About ACURIL 2024 Guyana
Join us in Guyana!
As incoming ACURIL President 2023-2024, it is my privilege and great joy to invite you for the first time in the beautiful country of Guyana for ACURIL 53rd Annual Conference!
Please join us in Guyana 2024!
I have always been passionate about technology and its implementation in libraries in particular. All to improve the services for the users. Everything that happens generates data. Number of visits, category of books getting out, length of loans, late returns, loan renewal, participation in activities of the libraries, requests, and you name it. Just like the outer world, you would say. But the evolution of technology is faster than we can realize. Jumping from metadata to collecting different types of data, in the era of AI, we have lessons to learn and a need to adapt.
Since my first ACURIL 14 years ago, I’ve seen presentations and posters and participated in workshops about technological progress in our libraries. We always wanted more as our curiosity as librarians would dictate to us.
Now, the needs are shifting, and some tools tend to be accessible to more people. I believe the library field needs to start talking about the possibilities of today’s technology and how we can improve the services accordingly. ChatGPT, Dall-E, and other generative AI tools are being used in academic works. What are the reasonable limits, security threats, and ethics in all of it?
The theme of the conference comes from this thinking: From metadata to big data: trends and hidden treasures in libraries, museums, and archives of the Caribbean.
Three sub-themes will be discussed each day of the conference respectively:
- From data collection to their usage in libraries, museums, and archive
- How can libraries, museums, and archives of the Caribbean benefit from big data and AI?
- Ethics, privacy concerns, and the future of data in the libraries, museums, and archives of the Caribbean
There could be sub-themes. And your approach to the subject of AI and Big Data will probably differ from mine but that’s the beauty of sharing. I, hereby, invite you solely to come animate the discussion from May 12-16 in Georgetown, Guyana for the annual conference of ACURIL. Submit your proposals in the call for papers, workshops, and poster presentations. Tell us what you’ve been doing, and what are plans to tackle AI-based services in your library, museum, or archive. But also, because it’s ACURIL, come to dance, eat have fun, and find what unites us within our diversity.
Erick Toussaint
ACURIL 2024 President
The conference logo
The 2024 logo was a collaborative work between the President, the Local organizing committee, the Executive Secretary and the graphic designer. The colors of the Guyanese flag, the format of these colors as well as representations of metadata and big data were compiled in an interactive form as well as questions about the general estheatic. The graphic designer offered several iterations of his work that was finally adopted by consensus.
About the Logo Designer
The logo of the ACURIL 2024 conference was created by the designer and entrepreneur Jean Eder Hilaire. It has three parts: the first part contains a side of an open book which sheets are the colors of the Guyana flag and a form of a brain representing a neural network coming out of the ‘I’ of ACURIL. The open book symbolizes access to information and experience sharing and all that ACURIL stands for. The neural network is what we’re seeing today as AI is taking over the news and is being implemented in services in different types of businesses.
The second part is the name ACURIL itself, as a statement, in the Guyana green, representing hope and the future we all yearn for.
The third part is composed of an arrow still with the colors of Guyana representing the progress, the evolution, the need to move forward, and the dates of the conference.
Mr. Hilaire has contributed to ACURIL in the past with the creation of the logo of the 2016 conference. He is known for the simplicity of his work but yet meaningful. We really appreciate the time and dedication Mr. Hilaire has given the ACURIL 2024 conference through this visual contribution.
Jean Eder Hilaire
From metadata to big data: trends and hidden treasures in libraries, museums, and archives in the Caribbean.
The Association of Caribbean University, Research and Institutional Libraries (ACURIL), under the leadership of President 2023-2024 Erick Toussaint, is excited to announce its 53rd Conference to be held from May 12-16, 2024, in Guyana. The conference theme is From metadata to big data: trends and hidden treasures in libraries, museums, and archives in the Caribbean.
SUBTHEMES ACURIL 2024 Guyana CONFERENCE:
The ACURIL 2024 Guyana Conference Program Committee invites proposals for paper, workshop and poster presentations which explore the following Sub-themes:
- From data collection to their usage in the libraries, museums, and archives
Libraries, museums and archives generate a large collection of data. Each book consulted, each new patron, each book acquisition, search history represent a wealth of information. They are very aware of the importance of data in their field and the potential uses of the data collected. This sub-theme will explore what Caribbean libraries, museums and archives have been doing to collect and use all this data, in step with developing next generation library facilities and technologies.
- How can libraries, museums, and archives of the Caribbean benefit from big data and AI?
This sub theme explores the evolving role of libraries, museums and archives in the era of big data and the potential impact of artificial intelligence on library services. It will highlight AI usability and library collection integration, as well as possibilities for professional development in the digital age.. How can regional institutions take their services to the next level? What resources do they need to do so? These questions and more will be closely examined under this sub-theme.
- Ethics, privacy concerns and the future of data in the libraries, museums, and archives of the Caribbean
The rapid expansion of knowledge and the increasing reliance on computerization, big data analytics, and automation are changing the economy of the developed world to one that is more dependent on intellectual capital and skills, and less dependent on the production process. Ethics as well as privacy concerns are important considerations to protect patrons rights while encouraging the future of data . How do libraries, archives, museums and records management institutions adapt in order to navigate this delicate frontier?
