writing about hope for #glamblogclub

This is a lovely theme, as we need to have some hope to keep going every day.

Even with the dangerous political decisions being made around the world, and the many grim things happening, there is still some hope. It may be in:

• how a library is encouraging the photography of the local area, for local studies
• how people are using craftivism to resist what is happening and to lobby
• showing how libraries can help people know what is fake news
• the work of people like Becky Spratford and Robin Bradford
• the Washington Post 
• the just in stream on ABC news
• Colombia Journalism Review
• people speaking out and not being silent
• the work of Felicity Ford who does amazing local studies work (from a non-library perspective)
• UNICEF stories of innovation
• Superheroes in color/colour and We need diverse books and the much more diverse authors I have been reading
• serendipitous discovery

an example of serendipitous discovery - a friend pointed this sign out to me as we were walking along
 

This is only a short list (with a mostly work focus), and there is a lot more.  It is also communities of people encouraging and helping one another, some of this is seen in the links above, some of it is online connections, and some are the face to face connections we all have.  It is also the knowledge that we can all make a difference, but we must choose to take action.

scent and local studies

Earlier this year, as part of the Sydney Festival there was an exhibition called Scent of Sydney by Cat Jones.  People had been interviewed, and from their interviews, scents were created.  Under each ceramic cup there were ashes which could be smelled.


 It combined oral history and smell, as you could listen to each recording, where people talked about places, and people, and the smells associated with these memories.  Then you could smell something which was evocative of this.  It struck me as a very interesting oral history project, and also as a powerful way of connecting to the stories, as you tried to identify the various elements of each combined scent.  This triggered memories as well. It was a very powerful combination of local studies and art.  You can read more about it here.

a few thoughts on Social Media in Southeast Italy by Razvan Nicolescu

Social Media in Southeast Italy by Razvan Nicolescu
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

This is the second book I have read in the Why We Post, series which looks at the work of 'anthropologists who each spent 15 months living in communities across the world'. I had read How the World Changed Social Media which brings together the findings of all the research projects. Social media in south east Italy, looks at how social media is used in one town, with use changing according to age, and commitments. How this changes is different in each of these communities, so I will be reading more of these books. This series of ethnographies is a reminder that while social media is the same, it is very different as well.

This is also a work of local studies as it explores daily life in a community, and indepth social interactions.

I am reading these both for the research methodology and the content. This book was an entertaining and engaging read.

View all my reviews

How does your organisation encourage feedback and interaction?

The Tramsheds at Harold Park have a sign near the entrance (and near the old tram) encouraging feedback, and showing how to connect with them on social media.

Does your library make it this easy?

yet another post about Storify and local studies

I know Storify is not a conservation tool, but it is a useful way to bring together material which you may choose to collect for your library in other ways. ABC Emergency does a great job with Storify to bring together information (mostly) about extreme weather.

Think about how this could be used for bringing together information of local interest, with local studies potential.

Instagram potential for local studies by @oclslibrary

The library staff at Orange County Library System do many amazing things.  Recently on Instagram they announced an #oclslovesorlando instagram challenge. Each day through April there is a different theme.  This is a great way to see how your community sees their environment.  As part of this there is the potential to collect these images for locals studies as a great way of recording what 2017 (for example) looks like.  This is a very exciting project.  Other libraries have done similar things.

I would be very interested to know if libraries are collecting this kind of material for local studies, as collecting recent/current content is really important.

Great work by OCLS, and great hashtag.

We're launching a new Instagram Photo Challenge and we want you to participate! Get out and explore your community in April. Show us your favorite local places and what makes Orlando unique using the hashtag #oclslovesorlando. We'll repost some of our photo favorite submissions during the month. Now get out there and start sharing! #orlando #ocfl #whyorlando #downtownorlando #obrag #localloveorlando #loveocls #orlandodoesntsuck #orlandolife #alocalthing #libraries #library #librariestransform #librariesofinstagram

A post shared by Orange County Library System (@ocls) on Apr 1, 2017 at 11:25am PDT