The conference

Wed 10/20
We returned to Addis from Makele yesterday evening. The contrast between cities is very stark. The poverty in Addis is even more striking after being away for a few days. Today was our first day at the conference.

This is our first day on the ILRI campus It is really beautiful. A world apart from the city. And, it's the first day I actually have been able to get on the blog directly! Heather has been doing posting for me up till now.

The first session was on knowledge management. It was interesting because what most of the participants think of as knowledge management I as a librarian would think of more as knowledge creation -- at least to the point of publication. Then the managment part comes into play. Talking to people here requires a different mind set. They really stop thinking long before the library comes into play. For most of them they haven't really thought about the library as a player in knowledge management. A scary thought for our profession.

The other rather startling thing, these are professionals who are supposedly serving rural farmers in africa but the small farmers here that we sat with at lunch that clearly feel these folks are talking way past them as well. One woman from Kenya, got up and said that directly and was taken very seriously. A good sign that they are listening at least.

It's interesting to be at a non-library conference, and at a conference that is only about 200 people. Great fun to get to know people. Tonight there is a barbacue with music and dance.

However, right now there I need to get off the internet. They need the room.