IFLA Library History Special Interest Group
Through the Library History SIG we share professional library knowledge and its contribution to the global voice of the library and information profession. Globally, libraries and information services have deep roots in their societies and associations. As everything changes, there is much we can learn and we can gain inspiration from the struggles, successes, and failures of our predecessors and elders in various parts of the world.
Members of the IFLA Library History Special Interest Group have started conducting oral history interviews and are also developing a programme of research into aspects of IFLA’s history, with a view to contributing to celebration of the IFLA centenary year 2027.
This unit is sponsored by the Library Theory and Research Section.
This unit is part of the Professional Division E.
Dr. Mary Carroll is an adjunct Associate Professor at Charles Sturt University, Australia, in the School of Information and Communication Studies. Prior to her retirement she worked as a teacher librarian, teacher, library studies educator in the vocational sector, an LIS university lecturer, Course Director, and as the Associate Head of School (staffing and development) at Charles Sturt University. In 2021-2023 she served as a Director on the board of the Australian Library and Information Association (ALIA). She continues to be actively engaged in the professional and scholarly community and in research. Mary's research and writing focus on the history of libraries and of education, the story of women in librarianship, and the place of libraries in addressing disadvantage.
Dr. Paola Castellucci is Professor at Sapienza University of Rome (Library and Information Science; Documentation), Italy, with more than 30 years of research activities and teaching experience in Documentation, Library and Information Science, Digital Humanities. Five books published over the years with the most prestigious Italian publishing houses, such as Il Mulino, Laterza, Mimesis: on Open Science, Hypertext, Suzanne Briet. President of the SISBB-Società italiana di scienze bbiliografiche e biblioteconomiche (Italian Learned Society of Bibliographic and Library Sciences). Has published approximately 150 articles and book chapters. Editor-in-chief of the scientific journal “Nuovi Annali della Scuola Speciale per Archivisti e Bibliotecari,” published by the prestigious publishing house Olschki (founded in 1886). Member of the Scientific Council of ICCU, the Central Institute for the Italian Union Catalog (opac SBN).
Dr. Anup Kumar Das is an avid academic social science researcher, and information specialist working with the Centre for Studies in Science Policy at Jawaharlal Nehru University, India since January 2007. He served as a Consultant to UNESCO New Delhi and the Commonwealth of Learning (COL). He has been associated with the IFLA Library History Special Interest Group since 2016. He has written three books, including Open Access to Knowledge and Information: Scholarly Literature and Digital Library Initiatives – the South Asian Scenario (UNESCO, 2008); A Comparative Study of India's Research Performance in Scientific and Technological Areas of Clean Energy and Water (2006-17): A Scientometric Analysis (2020), and four self-learning modules in the UNESCO Open Access Curricula for Researchers and Library Schools (2015). He obtained research funding from the Department of Science and Technology (DST), Indian Council of Social Science Research (ICSSR), Global Initiative of Academic Networks (GIAN), COL, and UNESCO New Delhi office for different research projects. He has contributed over 80 research articles in indexed scholarly journals and edited books. He was awarded PhD from Jadavpur University, Kolkata in 2009.
Eleni Droulia is a graduate of the School of Philosophy of the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, Greece, and holds a postgraduate degree from the Sorbonne University I in the field of Byzantine and Post-Byzantine History; she has contributed to the programme ‘Greek Bibliography of the 19th century,’ gaining important experience in the field of the History of Greek publishing. She has been working at the Hellenic Parliament Library since 1992, where she served as Head the years 2015-2021. She has represented the Hellenic Parliament Library at numerous conferences, including ECPRD, IFLA (twice a Standing Committee member and once a Coordinator) and ICA. Her role has encompassed managing workshops and delivering presentations
Dr. Peter Johan Lor holds a D.Phil. degree (1991) as well as an honorary doctorate (2008) from the University of Pretoria. He was South Africa’s first National Librarian (2000-2003), and was deeply involved in the founding of the Library and Information Association of South Africa (LIASA). LIASA awarded him its Lifetime Achievement Award in 2024. Lor attended his first IFLA Conference in 1983; around thirty others followed. He served as chair of the Conference of Directors of National Libraries (1996-2000) and in standing committees of various IFLA sections. He was IFLA’s Secretary General during 2005-2008, after which he taught in the School of Information Studies of the University of Milwaukee, USA, before formally retiring in 2011. In retirement he remains a research associate in the Department of Information Science, University of Pretoria. He has published a book and many papers on international and comparative librarianship. In the context of preparations for IFLA’s centenary in 2027, his current research focuses on the history of IFLA, with an emphasis on its formative years.
Dr. Claudia Șerbănuță is an information science specialist, community developer, and researcher. She holds a PhD in Library and Information Science from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and served as interim director of the National Library of Romania from 2014- 2016. She is president and co-founder of the Communities of the Future Association, supporting community-led education and civic development initiatives. Claudia has been recognized as a Mover & Shaker by the Library Journal and is a Marshall Memorial Fellowship alumna. Her research focuses on public librarianship, information history, and the role of libraries in democratic societies. Since 2008, Claudia has been actively involved with the IFLA as a volunteer, poster presenter, and speaker at WLICs, as well as at NPSIG and IFLA ENSULIB events. She has published in and served as a reviewer for the IFLA Journal and has been a member of the Library History Special Interest Group since 2023.
Jeffrey M. Wilhite is an Associate
Professor of Bibliography, Government Documents Reference Librarian, for the
Dr. Steve Witt is Head of the International and Area Studies Library and Director of the Center for Global Studies at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, USA, where he also serves as the subject specialist for Global Studies and Japanese. As Editor of the IFLA Journal, the flagship publication of the International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions, he contributes to advancing global perspectives on librarianship and information policy. His research focuses on the historical and international dimensions of library and information science, examining how libraries and knowledge networks have shaped global communication and understanding. Witt is currently working on a chapter for IFLA’s 100-year commemorative volume that traces the history of the Universal Availability of Publications (UAP) program, alongside a major project exploring the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace’s global library campaigns and their influence on internationalism. Integrating digital humanities methods, his work illuminates the ways in which libraries have mediated ideas of peace, globalism, and knowledge exchange across time.
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Mary Carroll (Oral History Subgroup) |
Paola Castellucci (Oral History Subgroup) |
Eleni Droulia (Oral History Subgroup) |
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Anna Maria Tammaro (Convenor) (IFLA100 Book
Editor) |
Peter Lor (IFLA100 Book Editor) |
Steve Witt (IFLA100 Book Editor) |
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Claudia Serbanuta (Communication Subgroup) |
Jeffrey Wilhite (Secretary) (IFLA100 Book Editor) |
Anup Kumar Das (Information Coordinator) |
