All the speakers at this year’s conference showed great examples of the importance of libraries as a leader in each element focussed on in the conference’s theme of Sustainability, Diversity & Inclusion.
A highlight of the two days was hearing Yumi Stynes speak about her experience after publishing her book, ‘Welcome to Sex’, & the affects her writing has had on library staff. With the conversation about censorship within libraries coming up more & more, it was interesting to hear from Stynes about the impacts of inclusive literature. It was also great to hear from spokespeople from different library services.
The lightning talks were some of my favourite talks to listen to as each speaker spoke about some of the innovative things they were doing in their libraries. It was inspiring to hear all the wonderful things people were achieving in their libraries & this has motivated me further to bring any new ideas forward to progress my own library service.
Mostly, I loved meeting new people & connecting with them through our work. It was great to hear about individual people’s experiences with the conversations that were coming up throughout the conference. QPLA’s Professional Development Conference 2023 is a highlight of my year & I highly recommend any public library staff to attend in the future.