The country's librarians are about to meet to discuss how libraries have moved with the times, but why there's a lot more moving to do.
A teddy bear chalk drawing in a Heretaunga street, one of many messages of support and solidarity chalked on Upper Hutt's streets. Photo: Supplied/ Upper Hutt City Library - Reid Perkins
Their association LIANZA has organised a three-day conference with some international guests beaming in their keynote addresses.
But there are local presenters too, who want to start up conversations amongst their peers. Lynn Freeman talked to two of them.
Maretha Smit Photo: supplied
Reid Perkins from Upper Hutt City Libraries talked about its efforts to archive the community's pandemic experiences through photographs and Zoomed oral histories.
Maretha Smit, chief executive for Diversity Works NZ, the national body for workplace diversity and inclusion, talked about challenging libraries to reimagine their role and to help marginalised communities.
Perkins said the Upper Hutt Library has built itself an interesting trove of photos and eyewitness accounts of what life has been like in the pandemic in Upper Hutt.
"Obviously the pandemic was going to be well documented at a global and national level, but what we were concerned about was documenting our community's own particular experience of it.
"We realised that unless institutions like public libraries proactively started collecting this material then so much of it would be lost because it's so ephemeral; things like chalk messages on pavements, supermarket queues, even people's memories.
"We thought we should go out there and take the opportunity to capture what we can because we know that our community will be interested in this stuff in the future."
During the first months of the pandemic they recorded Zoom interviews with local people, and took photos of anything Covid-19 that appeared in the neighbourhood.
"One thing we captured was just how fresh and novel and strange it all was. Now we've got a certain kind of Covid-fatigue set in - we now know much more what to expect.
Reid Perkins Photo: Rootsweb
"We put the word out ... we tried to get a range of different types of people, but obviously this wasn't at all comprehensive. We asked them what life was like in their bubble, and what their feelings about the future were and that sort of thing."
"It's really interesting listening to the interviews [now], Covid is still here, but our interaction with it is quite different. One thing then was the novelty of it, and the anxiety.
"People talking to us about the experience of going to get a flu jab and they're in the car park and there's this person in full PPE, with a face mask on and how bizarre it seemed, like Chernobyl or something, whereas those sort of images - we're now pretty used to that sort of thing."
Perkins has found it interesting to listen back to the material now we are near the end of the second year of the pandemic.
"Noticing the differences - last year when it started there was a lot of legitimate concern that Covid might be spread through surface contact, so there was a lot of efforts in supermarkets and places like that, you were meant to decontaminate your food when you came down and wipe everything down.
"What we do now is we require everyone to wear face masks, which people weren't doing then. So it's interesting how these changes, general reorientations have occurred over the last year."
A social justice role for libraries
Smit's presentation is on libraries finding avenues to foster social justice, as they consider their purpose and place in communities.
A photo of a graffiti scrawl reading: 'Purge Day 01' was taken on the first day of alert level 4 lockdown for NZ, at the entrance to Totara Park. Photo: Supplied/ Upper Hutt City Library - Tracey Kearns
"We're looking at the shifts that've changed - changes in technology and how the library information sector could actually unlock that.
"Adding humans to technology - what that means in terms of the trusted position the sector holds ... bringing some of the truth and sifting through some of the jungle of information.
"But then also in terms of digital exclusion - how the sector could come and and help reach some of those divides in terms of exclusion we sometimes find with technology."
Libraries can and should become more proactive, foster social cohesion, and adapt to the demographic changes in our communities, she said. They can build connections and equity in learning.
Perkins agreed that change from the traditional take on libraries as quiet, stern places are due.
"We want the library to be welcoming to all the community, and provide all types of services, however the degree to which we can do that does depend upon our resourcing."
"There's a lot of desire to serve that community role, but it's a challenge."
