; and Mr Joseph Naguwean, University of Papua New Guinea Library.

After the tour, a round table discussion was held in the Preservation Services section, with the visitors describing their own institutions and the type of preservation issues they were experiencing. Warm, humid conditions (and the associated insects/rodents) and a lack of staff seemed to be recurring themes for each institution. Other topics touched on included the cost of Internet connections, the availability of technicians to maintain and repair office equipment, digitisation of collections, microfilming, problems associated with regular interruptions to electricity supplies and the difficulties with buildings and reading rooms too small to accommodate the number of people wanting to access the collection.

The National Library staff members participating in the discussion were from Preservation Services, Technical Services and International Relations. This was a valuable opportunity to discuss topics of mutual interest face to face and to exchange information.

Following the visit the Library hosted a congenial lunch at Old Parliament House before the visitors’ next port of call at the National Archives of Australia.
Jennifer Anderson

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