Referenced in this episode:

The Copyright Advisory Network Question Forum:  http://www.librarycopyright.net/

The Kraemer Copyright Conference:  https://www.uccs.edu/copyright/

The Miami University Copyright Conference:  https://copyrightconference.lib.miamioh.edu/

 

Copyright chat is a podcast dedicated to discussing important copyright matters. Host Sara Benson, the copyright librarian from the University of Illinois, converses with experts from across the globe to engage the public with rights issues relevant their daily lives.

Sara:  Welcome to another episode of copyright chat.  Today I have with me Carla Meyers. She is the assistant librarian and coordinator of scholarly communications at Miami University Libraries.  Welcome Carla.

Carla:  Thanks Sara. I’m so excited to be here.

Sara:  Carla –I really wanted to have you on the show because I know that you are the mastermind behind some wonderful conferences on copyright including the Kraemer copyright conference and I know you also have developed another conference at your home institution of Miami University Libraries.  We’re talking about Miami Ohio not Miami Florida for those of you who are wanting to get to the sun.  There are some sunny days in Ohio, too. And I know that you are planning a music copyright conference which I’m really excited about so I wanted you to talk about the reason you developed these interesting conference opportunities.

Carla:  Sure, so I think the primary reason is to help get good quality copyright information out to the library and educational community. When I first started working with copyright about fifteen years ago I was told go and learn about this—to make sure the library practices are in compliance with copyright law. So, I started looking around online and I started looking in books and it took me a while to realize how much bad copyright information is out there. And one of the places where I first found myself engaging with really great copyright information and really great presenters was the Ball State copyright conference that Dr. Fritz Dolak coordinated for Ball State University for about twelve years I think.

So when I went to Colorado to take a librarian job there realizing that it was hard to get back to Indiana to attend that conference or that other people in the West might not be likely to travel there I asked my dean at the time Terry Switzer if we could create something similar for people in the West and she supported that idea and it took off. So it was a combination of wanting to make sure people could get connected with good copyright information, but that we could also connect them with the presenters who are putting out this good information or with other people who are struggling with those frontline issues and dealing with copyright.

Sara: That is really a wonderful idea because copyright literacy is so key to information literacy especially in the digital age and I really appreciate that myself teaching and iSchool course to young enthusiastic librarians and information professionals So, what do you see as what are the challenges with providing this information at these conferences.

Carla:  So I think one of the challenges can be people getting there. We all know that librarians tend to have very limited travel budgets. Kraemer is established in the West it’s off and running I hope it continues to go on for a long time. Coming back to Ohio, unfortunately Fritz Bolak retired, which I’m very happy for him, but unfortunately that meant that they discontinued the conference there for the time being. So that’s why we looked to resurrect a conference or to start a conference here at Miami University to help fill that void for people on this side of the Mississippi. So hopefully they could afford to travel here. But I think also something too is just connecting with the information the valuable opportunity to hear directly from the presenters and to ask questions of them.