Sunday 29 March 2009

Ruth Rikowski's 13th News Update


Thirteenth News Update

RUTH RIKOWSKI



GLOBALISATION, INFORMATION AND LIBRARIES

This is a ‘special’ News Update, focusing on my work on globalisation, information and libraries. It includes information about both my publications and my talks on the topic.

I decided to devote this News Update to this subject - it is a very important topic, and I have devoted a lot of time and energy to. Through all my work, I have obviously raised considerable awareness. Yet, I do not think the message has been conveyed as effectively as it needs to be – well, at least, not in terms of actually taking sufficient action in order to start to change the tide! Thus, any suggestions for raising awareness further and to actively make an impact are most welcome. I would also be very willing to give further talks to any interested parties, and/or have a forum for further discussion. Just contact me at: rikowskigr@aol.com.

My basic position is that in order to understand the world we live in, we need an analysis of global capitalism and for me this necessitates a Marxist analysis. Marx began his analysis of capitalism in Capital, Vol 1, with the commodity. The continued survival of capitalism depends on the extension of the commodification process, on a global basis. Value that is created and extracted from labour (through the exploitation of labour), becomes embedded in the commodity and the commodity is then sold in the market-place for a profit. By this means, global capitalism is sustained, extended and perpetuated.

In my writing and talks, I consider this big topic in relation to the World Trade Organisation (WTO) and libraries and information. The focus is on the 2 agreements that are being developed at the World Trade Organisation (the WTO being one of the key drivers in globalisation), that have serious implications for libraries and information – i.e. GATS (the General Agreement on Trade in Services) and TRIPS (agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights. In essence, these 2 agreements are about transforming services and intellectual property rights into international tradable commodities. Within this very broad topic, there is also a lot of detail, and I explore this in considerable depth, in my various published works.


TALKS GIVEN BY RUTH RIKOWSKI ON GLOBALISATION, INFORMATION AND LIBRARIES

TALKS GIVEN IN 2002

a) Still at your service?: One day conference organised by ATTAC London on the GATS and privatisation of UK public services, 16th Nov 2002, held at the London School of Economics, University of London.This consisted of a variety of speakers and workshops, considering the GATS from a number of different angles – e.g. water privatisation; globalisation and language; legal implications of the GATS; privatisation of the police, the National Health Service, schools, higher education and libraries.
The conference was organised by ATTAC, London, GATS Working Group, which I was a very active member of this group, at the time.
I wrote a report on the event. See:
http://libr.org/isc/articles/17-Rikowski-3.html

b) The profit virus: globalisation, libraries and education: a fringe meeting of the International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions (IFLA) Conference at Glasgow, on 22nd August 2002. The session was organised by myself.Speakers included Frode Bakken, Paul Whitney, Ruth Rikowski, Steve Rolfe, Anneliese Dodds and Glenn Rikowski
I wrote a report on the event. See:
http://libr.org/isc/articles/16-R.Rikowski-1.html

c) GATS: the Global Threat held at Sussex University
on 23rd May 2002. Session considered what the GATS is and the implications of the GATS for various public service sectors.Speakers included Linda Kaucher, Ruth Rikowski and Tom Lines


d) Gave talk at ATTAC, London, held at London School of Economics, on The WTO/GATS Agenda for Libraries, 30th April 2002

e) Spoke at an informal meeting of the International Group of the Library Association on The WTO/GATS Agenda for Libraries, 20th March 2002
About 35 people attended and there was a lot of interest in the topic and a good discussion.



TALKS GIVEN IN 2003
a) Gave at talk at the Library and Information Show at Excel, Docklands: Tripping along with TRIPS, on 30th April 2003.

b) Gave special lecture to MSc students at Kingston University: An overview and assessment of TRIPS, focusing in particular on trade, moral and information issues, on 2nd June 2003. There was a lot of interest and a good discussion.

c) Gave talk at Chartered Institute of Library and Information Professionals (CILIP) Umbrella Conference on GATS and Libraries, on 5th July 2003. Libraries: international tradable commodities or public services?. Conference Report of CILIP Umbrella Conference, 2003 by Graeme Hawley, included a section about my talk in Information Scotland, Journal of the Chartered Institute of Library and Information Professionals (CILIP) in Scotland http://www.slainte.org.uk/publications/serials/infoscot/vol1(4)/brolly.html


