EBLIDA/SCONUL conference on trade agreements and libraries

12.00

Lunch

First session: Background (chair, Frode Bakken, President, Norwegian Library Association)

13.30

Welcome – Jan Ewout van der Putten, the Netherlands, President of EBLIDA

Introduction – Kjell Nilsson, Deputy National Librarian, Sweden, Chair of EBLIDA’s expert group on the WTO

13.45

Keynote speech
‘Globalisation and access to information' – George Monbiot, author, journalist, and visiting Professor at Oxford Brookes University

14.45

Coffee break

15.15

‘The world according to GATS’ - Dale Honeck, WTO, Geneva

15.45

Ten-minute break

15.55

'Globalisation and the new knowledge trade: patterns, politics, problems' - Susan Robertson
Professor at the Graduate School of Education, University of Bristol
and Coordinator of the Centre for Studies of Globalisation, Education and Societies

‘What does this have to do with libraries?’ - Paul Whitney, City Librarian, Vancouver

16.50

Ten-minute break

17.00

'TRIPS and libraries' - Ruth Rikowski, Visiting Lecturer, London South Bank University, and author of ‘Globalisation, information and libraries: the implications of the WTO’s GATS and TRIPS agreements’

17.30

Session ends

19.00

Dinner

Thursday 3 March 2005

Second session: The way forward (chair, Toby Bainton, Secretary of SCONUL (Society of College, National and University Libraries), UK and Ireland

9.00

Introductory panel: questions for discussion

9.15

Discussion in groups

10.15

Coffee

10.45

Concluding plenary discussion

11.45

Session ends

Lunch and departures