The IFLA NA Regional Division (NARD) Day at the ALA 2024 Conference brought together the Canadian and American members for the first time since WLIC 2023 in Rotterdam.

Group of smiling people around a table at a restaurant - mixture of men and womenVicki McDonald, IFLA President, Leslie Weir, incoming President, and Loida Garcia Febo, Governing Board member joined us for the day and delivered inspirational talks during our NA Regional Division monthly business meeting and the well-attended ALA supported NARD Advocacy Seminar.

NARD Day highlights include the hybrid involvement via zoom of our Regional Council colleagues. Alejandro Santa, Chair of the IFLA Regional Council welcomed our committee and spoke of the importance of collaboration as we work to enhance advocacy efforts across our regions.

The IFLA Regional Chairs of Sub-Saharan Africa (Ayenda Lebele), Middle East and North Africa, (Saif Aljabri and Vice-Chair Eman Abushulaibi), and Europe (Ertugrul Cimen), and representatives from Asia Oceania (Helen Chan, IFLA CPDWL) joined us remotely for an insightful dive into the advocacy work in their regions.

Later in the day Catherine Lau, National Library Board Singapore; Katherine Klosek, Director of Information Policy and Federal Relations, ARL and Loida Garcia Febo, Chair of the Management of Library Association Section, discussed collaboration opportunities and outreach initiatives with our Divisions.

The American Library Association was extremely generous in providing our NA Regional Division with a range of support. Special thanks go to ALA President, Emily Drabinsky for her warm welcome as she launched NARD Day and to Michael Dowling, Director of International Relations, ALA for facilitating our successful day.

Group of smiling speakers at a conference event, standing in front of a table with a wall and door in the background.All NARD Members were active throughout the ALA 2024 Conference – participating in a host of important ALA initiatives: seminars, workshops, award presentations and business meetings with collaboration partners. It was an exhilarating and productive conference.

The success of NARD Day at ALA 2024 is a testament to the collective dedication and passion of everyone involved. As we reflect on the insights gained and connections made, we look forward to applying these valuable lessons as we plan a NARD Day at the Canadian OLA SuperConference in Toronto, Canada from January 29-Feb.1. See you there!

We are grateful to the Gates Foundation, via SIGL, for support for participant attendance at this event.