TALKS GIVEN IN 2005
a) Trading in Knowledge? The World Trade Organisation and Libraries. Conference held on 2-3 March 2005, at Moller Centre, Churchill College, Cambridge. Organised by EBLIDA and SCONULSpeakers included: George Monbiot, columnist in The Guardian; Professor Susan Robertson, University of Bristol; Dale Honeck, Education Representative from the WTO; Ruth Rikowski and Paul Whitney, Chief Librarian, Vancouver Public Library.
I spoke about TRIPS and Libraries.
Programme for conference:
http://www.sconul.ac.uk/events/WTOConference/wtoprogramme
Report online by Toby Bainton http://216.239.59.104/search?q=cache:S6hmhgwXDQIJ:www.sconul.ac.uk/publications/newsletter/34/20.rtf+bainton,+sconul+and+trading+in+knowledge+and+eblida&hl=en&ct=clnk&cd=2&gl=uk
Report by Barbara Stratton, CIILP Senior Copyright Advisor, in CILIP's monthly magazine Update, May 2005, Vol. 4, No. 5, p.15. b) Spoke about GATS and TRIPS at Sheffield Hallam University, on 9th February 2005Spoke to Yorkshire and Humberside Career Development Group of the Chartered Institute of Library and Information Professionals (CILIP).Session was entitled International and Trans-border Information Issues

c) Talked about my book Globalisation, Information and Libraries to MSc students at Kingston University on 24th May 2005

d) Capitalism's Final Frontier: the reification of imagination by Ruth Rikowski. Talk provided an overview of my book Globalisation, Information and Libraries on 27th Sep 2005 at Lucas Arms, 245 Grays Inn Road, London. Organised by ‘Principia Dialectica’ - see http://www.principiadialectica.co.uk/

e) Talked about my book Globalisation, Information and Libraries at London South Bank University, in the Faculty of Business, Computing and Information Management, on 27th Oct, in Keyworth Centre

f) One-day mini conference organised through Career Development Group, Wales, CILIP, on Globalisation, Libraries, Information and Education, at: Swansea University, on 2nd Dec 2005.Talked about my book Globalisation, Information and Librariesand
Anneliese Dodds talked about Globalisation, GATS and Higher EducationAnneliese Dodds is a Research Student, in the Department of Government and Centre for the Analysis of Risk and Regulation, LSE
Report on the event by Paul Catherall. See: http://libr.org/isc/occasional_papers/swansea.html
g) Talked about my book Globalisation, Information and Libraries at a Marx, Individuals and Society Seminar, at Birkbeck College, University of London, on 8th December 2005.


TALKS GIVEN IN 2006

a) Spoke about my globalisation book at Lancaster University, as part of the Knowledge-Based Economy Research Programme for 2005-06, at the Institute of Advanced Studies (IAS).
Part of a workshop that was entitled: Education and the Knowledge-Based Economy held on 19th-20th January http://209.85.135.104/search?q=cache:OMWHQq0tILkJ:www.lancs.ac.uk/ias/annualprogramme/kbe/education.htm+lancaster+univ+and+knowledge-based+economy+and+ruth+rikowski&hl=en&ct=clnk&cd=3&gl=uk
For general information about the IAS and its activities, contact:Professor Bob Jessop, IAS Director - r.jessop@lancaster.ac.uk

b) Spoke about my globalisation book at University of Greenwich, 1st Feb 2006 to Research Seminar for PhD and masters research students. There was a lot of interest and a good discussion.

c) Gave guest lecture on Globalisation: A Marxist Perspective to the MBA students, at London South Bank University, for the International Management Issues unit. Considered various definitions of globalisation and outlined my Open Marxist theoretical perspective. Asked potential international managers to reflect on their own potential future role.In Keyworth Centre, 13th February

d) Talked about my globalisation book at Discourse, Power and Resistance in Education Conference 5: Research as a Subversive Activity, 21st April, at Manchester Metropolitan University
TALKS GIVEN IN 2007
a) Talked about my globalisation book at News from Nowhere Club in Leytonstone, London on 10th Feb.Approx 20 people attended from the local community, and the talk was conducted in a round table forum, with lots of discussion. There seemed to be a particular interest in me, as I was a local author, from East London.b) Gave talk on globalisation and libraries at UK Chartered Institute of Library and Information Professionals (CILIP), Sekforde Arms, London, 13th Feb, 6.30pm. Talk entitled What have global trade agreements ever done for library and information workers? http://www.cilip.org.uk/branches/byregion/london/events/feb07.htm
‘Round table’ format, where I invited interjections from the participants throughout my talk. The session lasted for about 2 hours, with further informal discussions around refreshments. There was a good discussion and a lot of interest. Brief summary of talk at: http://www.flowideas.co.uk/index.php?page=events&sub=Globalisation (near bottom of page)Distributed copies of my PowerPoint slides. If anyone would like a copy of these, please contact me at: rikowskigr@aol.com
See also:
CILIP Response to “Liberalising Trade in Services: A New Consultation on the World Trade Organisation GATS Negotiations” (2004) – Updated March 2005
http://www.cilip.org.uk/professionalguidance/lobbying/consultations2004/worldtrade.htm







