Modernization of libraries in a postcommunist state: The roles of the George Soros, Andrew W. Mellon, and Bill & Melinda Gates Foundations in the development of Latvian libraries

This paper presents the most important changes in the library system of Latvia in the late 1980s, when, as a result of a nonviolent struggle, Latvia regained full independence from the Soviet Union in 1990. Particular attention is paid to contributions by private foundations in the United States—the George Soros, Andrew W. Mellon, and Bill & Melinda Gates Foundations—to fulfill the main goal of library work: namely, helping to create a democratic society in which everyone has the opportunity to express their views and be able to freely access information. During the Soviet period, libraries were mainly agents of the dominant power; they were often forced to ignore the needs of Latvian society or even to work against them. The activities of libraries were strictly regulated and controlled. Latvian independence has allowed the libraries to end political censorship and strict control, and to independently determine their future directions and work methods. Political changes occurred so rapidly that the immediate normalization of professional work after fifty years of occupation was not possible. However, US private foundations supported strategically important areas of library work: automation and access to the internet, the creation of the State Unified Library Information System (SULIS), and the professional development of library staff. The US foundations, through requirements for the cofinancing of large-scale projects, also motivated state and municipalities in Latvia to increase their investment in libraries. The interest expressed in libraries by these foundations emphasized that Latvian libraries were vital. Consequently, targeted investments shortly after independence ensured the timely inclusion of the basic elements of the national library system—the National Library of Latvia and public, school, and academic libraries—in the modern information environment, thus allowing them to fulfill the main task of all libraries: the provision of public access to information.published or submitted for publicatio

The impact of Latvian exile literature on research in Latvia (1992-2006)

This study investigates the impact that Latvian exile literature has had on research in Latvia between 1992 and 2006. Latvian exile literature refers to the publications that were authored and published by Latvians who emigrated to Western countries after World War II and were issued between 1945 and 1991. Mixed methods research was conducted, incorporating citation analysis, questionnaires and interviews. Nine subject fields from the social sciences, arts and humanities were examined: philosophy and psychology, religion and theology, political science, education, folklore and ethnography, the arts, linguistics, literature, history. For the citation analysis, 33,866 citations from 1241 publications were collected. In the survey, 79 questionnaires were received from Latvian researchers and 31 questionnaires from the librarians working in Latvian academic, special and the main regional libraries. After the data analyses of citations and questionnaires were conducted, the results were presented to 15 researchers in Latvia (experts in their subject fields) for their assessment and comments. The overall results show that Latvian exile literature has had the greatest impact on research in folklore, history and literature. Exile impact was observed through both exile publications and communication with exile people. It appears that in other disciplines exile literature has had little or no impact. The reasons for this are thought to be: the lack of exile publications that could make an impact, and the irrelevance of existing publications to research in Latvia. In general, exile academic publications have been the most influential on research. The citation results also demonstrate the impact that restrictions of the soviet period (1945-1991) had on the research in Latvia, particularly through the double obsolescence of citations in all subject fields

WHY SERVICE DESIGN MATTERS: THE CASE OF NATIONAL LIBRARY OF LATVIA

In the digital age when many organizations initiate and experience transformations as a reaction to wider societal changes, there is discussion about functionality, usability and availability of library services. Studies report a decreasing number of library visitors as result of the pervasive presence of the Internet as a faster source for getting resources, public`s lack of knowledge about the library services, etc. To maintain relevance for the public, more libraries apply principles of service design to provide an effective customer experience. For national libraries websites are of high importance as gateways to library resources and media to communicate institutions` objectives. The aim of this article is to analyse how the principles of service design are reflected in the online services offered by the National Library of Latvia. The research methods rely both on secondary data on audience needs and involve application of the service design principles to the website of National Library of Latvia. Results highlight the majority of analysed libraries apply the basic principles of service design and the focus is to provide the user friendly experience in libraries` databases and repositories. The website of the library provides limited user friendly experience in library`s and only partially follows the principles of service design.

Historical Overview: The Parliamentary Library from Past to Present

Parliamentary libraries (also known under various terminologies such as federal libraries, legislative libraries, information resource centers, documentation centers, or reference services) enhance the research and information capacity of parliaments. As their histories show, however, some also came to consider their constituencies as lying beyond the confines of their parent legislature.published or submitted for publicatio

Latvia: Working Too Hard?

This paper provides an assessment of employment and working conditions in Latvia before and immediately after the EU accession. The issues addressed include self-employment, multiple jobs, fixed-term contracts, unreported wages, overtime, unsocial working hours, health and safety at work, social dialogue. The study combines different methods: statistical and econometric analysis of recent Labour Force Surveys and enterprise surveys (Earning Structure Survey and Survey of Occupations); firm level case studies; interviews with experts. Findings indicate that despite recent improvements in legal and institutional environment, as well as some progress in working conditions, significant proportions of workers are exposed to serious risks; health and safety conditions are slow to improve (several bottlenecks are identified). 15 percent of employees in 2003 were usually working 50 or more hours per week, and often this overtime was involuntary and/or unpaid. The analysis suggest that, other things equal, unpaid overtime is more likely to be found in small firms, for temporary workers, for workers with short tenure. Presence of a trade union improves workers’ prospect to be paid for eventual overtime work.employment contract, working conditions, overtime, transition