Have Library Card, Will Travel...

[christine dimartino]

I don't know about the rest of you guys out there but I am facinated by the inner workings of libraries not my own. Chatting with some colleagues the other day it occurred to me that it would be fantastic to be able to travel around the world on a librarian's exchange program. How cool would it be to switch places with a librarian in a foreign country for a week--or two? I always visit a library in foreign cities but imagine getting to see behind the scenes?! What do you all think...can we make it work?

[Marcus Elmore]

Hi Christine -- CILIP (The Chartered Institute of Library and Information Professionals) sponsors an exchange program between libraries in the UK/Ireland and elsewhere: see http://www.cilip.org.uk/jobscareers/libex

[Meaghan Battle]

Hi Christine! You are so right...that would be cool! I know that the Association for Library Service to Children, a division of ALA, does have that kind of exchange program possibility...or at least they used to. Perhaps other divisions of ALA do too! Do you have your passport all ready to go??

[Bonnie]

Hi Christine -- perhaps that could be a very cool video mash-up project...something libraries around the world could share online...tour the world of libraries...a look across countries, cultures, individual libraries, networks, or systems...in multiple languages...librarians could shoot a simple short video of their library, what they do, practices, projects, whatever... and post it to global libraries presenting- http://librariespresent.ning.com/- and we all could make a sweet and exponentially growing mash-up as other libraries come onboard...what do you think?