Carryl with Judit Gerencsér and Zelia Pereira outside the Metro- politan Ervin Szabó Library in Budapest. Right: A reading room in the library.
participants attending the International Library Leaders Programme, July 2025 which is a week-long intensive profes- sional development course for mid-career library profession- als from around the world. A fabulous programme it offers a unique opportunity to go behind the scenes of the British Library, with workshops, talks and tours. It reminded me of a British Council two-week Academic Library Planning and Design course I attended at the Uni- versity of Newcastle Upon Tyne with 25 librarians from all around the world. Not only did I learn a great deal from the UK librarians who lectured us, but I made friends for life with some of those on the course and with whom I’ve kept in touch with over the years. When the opportunity has arisen, I’ve visited some of those librarians and their libraries whenever I’ve visited their countries – which is certainly one of the benefits of being part of a global library profession. In August I attended the International Federation of Library Associations (IFLA) World Library and Informa- tion Congress (WLIC) in Astana, Kazakhstan. I’d persuaded our Ambassador to Kazakhstan to host the UK Caucus for conference delegates at the British Embassy Residence. We were honoured that the IFLA President, President Elect, Secretary General, a few members of the IFLA Governing Body, some UK-based suppliers as well as several librarians from the Nazbarbayev University Library (who were volun- teers at WLIC 2025) were able to attend. The highlights of WLIC 2025 for me were hearing about the three shortlisted entries in the IFLA/Baker & Taylor Public Library of the Year Award (
https://tinyurl.com/bde7zrnz), and the 10 entries in the IFLA PressReader International Marketing Award 2025
Carryl at the IFLA WLIC in Astana, Kazakhstan.
(
https://tinyurl.com/vhrujpr5) where the winner was the exceptional Worcester Public Library (USA) ‘March Meowness’ (https://tinyurl. com/5b2wawjj). It was also inspiring to attend the WLIC Closing Ceremony and hear Lesley Weir’s Incoming Presidential address (
https://tinyurl.com/bevswu2k) in which she outlined her priorities for her 2025–2027 term, including her call to Be Bold and reaffirmed the role of libraries as essential, resilient, and innovative contrib- utors to global and local communities.
The People’s Bookshelf in the National Library of Latvia.
Winter 2025
Each year the CILIP President agrees a theme for their Presiden- tial year, and it has been particularly difficult for me to decide on mine. My diverse experience has seen me work in special, academic, national and government libraries as well as in library supply for EBSCO in the UK and as Agent for the Legal Deposit Libraries (Universities of Oxford, Cambridge, Trinity College Dublin and the National Libraries of Wales and Scotland). I’ve worked in acqui- sitions, periodicals, cataloguing, special collections and technical services as well as reference services and user education, and I’ve also lectured in library and information science. I’ve been responsi- ble for designing a university branch library, creating an exhibition space and coffee shop, drafting national library legislation, devising a mobile library outreach service and closing a library. As Head of Knowledge and Information Management and Chief Librarian at the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office my primary focus is information management. All these experiences have reinforced my belief that professional librari- anship equips you with highly transferable skills in management, communications, critical thinking and adaptability. International librarianship has always been a key interest of mine, shaped by my experiences working in Africa and the UK. Therefore, as we approach CILIP’s 150th anniversary and look ahead to the future of our profession, it is essential we envision the libraries we need for the next century. My chosen theme, Advocacy with impact reflects a commitment to enhancing CILIP’s effectiveness with advocacy and storytelling, and our need to highlight the daily achievements of library and informa- tion professionals and our wonderful CILIP volunteer networks. As we prepare for #CILIP150 and #IFLA100 in 2027, this 149th year of CILIP presents a pivotal challenge. We must make strate- gic decisions about where to invest our time and energy. IFLA’s own Trend Report (
https://tinyurl.com/mupacuty) is aimed at helping libraries and library associations with futures thinking, but with AI making trends so uncertain, effective advocacy is required. Now, more than ever, it is essential we communicate the collec- tive achievements and value of CILIP with clarity and conviction – demonstrating our impact in a rapidly changing and financially constrained environment. IP
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