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The$label$for$Cycling$for$libraries$Amsterdam–Brussels$tour$2013$June$18–26 $$

! CYCLING!FOR!LIBRARIES!in!a!nutshell! “Librarians!on!the!move”! ! CYCLING!FOR!LIBRARIES! Cycling!for!libraries!is!a!combined!international!library!unconference!and!a!cycling!event!the! aim! of! which! is! to! raise! attention! to! libraries! by! public! visibility! outside! of! library! walls.! It! supports!environmental!values!by!emphasizing!recycling!as!one!of!the!fundamental!tasks!of! libraries.! And! promotes! professional! well>being! by! combining! profound! international! networking! and! physical! exercise! on! bike.! The! event! gathers! annually! 100! innovative! and! enthusiastic!librarians!for!this!about!a!week’s!(9–11!days)!conference!to!cycle!from!400!to! 700!km.!! ! Cycling! for! libraries! has! been! arranged! successfully! since! 2011.! The! first! time! was! from! Copenhagen! to! Berlin! (650! km),! and! the! second! through! the! Baltic! states! from! Vilnius! and! going! via! Riga! and! Tartu! to! Tallinn! (620! km).! Discussions! focus! on! the! suitability! of! the! prevailing! library! concept! in! the! society! where! the! electronic! dissemination! of! information! and!sharing!of!knowledge!are!bound!to!change!the!basic!idea!of!the!activities!of!libraries.!! ! Our!goal!is!to!raise!significant!visibility!in!the!target!countries.!It!is!carried!out!by!a!local!PR! office!to!local!and!national!media,!and,!on!the!other!hand,!by!physical!visibility!on!the!cycling! route!in!towns!and!resorts.!We!seek!to!make!use!of!the!police!escorts!in!order!to!achieve! publicity! –! this! helps! people! to! understand! that! libraries! want! to! be! heard! as! one! of! the! important!services!in!the!society.!Visibility!is!also!gained!through!social!networks.! Cycling!for!libraries!is!an!impressive!and!effective!way!to!bring!publicity!to!public!libraries! and!to!promote!public!access!to!information!in!a!new!and!different!way.!All!the!photos!from!

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the!previous!year!are!at!your!disposal!for!information!and!advocacy!purposes:! http://www.flickr.com/photos/cyclingforlibraries/!

! CYCLING!FOR!LIBRARIES!ORGANIZATION! The!event!is!organized!by!a!group!of!active!library!professional!from!Finland!in!cooperation! with!local!libraries!and!library!related!partners!internationally.!Cycling!for!libraries!organizing! team!in!Finland!is!a!consortium!of!library!professionals!that!operate!independently!from!the! library!organizations!to!create!new!platforms!for!exchanging!opinions!and!seeking!new!ideas! for!future!libraries.!! ! So!far!the!tours!have!been!funded!to!a!large!extent!by!the!Ministry!of!Education!and!Culture! in!Finland.!Our!annual!budget!is!about!EUR70.000.!One!third!of!the!budget!comes!from!the! participation!fees.!We!also!apply!for!grants!work!together!with!selected!sponsors.!! ! The! organizers! come! from! different! library! sectors! and! with! heterogeneous! skills.! It! goes! without!saying!that!we!are!a!non>profit!organizer!and!all!the!about!20!library!professionals! do!all!the!organizing!work!on!a!voluntary!basis.!! For!instance:! ! • They!make!plans!for!the!tours!(work!has!to!be!done!throughout!the!year)! • They!contact!the!local!libraries!and!library!related!partners!! • They!have!meetings!on!the!program,!seminars,!accommodation!and!catering! • They!maintain!the!website,!the!email!lists,!and!the!social!media!communities!

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They!check!the!route!in!advance!by!driving!by!car!at!least!once,!and!if!possible,!some! parts!by!bike,!too!

CYCLING!FOR!LIBRARIES!SPECIAL!SERVICES!ON!THE!ROAD! We!have!a!catering!van!of!our!own!and!a!chef!who!will!take!care!of!our!meals!and!coffees! along! the! way.! We! also! have! a! four>person! video! team! with! ability! to! shoot! and! edit! the! daily! shots! and! the! other! documentary! material! during! the! tour.! They! also! take! care! of! steaming.!In!addition,!we!have!some!technical!equipment!and!audio>visual!equipment.!All!in! all,!we!are!not!only!a!group!of!librarians!with!bikes,!there!will!be!two!vans!with!trailers!and!a! person! car! for! the! video! team! to! carry! the! luggage! and! supplies! of! the! organizers! and! participants.! ! PARTICIPANTS! • •

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100!+!participants!are!chosen!by!enrolling.!At!the!moment!our!event!is!sold!out!! 2013!participants!come!from!these!countries!(22):!Argentina,!Belarus,!Belgium,! Canada,!Croatia,!Denmark,!Finland,!France,!Germany,!Italy,!Latvia,!Lithuania,!Peru,! Qatar,!Romania,!Russia,!Spain,!Sweden,!The!Netherlands,!UK,!Ukraine,!and!USA.!The! list!is!not!necessarily!complete.!! The!entry!fee!is!EUR250!and!it!covers!food,!accommodation!and!all!programs.!! Participants!will!provide!a!personal!task!for!themselves,!which!is!their!homework!for! the!tour.!The!outcomes!will!be!gathered!together!and!used!for!advocacy!purposes,!if! possible.! The!daily!programme!starts!at!about!7.30!am,!breakfast!at!8!am,!packing!and! morning!info!at!9!am!and!cycling!starts!at!10!am.!The!average!length!of!a!cycling!day! is!about!60!km.!Along!the!way!we!will!visit!libraries!and!have!seminars!and! discussions.! !

