CLEAR Librarian & Digital Archivist, Center for Labor Education and Research, University of Hawaiʻi-West Oʻahu
Ellen-Rae Cachola, Ph.D., MLISc, is the Librarian and Digital Archivist at the Center for Labor Education and Research, University of Hawaiʻi West Oʻahu.
The place name of Waipahu refers to waters gushing forth, as the abundant springs in the area nourished those who gathered there. Being an educator and librarian at Waipahu Intermediate School, the abundant spring serves as a fitting metaphor for my work; to keep the waters flowing, I rely on networks of people and organizations to keep the knowledge and experiences abundant for our students. In this session I will share about partnerships with teachers, local and national organizations, and others in the community that deepen and expand my ability to provide resources and services to our students. How do we keep our programs and libraries fresh and thriving when budget cuts, challenges to libraries and the profession, and cultural shifts threaten to choke off the living water at its source? It’s Nā Pūnaewele ʻIke that will keep us connected and alive amidst the changes for years to come.
Lori Misaka is a librarian at Waipahu Intermediate School, with an MLIS from the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa and MFA from the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities. Previously an ELA teacher at Waipahu High School, her experience in the EL department and Academy of Arts and Communication... Read More →
The future doesn't arrive all at once. It arrives as signals, trends, and quiet shifts that, if we're not paying attention, can leave us and our communities behind. This interactive session aims to equip information professionals with a practical toolkit to help them scan the horizon, clarify their professional direction, and communicate their vision to stakeholders.
Drawing on the Cone of Plausibility model and the STEEP framework (Social, Technological, Economic, Environmental, Political), participants will analyze emerging trends through multiple lenses. Attendees will practice applying STEEP to real trends, draft a personal "Compass Statement" grounded in their professional values, and build a "Beacon": a message that translates their vision into language that funders, patrons, and colleagues can understand and follow.
Attendees will leave with tools they can use immediately and a framework they can bring back to their teams.
Staff Development Coordinator, Hawaii State Public Library System
Danielle Todd is the Staff Development Coordinator for the Hawaii State Public Library System. Her main duties include planning, and implementing learning opportunities for all HSPLS staff, to ensure they can confidently provide the best possible service to patrons.
The information environment for Hawaiʻi and Pacific resources exists as complex networks of knowledge shaped by place, identity, community, colonial histories, institutional collecting practices, and competing claims to authority. For librarians and information workers, creating a research guide is never a neutral act. The sources we select, the voices we amplify, and the annotations we write all shape how patrons come to understand people, places, and histories. Therefore, how do librarians thoughtfully and intentionally engage with these complex networks to build and manage our collections and provide reference and public services for our patrons?
Drawing from our experiences creating Pacific Islands research guides in LIS 631: Introduction to Hawaiʻi and Pacific Librarianship, we will share how research guides can become tools for engaging with networks of knowledge and power more intentionally: helping patrons identify perspective, context, and authority; making underrepresented voices more findable; and supporting more ethical library praxis. Presenters will reflect on how we selected sources, wrote annotations, and navigated moments of uncertainty, humility, and responsibility when working with Hawaiʻi and Pacific materials. The session will provide space for attendees to identify concrete steps they can take to more thoughtfully engage networks of knowledge and power in their own library work.
Hawaiian Collection Librarian, University of Hawaii at Manoa
Kapena is a Hawaiʻi Specialist Librarian in the Hawaiian Collection at Hamilton Library at the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa. He received an MLISc and a dual BA in Hawaiian Studies and Hawaiian Language from the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa.
Hawaiian Collection Librarian, University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa
Alyssa ʻĀnela Purcell is an Archivist for the Kahoʻiwai Project at the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa. She holds a BA in Hawaiian Studies and an MLISc, and is currently pursuing a PhD in Indigenous Politics.
Library Technical Assistant, William S. Richardson School of Law Library
Corri Beadle is an LIS Graduate Student at the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa and holds a MSc in Positive Psychology and Coaching Psychology from the University of East London, and a MA in English Literature from California State University, Northridge.
Today's teens are growing up in an increasingly complex world and many are entering adulthood feeling unprepared for everyday responsibilities. Libraries have a unique opportunity to bridge this gap by helping them build confidence, practical skills, and meaningful connections at the library.
In this interactive and idea-filled session, participants will discover practical ways to incorporate life skills into library services through programs, displays, conversations, partnerships, and everyday interactions. Kimberli Buckley, author of Teaching Life Skills at the Library, will explore why so many young people feel unprepared for life after high school and will introduce The Big 3—Money, Jobs, and Cooking as practical starting points for life skills programming that every library can adapt.
Participants will also learn practical approaches that inspire teens, build relationships, connect them with resources, and strengthen community partnerships. Along the way, dozens of ready-to-use program ideas will be shared, as well as passive programming examples, microlearning opportunities, and conversation starters that can be implemented at libraries of any size.
