Community Virtual Library: where do we go from here?

Libraries and librarians have a history in the virtual world of Second Life that goes back to early 2006, when Lori Bell of Alliance Library System entered SL as Lorelei Junot and gathered librarians and other interested people together to create Second Life Library 2.0. Nearly six years and many, many changes later, this group continues to function as Community Virtual Library.   Through all the changes— the policy changes by Linden Labs; the financial issues; the numbers and purposes of library sims; the changes to builds, collections, programming; the development and dissolution of partnerships; the ebb and flow of volunteer participation—one thing has remained constant--the belief that libraries and librarians have a place in virtual worlds.

Over the years I’ve heard people expressing their appreciation for what we do in Second Life, time and time again. Perhaps we have not yet realized the potential we envisioned, but we have reached out to people and offered assistance to people through this medium. Sometimes assistance was through an answered question by a volunteer steadfastly manning the reference desk. Reference volunteers have answered thousands of questions throughout the years, ranging from those that are SL based to genuine research needs, to "stump-the-librarian" attempts. Is reference work in SL a successful enterprise? Yes! Libraries in SL provide access to information. Collections, exhibits, and programs are all a part of the library services found in SL. We’ve reached out to scores of people and in return we’ve received support through donations. As a bonus, we’ve learned that librarians, library staff, and library students can use SL as a place to volunteer, to teach, to network, to collaborate, to gain experience, to learn, and to share information. Libraries have accomplished much in Second Life.

But, where do we go from here? We’ve had success at being a better community library for the residents of SL, but in the process we seem to have lost the momentum we had in providing professional development opportunities to librarians, library staff, and students. As volunteers learn and grow in SL, they find other interests and projects that divide their already limited time in SL, or discover they’ve neglected real life, or simply burn out over time. Too much of a good thing can be wonderful, and it can be detrimental as well. There is less excitement now about virtual worlds than a few years ago. To be honest, in introducing virtual worlds to library professionals now, we get reactions ranging from those who still aren’t aware of what libraries do in Second Life, to those who are vehemently opposed and those who feel that this technology has run its course and is “over." It is understandable that in today’s economic climate, where librarians are fighting for their jobs and to keep libraries open, that there is little interest or energy to invest in virtual libraries. Yet, still hundreds of library professionals devote their time to providing library services in virtual worlds and find doing so worth their time and effort. We still see the potential and the value.

Those of us still standing with our virtual shoes firmly planted in virtual worlds—where do we go from here? I would like to see professional development for library professionals re-kindled, and would like to see this taking place through the American Library Association’s Virtual Communities and Libraries Member Interest Group and the ACRL Virtual Worlds Interest Group on ALA Island. Interested in being a force behind this movement to continue and broaden peer-to-peer support and development? This is an opportunity to make a difference. I would like to see us tooting our own horns—more often and more loudly. Promote, publish, promote! These are areas in which I feel we should move, but I’m asking you—where do we go from here?

Let’s start by getting together. Please join us on October 16^th at 1 PM SLT on Info Island for a discussion on this topic.