BALTIC UKH project partners at the German Library Congress 2025 in Bremen

Two of BALTIC UKH project partners – the State and University Library Hamburg and the National Library of Latvia – participated in the German Library Congress from 24-27 June  in Bremen. This is the largest library event in Germany and takes place yearly in varying German cities (see last year’s article from the congress in Hamburg). This year’s congress was attended by approximately 3 500 participants, including more than 250 guests from Switzerland, Austria, Luxembourg, France, Poland, the Czech Republic, the Netherlands, Italy, Turkey, Croatia, Belgium, the United States and Latvia. The event brought together representatives from public libraries, university libraries, national libraries, and professional organizations, among them the International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions (IFLA) and the European Bureau of Library, Information and Documentation Associations (EBLIDA). Following this year’s slogan “democratically determined”, the programme offered a broad variety of presentations, panel discussions as well as hands-on engagement opportunities.

As part of one of the focal points on cooperation and partnership, Miriam Green held a short presentation, giving insights into some of the most important aspects of international collaboration. Representing the State and University Library in Hamburg as the lead partner of BALTIC UKH, she focused mainly on the corner stones such as the application process, the lead partner role and some of the challenges of international collaboration. She also provided some tips and pointers as well as some lessons learnt. Underneath the umbrella of innovative services, Katja Reuter also from State and University Library in Hamburg explained the background, approach and results of the pilot project in Hamburg. Accompanied by pictures showing the Carl von Ossietzky Forum before and after its refurbishment, she also brought up potentials and challenges in participatory processes.

This April, the National Library of Latvia, the Library Association of Latvia, and the Federal Union of German Library Associations – Library and Information in Germany (Bibliothek und Information Deutschland) signed a cooperation agreement for a partner country initiative between Latvia and Germany for the next three years. At the Bremen Congress, Latvia presented itself as the incoming partner country during a special open working session titled “Partner Country Latvia 2025–2028: Exchange and Activities”. In this session, the German library community was introduced to library statistics from Latvia and areas of cooperation that the Latvian library community would like to develop in the coming years. Through a brainstorming format, German colleagues contributed their suggestions and expectations. As a result, a dedicated Latvia–Germany cooperation working group will be established to bring joint ideas and initiatives to life in the coming years.

The National Library of Latvia and the State and University Library Hamburg will be part of this group, ensuring that collaboration between the two institutions continues beyond the conclusion of the BALTIC UKH project. This new cooperation model will also expand to involve other libraries and professionals from both countries. The joint Interreg project has helped to create a sustainable cooperation network that will foster knowledge exchange, the development of new projects, the improvement of librarians’ skills, and the advancement of library services.

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