Whether participants are just getting started or looking to expand their knowledge, they will leave with ideas on how to connect, learn new resources, and gain the confidence to help teens prepare for adulthood while creating stronger connections within their community.
Libraries routinely connect community members with information about health, education, social services, financial literacy, and other wellness resources. Yet brochures, websites, and referrals alone may not be enough to encourage engagement, particularly when stigma, uncertainty, or lack of familiarity create barriers to help-seeking.
Drawing on a programming framework developed to target holistic wellness within the military community, this session explores how collaborative programming can create meaningful pathways between community members and trusted resources. By partnering with subject matter experts and community organizations, libraries can provide low-pressure opportunities for individuals to learn, ask questions, build relationships, and become more comfortable accessing support services.
Participants will examine practical strategies for developing wellness-focused partnerships, designing co-facilitated programs, and adapting these approaches across different library settings.
I’m the Programming Librarian at Marine Corps Base Hawaii Library. I design programs that connect our community with resources and opportunities that make life on base a little easier and a lot more fun.
As we continue to experience divided communities and people who believe every conversation is win or lose, our libraries face the challenge of creating space for everyone. Join us for this interactive session to talk about the power of language and strategies for us to continue to be democratic spaces for all.
State Librarian, Hawaii State Public Library System
Stacey Aldrich has more than 20 years of library experience, and is currently the State Librarian of Hawaii. Prior to Hawaii, she served as the Deputy Secretary for the Office of Commonwealth Libraries in Pennsylvania and State Librarian of California. Stacey has also worked in public... Read More →
This session offers an honest and practical look at weeding at Honolulu Community College Library under severe constraints: limited time, staff shortages, and administrative pressure to downsize. We will explore the friction between ideal weeding principles and the realistic compromises required to get the job done. Specifically, we will share our process for weeding, and how we come to terms with “what is good enough” when doing it perfectly is not an option. Designed as a collaborative space rather than a presentation, this session includes a ten minute interactive breakout discussion. Attendees will have the opportunity to share their own daily realities, triumphs, and practical solutions. By pooling our collective experiences, participants will leave with a shared bank of actionable strategies for managing collection downsizing and prioritization in their own libraries.
Subject to a range of increasingly devastating disasters, from earthquakes and tsunamis, to volcanic eruptions and hurricanes, Hawaiʻi is at risk for wildfires, flooding, sinkholes, and landslides. When facing a disaster, each of us needs to prepare for our own personal safety, and that of our families, while cultural heritage stewards also find themselves responsible for the care of physical and digital collections, the built environment, as well as the ʻāina itself. As one of the most isolated archipelagoes in the world, Hawaiʻi relies heavily on external sources for food and material supplies, but a statewide disaster may interrupt shipping lines, thereby cutting off much-needed, out-of-state resources. Although no one can predict the next disaster, we can plan ahead so we’re prepared to protect our cultural heritage. Our presentation will focus on three important disaster planning steps that every institution or organization can start today: 1) drafting a (simple) disaster plan, 2) preparing a disaster kit, and 3) identifying useful resources. We envision this online, synchronous presentation as a necessary first step aimed to build a network of Hawaiʻi-based library, archives, and museum professionals trained in disaster preparedness, response, and recovery who can support each other and the community when needed.
Art Archivist Librarian, University of Hawaii at Manoa Library
Malia oversees the Jean Charlot Collection, a large collection of artist papers, plus the Archive of Hawaii Artists & Architects at University of Hawaii at Manoa Library. Previously, she worked in the Library's Preservation Department, and has served as Collections Manager for the... Read More →
Labor Archivist-Librarians Joy Enomoto and Ellen-Rae Cachola will talk about the origins of our libraries and repositories, namely the International Longshore and Warehouse Union and the Center for Labor Education and Research. We will discuss the challenges we face in educating members and all workers about the significance of our labor libraries and labor archives, and how they educate and empower working people about their histories to face challenges ahead.
CLEAR Librarian & Digital Archivist, Center for Labor Education and Research, University of Hawaiʻi-West Oʻahu
Ellen-Rae Cachola, Ph.D., MLISc, is the Librarian and Digital Archivist at the Center for Labor Education and Research, University of Hawaiʻi West Oʻahu.
Children’s and Teen Librarians, grow your network of knowledge and let’s share with each other! Come prepared to talk about and share your favorite or recent programs, displays, and ideas! Got a question or want some feedback from your colleagues? Ask away!
This talk-story is perfect for librarians, library staff, or students looking to brainstorm, make new connections, or learn something new. NOTE: To create a safe space for discussion and participation of attendees, this session will NOT be recorded. Mahalo for your understanding.
