Coordination is a fundamental requirement - coordination between national and municipal activities, the private business sector, interest groups and voluntary organisations. Libraries are seen as playing a central role in the realisation of the plan with its focus on the following three main areas:

1. The individual in a digital Norway
2. Innovation and growth in the Norwegian economy
3. A coordinated and user-friendly public sector.

Libraries are considered first and foremost as having a part to play in areas 1 and 3. From the library sector’s point of view the following aims are of particular interest:

• Development of national goals for digital competence.
• Creation of a strategy for improved access to our national heritage. Particular reference is made here to the Norwegian Digital Library and the Norwegian Cultural Network, both national initiatives supervised by the Norwegian Archive, Library and Museum Authority.
• Improved opportunities for publicly financed research.
• Creation of a citizens’ public service portal on the Internet ‘MinSide’ (‘My page’).

Here it would be natural to incorporate ‘MittBibliotek’ (‘My Library’) as an element.

The Norwegian Archive, Library and Museum Authority will provide active support for eNorge 2009, both by offering constructive advice in certain areas and by developing our own initiatives in line with the national plan. The project’s fundamental objective to create a digital Norway will clearly have a direct influence on all activities in the Norwegian archive, library and museum sectors. eNorge 2009 was launched in June 2005 and is available in an English version:
http://odin.dep.no/mod/english/doc/reports/050001-990252/dok-bn.html

Sidsel Hindal
The Norwegian Archive, Library and Museum Authority
sidsel.hindal@abm-utvikling.no
Translated by Eric Deverill

Focus on the public library as a public meeting place
The Norwegian Archive, Library and Museum Authority has recently supervised the publication of The Public Library as a Meeting Place in the Digital Age by Hilde Kristin Ljødal.

The library as a meeting place has often been mentioned in public documents, specialist debates and library studies, but no effort has been made to define the function of such a meeting place. Nor does the concept itself feature in the Library Act. Through a survey based on interviews with librarians, library users and local politicians, Ljødal has made evident the significance of the public library as an open, physical meeting place in a digital age.What various arenas of communication can be accommodated in a library? How do meetings come about and what is their importance? What are the challenges involved for the public library as a focal point for local communities in relation to digital and social developments?

The majority of those interviewed constantly referred to the social, informal function of a library as an arena for relaxed encounters. Sitting at home in front of a computer screen is not the same as coming to a library to browse physically among the shelves, experience the atmosphere, meet up with ‘the others’ and enjoy the opportunity to discuss and participate in a spirit of fellowship. For the users taking part in this survey the social, public space appears to have greater significance than was previously assumed. At the same time, however, the majority of respondents had no wish for libraries to reject their fundamental focus on books, reading and silence. The library as a quiet environment need not necessarily clash with the library as an arena for conversation and social contact. It should be possible to offer physically separate areas for different activities.

The publication is available at:
http://www.abm-utvikling.no/publisert/ABM-skrift/index.html#2005.
The printed edition can be ordered free of charge from The Norwegian Archive, Library and Museum Authority, post@abm-utvikling.no

Tertit Knudsen
The Norwegian Archive, Library and Museum Authority
Tertit.Knudsen@abm-utvikling.no
Translated by Eric Deverill

Accessible libraries 2010
People with disabilities have the same rights and obligations as everyone else. This was established in 1993, in the UN’s Standard Rules on the Equalization of Opportunities for Persons with Disabilities. Sweden has approved the standard rules and undertaken to comply with them. The policy on disability is therefore the responsibility of society as a whole.

2002 saw the Swedish government appoint certain agencies as sectoral agencies with special responsibility for ensuring that the objectives of the disability policy are achieved in their particular areas of operation. The government has tasked the Swedish National Council for Cultural Affairs with introducing the cultural policy objectives, which is why it has been declared a sectoral agency. This means that the regional cultural institutions, including the Swedish county libraries, must incorporate the government’s disability policy into their operations. The task of the county libraries is to provide their network of public libraries with additional media, advice, information, training and specialist services.

The Swedish National Council for Cultural Affairs has been asked to draw up interim targets regarding the way it, as an agency, will fulfil its obligations in relation to the disability policy objectives. These include reporting requirements and action plans, information initiatives, training initiatives, operational plans and councils for the disabled.

Helena Kettner Rudberg
Helena.rudberg@kulturradet.se

Permanent cooperation as a compromise

Finnish state administration for library and information services is lightweight, comprising four councillors at the Ministry of Education and Culture and ten at five State Provincial Governments. The provincial libraries are assigned only regional tasks. The functionaries of the Ministry work in different departments, one councellor manages research library affairs at the University Division at the Department for Education and Science Policy and a team of three councellors manage public library affairs at the Culture and Media Division at the Department for Cultural, Sport and Youth Policy.

In the visions of the Library Policy Programme and the Library Strategy there is one administrative unit managing the national library network. In spring 2005 the library associations appealed to the Minister of Culture for the establishing of a library division at the Ministry. The appeal was turned down but as a compromise a permanent task force for library affairs was added to the organisation scheme of the Ministry in autumn 2005 to deal with numerous common challenges in developing library and information services at a national level.

Libraries in the Knowledge Society
In connection with the Knowledge Society Programme of the Finnish Government, Finland in the Networks, Prime Minister Matti Vanhanen appealed to all public libraries for active cooperation in the Programme campaign week in November 2005.

Libraries were offered training and material and were asked to take an active part in the campaign. The Knowledge Society Programme aims at developing the network services – with the campaign the government wanted to make citizens fully aware of web services and web contents already available.

Finnish championship in book talk
A competition for Finnish championship in book talk was arranged last summer by the Finnish Book Institute in Vammala. The city has proclaimed itself the Book City, having already hosted the nationally well-known ‘Old books days’ for many years. Book talk has become very popular among children’s librarians, and techniques are improved and polished in seminars and courses. Best practices and book lists can be found on the web.

Barbro Wigell-Ryynänen
barbro.wigell-ryynanen@minedu.fi