Midterm Meeting of the

International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions (IFLA)

22-24 March 2024

In the days 22 to 24 March 2024, a Midterm Meeting will be held of the International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions (IFLA), the most important international organization of libraries, to which the Vatican Apostolic Library belongs.

The event is organized by various sections of the IFLA: Environment, Sustainability and Libraries (ENSULIB), Library Theory and Research (LIBTHEORY), Preservation and Conservation (PRESCONS), School Libraries (SCHOOL), SIGs Library History (LIBHIST) and Religions: Libraries and Dialogue (RELINDIAL).

The programme comprises three days distributed over three sites, and aims to provide participants with an opportunity for professional development and qualified networking.

The first day (Friday 22 March, Vatican Apostolic Library) will be dedicated mainly to the challenges of digital conservation, with a focus on research and current practice on sustainability and the reuse of digital collections; in particular, in the first half of the day the Vatican Library will present a long-term digital conservation project by the Information Services Coordinator Paola Manoni, the head of the CED Manlio Miceli, and a member of the Information Services, Giuliano Giuffrida.

The second day (Saturday 23 March, General House of the Institute of the Brothers of the Christian Schools, Rome) will concentrate on innovative research methods in the field of information sciences. A further aim of the day is the sharing of experiences in research methods, with a specially dedicated seminar.

The third day (Sunday 24 March, at the Accademia Vivarium Novum, Villa Falconieri, Frascati) will be dedicated to the characteristics and current and future projects of the Accademia Vivarium Novum, between tradition and innovation, with particular attention to its libraries and archives.

This event takes place 96 years after the first international conference held in Rome, on the occasion of which IFLA was officially created and its first statutes drawn up. The Vatican Library in that period was experiencing a moment of prosperity, both institutional and professional, profoundly connected to the events that led to the founding of the IFLA: several international experts, especially from the United States, were assisting the Library in a complex process of modernization involving both services and structures. In the same years, Italy and the city of Rome, at the height of the Fascist regime, hosted in 1928 and 1929 respectively, the preparatory works and the first World Congress of Librarianship and Bibliography, the event marking the official founding of the IFLA.

ACCREDITATION PROCEDURE

Journalists and media workers who wish to participate in the first day must apply, at least 24 hours in advance, via the Holy See Press Office online accreditation system, at press.vatican.va/accreditamenti.