Recent Government of Canada Publications from the Weekly Acquisitions List

The Government of Canada's Weekly Acquisitions List can be a great way to discover new research reports published by various public bodies and agencies of the federal government. 

It is a record of all publications catalogued in the previous week.

The most recent list had a few documents that attracted my attention:

• Applying R v Gladue : the use of Gladue reports and principles: "In 1996, section 718.2(e) was added to the Criminal Code, which introduced the principle of restraint in the use of imprisonment during sentencing with particular attention to the circumstances of Indigenous offenders ... The Supreme Court of Canada (SCC), in 1999, first interpreted section 718.2(e) in R v Gladue.⁠ Through this case, the SCC clarified that judges need to consider the unique systemic factors which may have played a part in bringing an Indigenous offender before the courts. To support courts in applying what are now considered Gladue sentencing principles in their decision-making, judges require relevant information about the Indigenous offender before the court. This information can be provided through comprehensive Gladue reports, which include information about an Indigenous person’s background and experiences with colonization, intergenerational trauma, racism, and discrimination ...This study was undertaken by the Department of Justice Canada to better understand how Gladue reports are being prepared across the country and how they and Gladue principles are being considered by the courts."
• National risk profile : a national emergency preparedness and awareness tool: "The National Risk Profile (NRP) is Canada’s first strategic, national-level risk assessment. This report is based on input and evidence from whole-of-society stakeholders across Canada, and provides a foundation for understanding disaster risk from the three costliest hazards facing Canadians: earthquakes, wildland fire, and floods. It aims to broaden public awareness of disaster risk, identify gaps in the Canadian emergency management system at a national-level and provide evidence to support existing federal risk assessment and climate change adaptation efforts."
• Canada Centre 2023 conference on countering radicalization to violence : what to measure, how to prevent: "At a time of converging drivers and vulnerabilities that are propelling extreme, grievancefueled forms of violence, Public Safety's Canada Centre for Community Engagement and Prevention of Violence (Canada Centre) designed its fourth international conference on countering radicalization to violence (CRV) around the theme of ‘What to measure, how to prevent.’ The idea was to emphasize the importance of research, evaluation, and knowledge exchange between experts and practitioners for adapting prevention to this complex environment.  What follows are select highlights, with further detail about particular sessions and presentations available from the Canada Centre upon request."
• ArriveCAN : independent auditor's report: "Overall, the Canada Border Services Agency, the Public Health Agency of Canada, and Public Services and Procurement Canada repeatedly failed to follow good management practices in the contracting, development, and implementation of the ArriveCAN application. As a result of the many gaps and weaknesses we found in the project’s design, oversight, and accountability, it did not deliver the best value for taxpayer dollars spent. The enduring benefit of the ArriveCAN application is that it remains available for customs and immigration declarations. As of October 2022, ArriveCAN is no longer used to collect travellers’ contact and health information."

Public Health Crisis Management Playbook for Archives, Libraries, and Museums

The REopening Archives, Libraries, and Museums (REALM) Project has published a Public Health Crisis Management Playbook for Archives, Libraries, and Museums.

REALM is a collaboration between OCLC, an international library services cooperative, the US government agency Institute of Museum and Library Services, and Battelle.

The document outlines processes, resources, and tools to aid cultural heritage institutions when planning for, navigating through, and recovering from a significant public health emergency. 

It covers the following topics:

• Crisis leadership - Provides starting points for crisis management and communications planning
• Facilities and operations - Offers considerations for determining processes for decision-making about collections management, space configuration, building systems, and safety protocols
• Crisis decision-making and risk management - Overviews risk assessment, information gathering, and decision-making during uncertain times
• Resource networks - Shares strategies for identifying partners and maintaining collaborative relationships, including a tool for visualizing an institution’s potential partners during a crisis
• Resources for more information - Provides all resources used to develop the playbook, as well as additional materials that can be used in developing a public health crisis management plan

September/October 2020 Issue of AALL Spectrum

The September/October 2020 Issue of AALL Spectrum is now available online.

It is a publication of the American Association of Law Libraries.

Among the articles:

• Novel Responses: Helping Law Firms Answer Clients’ COVID-19 Questions
• Academic Law Libraries & the Early Days of the COVID-19 Pandemic
• Global COVID-19 Research Efforts
• Open Educational Resources Repositories for Casebooks & Textbooks
• Strategies for Redesigning Library Research Training Programs
• Talking Tech / Disaster Planning and the Virtual Law Library
• Voices Across the Spectrum / How Law Librarians Can Help Tell the Black Lives Matter Movement’s Story

Canadian Association of Law Libraries Webinar on Disaster Management & Contingency Planning

The Canadian Association of Law Libraries (CALL) will host a webinar on April 8, 2020 on Disaster Management & Contingency Planning:

"By now, we're all fairly proficient, if somewhat improvisational, disaster managers. But how do the experts really manage disasters? What are the pitfalls that could trap a new disaster manager? What are the principles that lead to a long-term sustainable response, or that we'll need for multiple disasters at the same time? This presentation and discussion will explain the framework behind disaster management and contingency planning in simple terms, from a Canadian context, to help you prepare for, and lead your teams through, crises."

The speaker will be Adam Conway, Team Lead of Emergency Management at the University of Albert.

