Call for Proposals: 2025 BC Library Conference

October 16, 2024

The British Columbia Library Association (BCLA) is accepting proposals for the 2025 BC Library Conference, taking place May 7-9 at the Vancouver Island Convention Centre in Nanaimo.

2025 BC Library Conference Call for Proposals Open Now

BCLA is happy to announce that the call for proposals for the 2025 BC Library Conference is open from October 8 – November 25, 2024 . You can read the submission FAQs and submit a proposal via the online portal.

Conference Theme

The 2025 BC Library Conference will take place May 7-9 at the Vancouver Island Convention Centre in Nanaimo, on the territory of the Snuneymuxw First Nation.

Our conference theme is Navigating Together, inspired by the setting – a harbour city on an island – and by the birds that live there. This theme reflects not just the location where we will gather, but how we can navigate our current reality.

Many species of birds choose to travel together on long or dangerous journeys. They do this because it benefits them. When they fly together, they are safer, and they can go further and faster with less effort. They share leadership: when one gets tired, it drops back to rest and another steps up to lead. Different species will even flock together, leveraging their different traits for the benefit of all.

In libraries we are dealing with rapid technological evolution combined with social, economic and environmental challenges and pressures. As we face these challenges, we can benefit from emulating the way birds navigate collectively. During conference you may lead by presenting a session, sharing your strength with colleagues. You will also draw on the strengths of others, attending presentations and learning from your colleagues’ work, and from the different perspectives of those in other kinds of libraries.

We come together for conference not just out of tradition, but out of necessity and opportunity. In a time of rapid change and complex challenges, we navigate better together than we ever could alone.

Submitting Your Proposal

We encourage potential presenters to submit session proposals that range from practical to theoretical. We welcome creative interpretations of what our theme may mean for different people in their varied areas of library work.

If you work in kids/teens or in a small or rural library, please consider putting forward a proposal! We generally receive few proposals about children and teen services, or proposals from people working in small or rural libraries, yet we hear from delegates that they are interested in those sessions.

Tips & Guidelines

Crafting a successful conference session proposal takes skill. Check out our Conference Presentation: Better Practices for a recording of “How to Write a Successful Conference Session Proposal” and a list of guidelines and tips on how to create a successful session proposal.

Consider working with a co-presenter. We tend to select proposals that feature multiple presenters – sessions are stronger when they represent a variety of viewpoints and lived experiences. We can accommodate panels of up to 3 people per session.

If you have an idea for a session that would benefit from a panel approach but don’t know who to invite to co-present with you, use the “find co-presenters for your 2025 BC Library Conference session idea” thread on the BCLA Forum to find someone.

What to Expect

You will submit your session/poster proposal via the online portal. The submission questions are available for review in the submission FAQs, where you can also find a description and timeline of the process.

Accessibility

Pheedloop’s Call for Proposal form is not currently accessible for screen readers. We apologize for this lack of accessibility and continue to advocate with the vendor. We will be happy to provide support to make the process accessible until this is resolved. Please email our Conference Coordinator, Sarah Bolton, for support for this or any other access issues.

Conference Format

Our 2025 conference will include in-person sessions, poster sessions, events, and trade show.

We are also excited to introduce “Birds of a Feather” sessions for 2025! We’ve heard from you that you want more opportunities at conference to meet new colleagues, have conversations, and learn from each other in less structured ways. These will be informal sessions where you come together to discuss a shared interest, hosted by 1-2 people. The goal is to provide opportunities to make connections, spark ideas, and develop communities of practice. The hosts aren’t expected to be experts, but rather to engage in the conversation, help everyone feel welcome, and encourage sharing questions, ideas, and experiences.

We want to ensure we are offering the best quality experiences possible within our resources, and we clearly heard that the hybrid session options we offered in 2023 did not meet your expectations. AS a result, we will be continuing the approach to virtual access format we introduced last year. We will only be streaming and recording the keynotes; we will not be streaming or recording any other sessions at conference. Virtual access to the keynotes will be included with your 2025 in-person registration or available as a separate registration option. In the months following conference, we will invite some of the conference presenters to offer a version of their presentations as standalone webinars. This will allow for a more engaging and interactive virtual experience and ensure that people who could not attend conference still have access to these learning opportunities.

We expect that our conference format will continue to evolve. We will continue to adjust and respond to your feedback and the changing nature of conferences in the coming years.

We hope to see you at BC Library Conference in Nanaimo on May 7-9, 2025!

(Via British Columbia Library Association)