PUBLICATIONS BY RUTH RIKOWSI ON GLOBALISATION, INFORMATION AND LIBRARIES

ARTICLES (both Online and Hard Copy)

PUBLICATIONS IN 2001
Globalisation and Information - Edited by Ruth RikowskiInformation for Social Change, Issue No. 14, Winter 2001Includes articles by: Bill Lehm, Glenn Rikowski, Clare Joy, Victor Rikowski, Fiona Hunt, Ruth Rikowski, Anneliese Dodds, Shahrzad Mojab, Alex Nunn, Patrick Ainley and Jonathan Rutherford.

GATS: private affluence and public squalor? Implications for libraries and information Article summarising and providing further analysis about a radio programme, on Radio 4 (on You and Yours), on the GATS that I participated inManaging Information , Vol. 8, No. 10, December 2001, pp. 8-10Also, available in Library Juice, 4.46, Dec 19, 2001 http://libr.org/juice/issues/vol4/LJ_4.46.html#7
Report on Globalise Resistance Conference at Hammersmith, 2001 Link-up, the newsletter of Link: a network for north-south library development, Spring 2001, pp. 6-8
The Corporate Takover of Libraries Information for Social Change, Winter 2001, No. 14 http://libr.org/isc/articles/14-Ruth_Rikowski.html




PUBLICATIONS IN 2002

The Capitalisation of librariesThe Commoner: a left-academic activist e-journal, 2002, May, No. 14 http://216.239.59.104/search?q=cache:B2D_uQvPt1oJ:www.commoner.org.uk/04rikowski.pdf+commoner,+rikowski+and+capitalisation+of+libraries&hl=en&ct=clnk&cd=1&gl=uk

Globalisation and Libraries In Globalisation, Report by House of Lords, Select Committee on Economic Affairs, Session 2002-03, 1st Report, the Stationery Office, 2002. In 'Volume of Evidence', part 2, HL5-II - on CD-ROM, pp. 360-371

Globalisation: Select Committee on Economic Affairs, House of Lords, Session 2002-03, 1st Report – Review by Ruth Rikowski, in Managing Information
http://www.managinginformation.com/Book%20reviews/bookreviews_globalisation.htm

The WTO, the GATS and the meaning of 'services' Public Library Journal, Summer 2002, Vol.17, No. 2, pp. 48-50 (Part 1 of a 2-part article, based on my talk The WTO/GATS Agenda for Libraries)

Takeover by stealth? Public Library Journal, Autumn 2002, Vol. 17, No. 3, pp. 73-76(Part 2 of a 2-part article based on my talk The WTO/GATS Agenda for Libraries)
What does the future hold for our public libraries? Information for Social Change, Summer 2002, No. 15 http://libr.org/isc/articles/15-Rikowski-2.html
Feedback on 'Globalisation and Information' issue of ISC (No. 14) Information for Social Change, Summer 2002, No. 15 http://libr.org/isc/articles/15-Rikowski-1.html
The profit virus: globalisation, libraries and education (Summary report of the fringe meeting at IFLA conference, 2002)IFLA Journal, special issue on the Glasgow Conference, Winter 2002, Vol. 28, No. 5/6, pp. 341-342

The profit virus: globalisation, libraries and education (Report of the fringe meeting at IFLA conference, 2002)Library Juice, 5:31. Oct 2002 http://libr.org/juice/issues/vol5/LJ_5.31.html#2
Report on Fringe meeting at IFLA Conference, 2002 - 'The profit virus: globalisation, libraries and education', In Link-Up: the newsletter of LINK: a network for north-south library development, September 2002, Vol. 14, No. 3, pp. 17-19
Raising awareness about the GATS and 'Women's Issues'Information for Social Change, Winter, Iss 16, 2002 http://libr.org/isc/articles/16-R.Rikowski-1.html
Report on meetings and demonstrations attended, overall impression and a look toward the future (Report on the 2002 IFLA Conference in Glasgow)Information for Social Change, Winter 2002, Vol 16 http://libr.org/isc/articles/16-R.Rikowski-2.html

