The 72nd General Conference and Council of IFLA World Library and Information Congress (IFLA 2006 SEOUL) was held from August 20 to 24, 2006 in Seoul, Korea. The NDL held a pre-conference, sent 18 delegates, participated in the exhibition and held professional tour. We report these activities.

Pre-conference of the IFLA World Library and Information Congress: Preservation and Conservation in Asia
The Pre-conference was held from August 16 to 17, 2006 at the NDL. The IFLA Preservation and Conservation Section, Asia and Oceania Section, IFLA/PAC Core Activity and the NDL jointly hosted this conference. 204 people (54 from oversea countries) participated on the 16th and 193 (52 from oversea countries) on the 17th. Guided tour of the stacks and the Preservation Division of the NDL was also held on the 16th and 34 people participated. Details of the Program can be seen here.

IFLA 2006 SEOUL

Presentation papers
The NDL sent 8 presenters to the sections and satellite meetings. They reported the current state of the NDL and Japan. The audience reacted favorably and asked many questions, especially in the 78th meeting (Government Libraries with Social Science Libraries) and the 117th meeting (National Libraries).

   Section meetings

• 77. UNIMARC 
  Japanese scripts and UNIMARC [PDF Format, 194KB]
  Naoko HARAI
• 78. Government Libraries with Social Science Libraries
  The Japanese Government Libraries Network: serving the customers in the new era [PDF Format, 137KB]
  Mika LAWLER
• 79. Newspapers
  Microfilming and Cataloging the Newspapers in the National Diet Library (NDL) [PDF Format, 97KB]
  Keiyu HORIKOSHI
• 109. Bibliography 
  Japanese National Bibliography in the digital environment [PDF Format, 64KB]
  Yukio YOKOYAMA
• 117. National Libraries 
  Dynamic Transformation of the National Diet Library: From the Researcher's Library to the Library for All [PDF Format, 123KB]
  Kenji UETSUKI

• 1. Resource Sharing, Reference and Collection Development in a Digital Age - a practical approach
  Collaborative Reference Database Project (text,presentation file)
  Tomoko KITAGAWA
• 5. (Annual) Satellite Meeting Parliamentary Libraries
  Developing the research service in the National Diet Library of Japan
  Jun ASHIDA
• 6. Scholarly Information on East Asia in the 21st Century
  NDL (National Diet Library, Japan) information services on Asia – focusing on Internet information [PDF Format, 197KB]
  Taketoshi ISHIKAWA

Participation in the exhibition

The NDL participated in the international library trade exhibition which was held at the Congress venue in conjunction with the Congress from August 20 to 23. Japan Library Association (JLA), National Institute of Informatics (NII) and Japan Science and Technology Agency (JST) also participated. Four exhibitors from Japan were side by side and showed the current state of Japanese libraries and information services.

The NDL exhibits included its unique traditional conservation methods as well as the introduction of various digital library services. Under the theme "conservation and preservation," we exhibited various Japanese papers and mounting brushes for mending, containers for preservation (phase box, preservation wrapper and polyester film), panels on the dissemination of acid-free paper and so on. On the other side we introduced our digital library services using PCs and a panel. We also showed the introduction video of the NDL and distributed pamphlets.

Professional tour

On August 27 and 28, the NDL and the JLA held a professional tour for participants of the joint session of the Reading Section and the Libraries for Children Section in Seoul. The participants visited the International Library of Children's Literature (ILCL, Branch of the NDL), Tokyo Children's Library, a private library in Nakano Ward in Tokyo, the Kodaira City Library, a public library in a suburb of Tokyo, and Akasia Bunko Library, a unique Japanese private home library for children.

After the tour, one of the participants, Ms. Patricia Muller, Children's and Youth Services Consultant working for the Library Development and Networking Division in the Library of Virginia, delivered a lecture at the Japan Library Association on "the possibility of attractive young adult services."

More details are published in NDL Monthly Bulletin no.548 and 549, November and December 2006 (in Japanese).