34th Annual Mortenson Distinguished Lecture
"Reading as Belonging: Implications for Library and Information Practice," by Nadia Caidi, professor and director of international student experience, Faculty of Information, University of Toronto
The lecture will be offered in person and online. Register here.
Abstract: In this Lecture, I want to challenge us to think about the extent to which our library and information field is truly moving the dial on today’s pressing societal challenges. Are we really equipping our students and staff with the skills and mindset they need to work meaningfully with communities, to practice an ethics of care towards the most marginalized, to take responsibility for our collective future? We will do so by examining the example of migration and belonging through the lens of heritage language and young people’s engagement with reading for pleasure. Despite playing a crucial role in communities as spaces of gathering, learning, memory and culture, libraries are also institutions that continue to be perceived and experienced as culturally and linguistically homogeneous. I argue that a systemic approach to understanding the issues of identity and heritage language loss can benefit librarians (and other actors) in supporting the youth’s intertwined identities as members of rich cultural, linguistic and reading communities. The Lecture presents a recent study of over 50 Canadian youth (aged between 13-18) who are members of the French official language minority community in Ontario, using a participatory approach that included 4 co-design workshops with youth, an 8-week reading diary activity, and interviews with key actors was devised. The findings open the way for critical discussions about the field and practice of librarianship, and about what we risk losing if we do not invest and lean on solidarity networks to sustain (or rebuild) our field’s societal trust and relevance.
Bio: Nadia Caidi is professor and director of international student experience at the Faculty of Information in the University of Toronto. She is a scholar of information (and) marginalization and the role that information resources, institutions, and technologies play in the everyday lives of individuals and communities in various states of transition. Her research has been conducted in the context of global migration, language communities in a minority context, techno-spiritual and religious practices, and diversity by design in the information fields. Read more at Profile page and Personal webpage.
A reception will follow the lecture.
Questions? Contact the Mortenson Center for International Library Programs
This event is sponsored by the iSchool, Center for Global Studies, Mortenson Center for International Library Programs, University Library