Youth Services Librarian III, Kapolei Public Library
Jennifer Vinzons uses the term "Artist Librarian" to describe her educational background of a BA in studio art and her MLISc. Besides representing her two passions, it also reflects her goal to instill a lifelong love of reading, creativity, and learning in all patrons regardless... Read More →
Libraries, archives, and museums are increasingly asked to navigate complex decisions amid shifting priorities, evolving technologies, constrained resources, and organizational change. While technical best practices remain essential, they do not always help us determine where limited time and effort will make the greatest difference, or how to sustain the people doing this work.
This session introduces Navigating Uncertainty, a human-centered framework/reflection tool developed through the Digital POWRR Peer Assessment Program. Originally created to complement technical assessment frameworks, it helps practitioners reflect on the human and organizational conditions that shape sustainable stewardship, including confidence, institutional support, relationships, resilience, and organizational capacity.
The framework emerged from years of conversations with practitioners participating in Digital POWRR workshops, institutes, and peer assessment cohorts across North America. Hawaiʻi has been an especially meaningful part of that journey through multiple in-person training programs and continued participation in the Peer Assessment Program, bringing together professionals from libraries, archives, museums, and other cultural heritage organizations across the islands. Through these experiences, we repeatedly heard about the uncertainty practitioners were navigating: constrained resources, organizational barriers, geographic distance, distributed communities, competing priorities, and the emotional work of stewardship. While every institution's circumstances were different, these conversations revealed common patterns that existing technical assessment frameworks could not fully describe. Navigating Uncertainty was developed to make those experiences more visible and provide a shared language for reflection, conversation, and action.
Although developed within the context of digital preservation and stewardship work, the framework is broadly applicable to libraries, archives, museums, and other stewardship organizations. Through examples and guided reflection, participants will explore how it can support decision-making, mentoring, organizational conversations, and strategic thinking during times of uncertainty. Attendees will receive a printable reflection guide and practical ideas for adapting the framework within their own organizations.
While storytimes are an integral component of library programming that supports early literacy development, learning does not have to be confined to a scheduled program. Thoughtfully designed hands-on learning stations can extend literacy and development experiences throughout the day, inviting children and caregivers to explore, play, and learn together at their own pace.
This session explores how low-cost, self-directed learning stations can intentionally reinforce early literacy, fine motor development, language, STEM concepts, sensory exploration, and imaginative play while requiring minimal staff facilitation. Through real-world examples, participants will discover how to connect monthly themes and library collections with engaging, developmentally appropriate activities that encourage independent exploration and meaningful caregiver-child interaction. Attendees will leave with practical ideas for creating adaptable learning stations that support young learners in a variety of library settings.
I’m the Programming Librarian at Marine Corps Base Hawaii Library. I design programs that connect our community with resources and opportunities that make life on base a little easier and a lot more fun.
In this session, UH Mānoa LIS students ʻAulani and Kainani Wagner will discuss the projects they are working on in their respective roles as graduate assistants. Though their work is different, they are connected by their shared goal of improving accessibility to ʻike Hawaiʻi in the information sphere through ʻAulani's reparative descriptions of records and Kainani's transcription of nūpepa. Through this presentation, ʻAulani and Kainani highlight the role of universities in creating and funding professional opportunities for students, and emphasize the importance of building and maintaining pilina across fields and communities in the practice of librarianship.
Located inside Seoul’s COEX shopping mall, Starfield Library is widely recognized for its dramatic bookshelves, open design, and popularity among tourists and social media users. Many visitors come primarily to photograph the space rather than to read, raising questions about whether this kind of activity distracts from the purpose of a library or creates new forms of public engagement. Previous studies have examined Starfield Library in relation to spatial design, user experience, cultural consumption, and its role as a commercial and cultural landmark. Less attention has been given to how visitors themselves define and use the space through tourism, photography, online reviews, and social media. This presentation explores how these activities shape Starfield Library’s identity as a reading space, tourist attraction, cultural venue, and commercial amenity. Using institutional materials, media coverage, and a qualitative review of online visitor comments, the study examines how visitors describe their experiences and what they appear to value about the space. It considers whether people who enter mainly to take photographs can still be understood as library users, how online sharing influences public perceptions of the library, and whether visibility and high attendance can lead to deeper engagement with books, programs, or cultural learning.
The presentation concludes by considering what libraries in Hawaiʻi might learn from this case. Attractive spaces and strong online visibility may help libraries reach people who do not initially see themselves as library users. At the same time, attendance alone does not necessarily demonstrate meaningful engagement with information, reading, or library services. Starfield Library offers an opportunity to rethink what counts as library use, how physical and digital spaces shape public participation, and how libraries can welcome new audiences without allowing spectacle or commercial interests to overshadow their educational and public service missions.