LOCAL!COOPERATION!–!THIS!IS!WHAT!WE!ARE!REALLY!WAITING!FOR!! Local!help!from!Belgium!and!the!Netherlands!is!highly!appreciated,!and!we!accept!assistance! in!any!form!libraries!and!partners!have!to!offer:!contacts,!arranging!accommodation,! facilities!for!events!and!seminars,!and!knowledge!of!local!specialties!as!well!material!and! financial!support.!! We!are!delighted!to!explore!libraries!in!their!natural!environment,!not!to!isolate!in!lecture! halls.! This! can! include,! of! course,! all! kinds! of! cultural! events! in! which! national! and! local! specialties! and! attractiveness! will! be! displayed.! Sometimes! the! participants! wish! to! have! more!information!about!the!local!culture,!sometimes!it!happens!that!we!get!too!much!of!it.! It! can! be! difficult! to! say! how! much! is! enough.! We! want! both! library! related! and! cultural! programme!in!appropriate!proportions!however!so!that!the!professional!content!is!our!top! priority.!! PR!OFFICE!Cycling!for!Libraries!has!been!present!in!the!media!during!its!tours!–!and!that!is!

really!important!not!only!for!us!but!especially!for!our!profession.!For!instance,!the!local! German!press!in!2011!had!a!great!interest!in!the!tour!and!there!was!a!surprisingly!high!

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response!to!the!efforts!of!the!media!agency.!Journalists!were!present!at!almost!all!stops,! and!the!reports!actually!made!it!in!the!daily!press.!Particularly!surprising!was!the!echo!in!the! Berlin!press,!though!the!arriving!in!Berlin!itself!was!not!in!the!press.!There,!Cycling!for! Libraries!(in!combination!with!public!libraries!and!the!German!Library!Conference!as!topics)! had!a!presence!over!several!days.!In!2012!in!Riga!five!national!TV!channels!were!waiting!us! for!interviews!–!this!was!mainly!due!to!a!minister!who!was!present!there!and!cycled!with!us! for!a!couple!of!km!to!city!hall.!! However,!we!would!need!to!discuss!carefully!what!kind!of!message!we!want!to!be! transported!through!media.!As!for!sharing!any!ideas!for!cooperation,!please!contact!us,!or! our!partners!listed!in!this!paper!!

! UNCONFERENCES!–!WHAT!ARE!THEY?! We! have! discovered,! that! it! might! be! a! bit! difficult! to! transport! the! meaning! of! the! unconference!i.e.!international!exchange!of!library!ideas,!themes,!discussion!networking,!to! librarians! we! will! meet! during! the! tour.! This! can! sometimes! have! a! negative! affect! on! the! willingness!of!participation!of!local!colleagues!at!seminars.!So!we!would!hope!that!you!could! spread! the! word! about! the! nature! of! Cycling! for! libraries! meetings! to! the! librarians.! We! prefer!the!presentations!made!by!the!participants!themselves!and!not!so!much!lectern!set! speeches! and! PowerPoint.! We! also! prefer! discussions,! spontaneity,! and! brainstorming.! All! our!seminars!should!be!open!to!everyone!interested,!not!only!for!the!cyclists.!!So!welcome! all!! We! want! to! meet! many! local! librarians! in! their! own! countries! and! daily! working! environment!or!just!to!hear!their!opinions!if!we!meet!outside!library.!All!the!technical!and! practical! arrangements! usually! take! most! of! our! time! and! less! time! will! be! invested! in! the! discussion! of! the! conferences’! professional,! i.e.! library! related! message! and! the! implementation! of! these! ideas! in! the! tour.! We! welcome! all! ideas! that! will! help! us! deepen! this!part!of!our!tour!!

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THE!COASTSIDE!ROUTE!AMSTERDAM–BRUSSELS! We!share!this!as!all!the!other!preparatory!documents!with!our!local!partners.!Please!ask!for! permission!to!Google!Docs!etc.!At!the!moment!the!route!and!daily!schedule!at!a!basic!level! looks!like!this:! Tue!18.6.!Day!1–Amsterdam! • • • • • • • •

10>12!Registration!at!OBA! OBA!excursion! Lunch!at!OBA!(half!group!lunch/half!excursion)!! See!another!library!etc.! Ride!to!accommodation! Ride!to!kick>off!party!place! Ride!back!to!accommodation! Sleep!