Webinar Costs:

• CALL Member: $40 + HST
• CALL Student Member: $25 + HST
• Non-member: $60 + HST

News from Fort McMurray Librarians

The following post appeared recently on the Canadian Librarianship Facebook group:

"We heard from the Librarians of Fort Mac today. All staff and family made it out and the Library is still standing. But what impressed me so much, was that they had the presence of mind to grab the backup servers. That's how Librarians think; information ninja's, heroes, gurus. Libraries throughout the province are making their computers, internet, collections and space available to the displaced people of Ft. Mac freely. They have a place to go to file E.I. and other insurance claims. They have a place to take their children, hopefully taking their minds off their losses, if only for a little while. All of Alberta is coming together in support, with provisions, and with prayer. It makes me proud of the people in this province that I now call home."

So far, the devastating forest fires in Northern Alberta have destroyed some 2,400 buildings in the town.

SLA Webinar on Disaster Preparedness

The international information professional organization SLA (Special Libraries Association) is organizing a webinar on Thursday, October 22 entitled Disaster Preparedness and Response Cross-collaboration: We Are All in This Together.

The speaker is Dr. Christine Hagar, Assistant Professor in the School of Library and Information Science at San Jose State University.

The free one-hour event begins at begin at 2:00 p.m. Eastern time.

New Guide on Library Technology Disaster Planning

The Library and Information Technology Association (LITA), a division of the American Library Association, has published a new guide on Technology Disaster Response and Recovery Planning ($59.00 US):

"Most library disaster plans focus on response and recovery from collection and facilities disasters, such as fire and floods. But because technology is becoming ever more integral to libraries’ role in their communities, any interruption in service and resources is a serious matter.  A disaster’s effect on internet and social media sites, electronic resources, digital collections, and staff and public infrastructure of PCs, tablets, laptops and other peripherals requires special consideration. Featuring contributions from librarians who offer hard-won advice gained from personal experience, this compendium leads readers through a step-by-step process of creating a library technology disaster response and recovery plan. "

Canadian Bar Association Article on Disaster Planning

CBA PracticeLink, a publication of the Canadian Bar Association, has published an article entitled Not If, But When: Prepare a Disaster Recovery Plan Today:

"The goal of disaster planning is making a recovery that ensures the firm’s survival. If, as a lawyer or a law firm, you think of planning for disaster recovery as a luxury you can ill afford in a time of increasing cost and profitability pressure, think again. Considerable research suggests that you are jeopardizing the future of your practice through unpreparedness and through missing an opportunity to gain competitive advantage".

The article does not address library issues. I published a post on that topic entitled Library Disaster Planning on January 22, 2006.

Library Disaster Planning

We are working on the 2006-2007 business plan for the Supreme Court Library and someone (not me) has been assigned the job of coming with a disaster plan, just in case the water pipes burst because of freezing weather, a fire burns down the stacks or a plane crashes into the building.

There are many disaster planning resources available out there:

• From Ice Storms to Blackouts, from Floods to Fire Bombings: Disaster Planning and Recovery for Libraries (Canadian Library Association Conference 2005): "The last few years have seen numerous climatic events, power failures and acts of violence that have touched libraries and challenged library operations and recoveries. Listen to colleagues and experts in the field, share their stories and learn how they have met and surpassed some extraordinary situations." There are links to the PowerPoint presentations at the session, to references and to a list of Canadian emergency preparedness organizations
• Library Disaster Planning and Recovery Handbook (Neal-Schuman Publishers, 2000): "Both conceptual and practical elements of disaster planning and recovery are covered, including: risk management analysis; human resources implications; collection restoration, gifts, and fundraising; evaluating temporary sites and setting up temporary services; and managing damaged materials restoration and processing."
• WebJunction's Focus on Disaster Planning and Recovery for Libraries (OCLC, 2005): "In the wake of Hurricane Katrina WebJunction has assembled a collection of resources to help your library prepare for and respond to disasters."
• Disaster Planning for Computers and Networks (American Library Association, 2002): "Disaster planning for computers and networks is important because these technologies are essential to patron service and staff productivity. Not only is the patron access catalog the only way for patrons to identify holdings and current availability of titles in their library, but also titles in other libraries and electronic resources to which their library subscribes... Library staff are dependent on these technologies for ordering, claiming and receiving library materials, charging and discharging of library materials to patrons; and the provision of reference service. Every hour of downtime is extremely serious, therefore, a library must give disaster planning a high priority."
• Selected Resources on Disaster Management (International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions, 2005): an international bibliography of major sources on the topic
• Disaster preparedness and response (Conservation Online, 2005): produced by Stanford University, this website lists resources from major organizations such as the Smithsonian Institution, the National Archives and Records Administration, the Library of Congress, and UNESCO
• Preservation of Library and Archive Materials (Northeast Document Conservation Center, 1999): this full text of a manual produced by the Northeast Document Conservation Center in Massachusetts deals with preservation activities, with conversion to other formats, and with disaster planning and recovery measures. Downloadable in .pdf format
• Bibliography of Standards and Selected References Related to Preservation in Libraries (Library and Archives Canada, 1996): contains a section on Emergency Planning and Response

Legal Info and Disaster Recovery Post-Katrina

The Inter Alia legal research blog references a discussion on what the Katrina disaster "teaches us (...) about the value of electronic documents...".

Among the points raised:

• Many companies had all their important data digitally backed up but weren't able to get their operations up and running when having to rely solely on the back-up data.
• "How do you prove even simple matters when the filing systems and paper records that house that proof are gone, unavailable for long periods of time, or prohibitively expensive to recover? ... Will law firms who have conducted electronic discovery have an enormous advantage over law firms that have not? How will clients react when they find that the paper records they entrusted to their law firms were not protected and are not salvageable? "
• "PACER put out a post-Katrina notice that its information systems were affected in courts all across the Gulf coast, including Florida...In others, PACER said court information might not be current."

The discussion describes the huge mess the legal system is in down there and points to the importance of having a detailed disaster plan in place before disaster strikes.