Anti-globalisation websites Information for Social Change , Vol. 16, 2002 http://libr.org/isc/articles/16-R.Rikowski-3.html
Reprinted in Linkup: the newsletter of Link - a network for north-south library development, Vol. 15, No. 1, March 2003WTO/GATS Agenda for Libraries (abbreviated version)
Focus: on International Library and Information Work - Journal for the International Library and Group of the Chartered Institute of Library and Information Professionals (CILIP), 2002, Vol. 33, No.2, pp. 53-65

Kommersialisering och Privatisering - WTO/GATS Agenda for Bibliotek I ett Engelskt Perspektiv (WTO/GATS agenda with special reference to public libraries in England)BIS (Bibliotek i Samhaelle) (Libraries in Society), Swedish left library journal. 2002, No. 3, pp. 6-9 http://www.foreningenbis.org/Gats/gatsrr.html

PUBLICATIONS IN 2003
Library privatisation: fact or fiction? Information for Social Change , No. 17, Summer 2003 http://libr.org/isc/articles/17-Rikowski-2.html

The significance of WTO agreements for the library and information world, Managing Information, Jan/Feb 2003, Vol. 10, No. 1, p.43

Tripping along with TRIPS?: the WTO's Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS) and its implications for the library and information world Managing Information, April 2003, Vol. 10, No. 3, pp. 10-13
Globalisation, Libraries and Information, Relay: the journal of the University College and Research Group of the Chartered Institute of Library and Information Professionals (CILIP), 2003, July, Iss. 55, pp. 11-12 and Information for Social Change, No, 17, Summer 2003 http://libr.org/isc/articles/17-Rikowski-1.html

TRIPS into the unknown: libraries and the WTO Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights, IFLA Journal, 2003, Vol. 29, No. 2, pp. 141-151
Keep tripping along with TRIPS?: an assessment of the WTO Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS), focusing in particular on trade, moral and information issues, Business Information Review, September, Autumn 2003, 20(3)
PUBLICATIONS IN 2004
Background and Overview to the book - Globalisation, Information and Libraries’, Information for Social Change Summer 2004, Issue 19
http://libr.org/isc/articles/19-R.Rikowski-1.html


PUBLICATIONS IN 2005
Global Trading of Libraries and Intellectual Property Rights, The Hobgoblin, 2005 http://www.thehobgoblin.co.uk/journal/H7.htm#gats

Japanese Libraries, the GATS and PFI, Managing Information, Nov 2005, Vol. 12, No. 9, p. 20

A discussion on ‘The World Tonight’, BBC Radio 4 programme, 25th October 2005, 10.00pm, about the UK Government Education White Paper and links with the GATS, Library Services, Education Services and the extension of the commodification process. Glenn Rikowski participated in this programme.
http://www.flowideas.co.uk/?page=articles&sub=Education%20White%20Paper


PUBLICATIONS IN 2006
Overview and a Marxist analysis of the WTO Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights, Policy Futures in Education, Special issue on Intellectual Property Rights - Edited by Cushla Kapitska, Vol. 4, No. 4, Winter 2005 http://www.wwwords.co.uk/pfie/content/pdfs/4/issue4_4.asp#6



The inspiration of the Benns: reflection and report:
Tony Benn speaking about his diaries and archiving material: ‘The importance of keeping our history’, at the Chartered Institute of Library and Information Professionals (CILIP) Members’ Day, October 26th 2006. Includes information about the impact that Caroline and Tony Benn had on Glenn Rikowski and myself, in regard to our work on globalisation and the World Trade Organisation.
http://www.flowideas.co.uk/?page=articles&sub=Tony%20and%20Caroline%20Benn


PUBLICATIONS IN 2007
Tony Benn: links to libraries’ future: report on Tony Benn’s speech at CILIP Members’ Day, October 2006, and linking this to the topic of the commercialisation and privatisation of state-funded libraries, Managing Information, May, Vol. 14, No. 4, pp. 24-26


BOOKS

Globalisation, Information and Libraries: the implications of the World Trade Organisation’s GATS and TRIPS Agreements (2005), Chandos Publishing: Oxford
http://www.chandospublishing.com/catalogue/record_detail.php?recordID=35

Globalisation, Information, Libraries and Social Commitment (2007) (forthcoming) in Libraries and Social Commitment. Co-ordinated by Pedro López López, Javier Gimeno Perelló and María Jesús Morillo, Ediciones Trea: Spain (text in Spanish)










Best wishes,
Ruth




26th May 2007

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