The first-ever “Library Values & Privacy Summit” was convened at the Data & Society Research Institute in New York City on May 3-4, 2018 as the culminating event for the IMLS-funded project “Library Values & Privacy in our National Digital Strategies: Field guides, Convenings, and Conversations”.

This invitation-only gathering of 30 experts from various parts of the library community focused on addressing numerous key issues and questions derived from the previous events, including: what is the role of privacy in the library value system today, alongside new and emerging issues? What can be done on the ground as we build out our digital platform to ensure library values are included in the tools we build and the material we license? And, how do we use our digital platform to inform our communities about their online privacy? Building on issues raised at the 2018 Midwinter session, the summit featured a series of “snapshot sessions”, where thought leaders in attendance shared 5-minute reflections on key issues regarding library values & privacy, including challenges staff training, conducting internal privacy audits, data analytics, vendor relations, and building in-house privacy-protecting tools.  

The full report for the project will be released in Summer 2018. Stay tuned!