Edited by the �Bundesvereinigung Deutscher Bibliotheksverb�nde e.V.�


Translated by Djann Rusch-Feja.


Hildesheim 2003. Approx. 115 pp., approx. 65 photographs, diagrams, tables, maps. Pbk.


ISBN 3-487-11713-4 Subscription price until 31 August 2003 7 14,90


Retail price 7 16,90





What is the future of libraries? What role will information and media play in the year 2015? Where does German librarianship


stand today in view of users� needs, the task of protecting cultural heritage and being a key player in information


politics? Those are only a few of the questions which a new publication on the German library landscape attempts to


answer. This book has been initiated by the Federal Union of German Library Associations and will be published for the


occasion of the 69th General Conference and Council meeting in August 2003 in Berlin with the financial support of the


Goethe-Institut Inter Nationes. This richly illustrated publication is being prepared in both the German and the English


language. Participants of the IFLA 2003 conference will receive a free copy in either German or English in their conference


bag.





Content:


1. Library History


2. Education and Culture


3. Diversity in Libraries


4. The Library Professions, Professional Associations and Organizations


5. Library Cooperation and Services


6. A Vision for 2015 - The Future of Libraries and Information





Data, facts, figures and overviews in text and graphic presentation - with this colorful and attractive publication you will


be able to learn the most important details about Germany�s libraries, about librarian education and the profession, about


the library associations and professional cooperation, about library, cultural and educational policy, as well as about the


political structure of the Federal Republic of Germany in the middle of Europe including the federative principles, and


their impact on German libraries.





The publication not only describes the historical development of libraries in Germany and the different types of libraries in


reunified Germany as of 1990; it also delineates the most important constitutional and cultural aspects which have


influenced this development and attempts to cast a glance into the future of libraries with the �Vision 2015�. Special


emphasis is given to the initiatives and activities of Germany�s libraries, library institutions and associations within their


national and international projects. Furthermore, the variated, decentrally organized library network which has been built


up since the end of the Second World War, has proved to be very efficient, well-functioning and in a phase of dynamic


change, ready to meet the challenges of the impending digital age.