Residency Interest Group

Libraries and Information Institutions in the Digital Age (LIDA) is an international biennial conference that brings together researchers, educators, students, practitioners, and developers from around the world in a forum for personal exchanges, discussions, and learning, held in memorable environments. For LIDA 2025, we return to Dubrovnik, Croatia, May 19-21, 2025. We warmly invite you to submit your papers, panels, workshops, and posters that address critical and theoretical examinations of the conference theme; report current research and evidence-based approaches; and address practitioner perspectives. 

We are pleased to announce that one of LIDA's keynotes will be given by Abebe Rorissa, Ph.D., entitled: "The Content Divide: Contributing Factors and How Libraries and other Stakeholders Can Help Address It."  Dr. Rorissa is a Professor and Director of the School of Information Sciences and the Associate Dean for Faculty Affairs of the College of Communication and Information at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville. He is the immediate Past President of the Association for Information Science and Technology (ASIS&T). He received the ASIS&T Watson Davis Award for Service, Distinguished Member, and SIG Member of the Year Awards. He has an international presence as before his current position, he worked as an educator, researcher, administrator, and practitioner in the United States, Ethiopia, Lesotho, and Namibia. He served as a consultant for academic institutions, national governments, and international organizations and has published extensively in leading international information science journals.

LIDA addresses the changing and challenging environment for libraries and information systems and services. Globally, libraries and information institutions are encountering previously unimaginable challenges. Uncertainty grows, as we ponder the question "What's next?" In the wake of COVID-19, amid a tempest of political dichotomy and social unrest, information institutions face staff shortages, budget cuts, and reorganizations. As Generative AI applications and related technological developments proliferate, we foresee that they are poised to revolutionize all aspects of our professional lives. Traditionally, libraries were stabilizing forces in providing authoritative information, however, this role is undermined by AI, censorship attacks, and diminishing financial support.  Ubiquitous information, including social media and the 24/7 news cycle, impacts information credibility. Many now regard social media and online outlets as their source for news and interpretation of current events.