The 60th Library Week activities were held from March 25 to 31. This year’s theme was “Sustainability and Advocacy.” Activities started with visits from third- grade students from İDV Özel Bilkent Primary and Secondary Schools. A library surprise activity also took place on March 27 at the Main Campus Library. The winner was Ufuk Batuhan Yazlık from the Department of Philosophy.
Throughout the week, the library created opportunities for participants to share experiences in the field of librarianship with colleagues. On March 26, Information Management students from Hacettepe University, Ankara University, Yıldırım Beyazıt University and Kırıkkale University visited the library. The orientation focused on the library’s wide range of collections, including the Special Collection, Halil İnalcık Collection and Hasan Ali Yücel Collection. In addition, students were introduced to the library’s professional services.
As part of the library week program, Bilkenters who wanted to read a book with library mascot Libbear participated in the Reader’s Theater activity on March 27. On the same day, Bilkent Library Director Dr. Ebru Kaya contributed to the webinar, “Is Thinking Big Enough to Be Great?” in which she discussed the innovations Bilkent library has guided and pioneered for university libraries in Türkiye since its establishment. She covered various topics, such as RFID technologies, open access, digitization, faculty librarianship, research guides and interlibrary loans, closely following developments and changes in the field.
On Thursday, March 28, the library, in collaboration with ÜNAK, hosted the panel titled “The Contribution of University Libraries to Türkiye’s Academic Outputs and the Evaluation of Our Universities.” With contributions from expert speakers, the panel, addressing both foundation and state university libraries, showed that libraries have a vital role in contributing to the knowledge and intellectual wealth of Türkiye.
The week concluded with the “Reader of the Year” celebration. Dilanaz Güler (ELIT), Ahmet Serbay Erden (PHIL), Yusuf İsa Dural (MATH) and Zeynep Yüceler (ELIT) were celebrated for being the most active readers of 2023, reading over 100 books during the year. They were congratulated for their passion for books and reading habits.
The 60th Library Week program served to offer awareness of library resources and services among Bilkent members and created an opportunity to guide young librarians stepping into the profession through valuable insights from expert librarians and academics.
