The below message has been shared with IFLA Members and volunteers directly in all seven of IFLA’s official languages.    

Dear all, 

Greetings from Ottawa, which is built on the unceded, unsurrendered Territory of the Anishinaabe Algonquin Nation whose presence on this land reaches back to time immemorial. 

It is a real pleasure to be writing to you all to share an update on my work, and that of IFLA’s Governing Board, now over two months into our mandate.  

Be Bold! 

I wanted to start by sharing more about my presidential theme – Be Bold – and what I hope that we can achieve together. I am aware that my mandate is one that brings particular opportunities, but also responsibilities, including much of IFLA’s centenary year, even if the day that IFLA turns 100 will fall during the presidency of my great colleague, Te Paea Paringatai! 

I chose my theme to honour and build on the theme chosen by my predecessor, Vicki McDonald – Stronger Together – given our shared focus on challenging ourselves to find new ways of working. This applies as much to how we collaborate within our field, as to our work with our communities, our partners, our funders and our governments. We need to have the confidence to step up and speak out! 

I have no doubt about our ability to succeed. I had the pleasure of cooperating with Vicki to run a series of webinars and discussions, under the title Stronger, Bolder, Together, between June and September including two great sessions at WLIC.  

In discussing what the world needs from its libraries, it was clear that there is already so much dynamic, innovative practice out there that demonstrates how libraries are not just keeping up, but staying ahead of the curve. It also underlined to me that our field is spoilt for choice when it comes to great people with the ideas and imagination to advance both our thinking and our action.  

As promised, I’m happy to be able to share all of the video contributions we received from experts, as well as the recordings of our webinars, via the Stronger, Bolder, Together page on our website. I encourage you to draw on these materials as a catalyst for your own reflection, individually, in your institutions, in your associations and beyond.   

Futures thinking 

A key tool that we already have to be able to plan confidently for the future is our Trend Report. Launched a little over a year ago, I know that many of you have already read and drawn on it. As part of my presidency, I want to use the Report to guide and inspire our own work, and I have already been in touch with the officers of our different committees to encourage them to draw on it in their own action planning. We also welcome your stories about how you have used it, and any suggestions for making the Report more user friendly.   

A focus on futures will also be central to IFLA100, as we take the opportunity to share and build ideas about the libraries and international library field we want into IFLA’s 2nd century.  

To help us with this, we’re welcoming your reflections on what different Trends could mean for different parts of our work. You can of course share your ideas directly with us via [email protected], or through our survey, which will be open until 30 November.  

Key decisions 

While this part of our plans for IFLA100 is still in development, one key aspect that has now been confirmed at a Governing Board meeting is where we will be holding the World Library and Information Congress in 2027 – London, United Kingdom. It is great that IFLA is coming home, a hundred years since the Federation was born in 1927.  

The choice of the venue for 2027 was a tough one for the Governing Board to make, with two excellent bids received, and I am grateful to both candidates. I take it as a positive that IFLA attracted such great candidates, and look forward to working with the hosts of both WLIC 2026 in Busan, and WLIC 2027 in London, to make these the most exciting, inclusive events possible.  

Meanwhile, IFLA’s regular work continues. Another Board meeting focused on approving the budget for 2026, which will enable us to take further steps towards the objectives set out in our strategy. We are looking forward, in particular, to being able to invest in enhancing the experience we can offer to our members and volunteers, helping you to make the most of your engagement in IFLA.  

Upcoming townhalls 

There is plenty more to tell. Building on a practice developed by Vicki McDonald, I would like to invite you to one of a round of town hall meetings I will be hosting in late November, alongside our Secretary General Sharon Memis. You can find dates and registration links on our website. As part of the registration process, you can ask questions, or alternatively raise them during the town hall meetings themselves.   

I look forward to seeing you there, then! 

Leslie Weir, IFLA President 2025-2027