Wed!19.6.!Day!2–Amsterdam→Den!Haag!(86!km)! • • • • • • •

8>9!breakfast! 9>10!packing! Ride!to!Haarlem! Haarlem!Station!Library! Lunch!at!Zandvoort!beach! Ride!to!Den!Haag! Sleep!

Thu!20.6.!!Day!3–Den!Haag→Delft!(9!km)! • • • • • • •

8>9!breakfast! 9>10!packing! Peace!Palace!gardens!with!KB,!EBLIDA,!FOBID,!etc.! Ride!to!Delft! Unconference!at!DOK! Ride!to!accommodation! Sleep!

Fri!21.6.!Day!4–Delft→Renesse!(67!km)! • • • •

8>9!breakfast! 9>10!packing! Ride!to!Renesse! Sleep!

Sat!22.6.!Day!5–Renesse→Brugge!(100!km)! • • !

8>9!breakfast! 9>10!packing! 5!

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Ride!to!Middelburg! Do!something!in!Middelburg! Ride!to!Brugge! Sleep!

Sun!23.6.!Day!6–Brugge→Gent!(47!km)! • • • • • •

8>9!breakfast! 9>10!packing! Ride!to!Gent! Booktower!in!Gent! Evening!unconfence!at!Gent!DOK! Sleep!

Mon!24.!6!!Day!7–Gent→Sint_Niklas!(about!35!km)! • • • • •

8>9!breakfast! 9>10!packing! Gent!University!Library! Ride!to!Sint>Niklaas! Sleep!

Tue!25.6.!!Day!8–Sint_Niklaas→Brussels!(about!50!km)! • • • • •

8>9!breakfast! 9>10!packing! Visit!Sint>Niklaas!libraries! Ride!to!Brussels! Sleep!

Wed!26.6.!Day!9–Brussels! • • • • • • • •

Deliver!message!to!MEPs! Lunch!at!Flemish!parliament! Visit!Munt!Punt!library?! Visit!comic!library?! Eat!chocolate! Evening!reception!with!MEPs! After>party!down!the!pub! Cycling!for!libraries!ends!

(Notes:!Some!sort!of!semi>spontaneous!kick>off!gathering/dinner/drinks!will!happen!on! Monday!17.6....!and!during!the!weekend!too.!Organizers!are!spending!Sunday!16.6.!getting! busy!in!Amsterdam.!If!Utrecht!is!included,!it!means!+1!extra!day)!

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! CONTACT!INFORMATION!:!The!organizing!team!is!presented!on!our!website.! •

http://www.cyclingforlibraries.org/?page_id=1353)!

Main!contact!persons!:!Please!feel!free!to!contact!us!in!any!time:! • •

Jukka!Pennanen,[email protected],!producer,!founder.! Tel.!+358!401912191! Mace!Ojala,[email protected],!the!leading!cyclist!and!pathfinder,!main! organizer!for!the!route!and!accommodation,!social!networks!etc.!! Tel.!+358!40!5752516!

LINKS!TO!WEB!CONTENT:!Here!are!some!links!to!the!information!in!the!web:! • • • • •

The!web!page:!http://www.cyclingforlibraries.org/! The!Facebook!group:!https://www.facebook.com/cyc4lib! Photos!in!the!Flickr!group:!http://www.flickr.com/groups/cyc4lib/! All!tour!videos!and!streams:!http://www.cyclingforlibraries.org/?page_id=3515! Collected!links!to!articles!and!TV!interviews:! http://www.cyclingforlibraries.org/?page_id=3431!

CYCLING!FOR!LIBRARIES!2013!PARTNERS! Please!let!us!know!if!this!list!is!incomplete:!! • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •

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Marian!Koren,!FOBID,[email protected]! Michel!Wesseling,!NVB/ISS,[email protected]! Klaus>Peter!Böttger!EBLIDA!,[email protected]! Lukas!Koster,[email protected]!(univ!of!Amst!libr)! Jeroen!de!Boer,[email protected]! Eric>Jan!Dol,!@dapperebas,!PM! Gert>Jan!van!Velzen!(KB)!,gert>[email protected]! Rubrecht!Zaat!(KB),[email protected]! Mireille!Kok,!KB!Communication,[email protected]! Friedel!Grant!(The!European!Library)[email protected]! Maarten!van!Gool!Den!Haag!Marketing,[email protected]! Erik!Boekesteijn,!DOKlab,[email protected]! Jaap!van!der!Geer,!DOKlab,[email protected]! Hilde!Nelissen,[email protected]! Julie!Hendrickx,!VVBAD,[email protected]! Joann!Yeomans,!IFLA,[email protected]! Wietse!Nijenhuis!(ProBiblio)!(via!Peter!Spuij)! Andre!Brouwer! Robin!Knowles!and!Mieke!Barbe,!Civic!Agenda!Brussels! Vincent!Bonnet,[email protected],[email protected]!

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