Team

As an IFLA special interest group, NPSIG has two official leadership roles – Convenor and Information Coordinator. These positions are voluntary, and are based on a two-year term. The Convenor serves as the main liaison to the greater IFLA organization and leads programming efforts. The Information Coordinator serves as social media manager and oversees NPSIG’s online presence. Other roles (Co-convenor, Social media coordinator and Volunteer coordinator) are introduced based on the rising needs of the group. Starting 2017, we have also introduced a new role of an Associate, a highly committed volunteer who supports NPSIG activities.

Current Leadership team

Magdalena Gomułka (Poland),  Convenor, previously: Volunteer coordinator (2017 -2019)

Magda works in the Silesian Library in Katowice, Poland. She is an instructor and works not only with librarians from the Advisory and Training Department but also from small, medium and big public libraries in Silesia. Her job is to help them in solving all sort of problems you can have in the library, from library legislation to creating and sharing information, and preparing workshops on how to use social media for readers.

She likes meeting new people a lot, therefore in 2013 she started cooperating in the International Librarians Network as a country coordinator. Today she works together with Silesian board of Polish Librarians’ Association on a new goal: implementing and promoting SDGs in Silesian libraries

Marija Simunovic (Croatia), Co-convenor 

Marija is a university librarian, currently working in the Library and Documentation Centre at the Faculty of Economics and Business, University of Zagreb. She is the Professional Secretary of the Croatian library association (CLA), editor-in-chief of the CLA website, member of the CLA Commission for Advocacy and the Work group for Social media. Marija is especially proud to be a member of the Zagreb library association Work group ZKD Biciklisti (Cyclicsts of Zagreb library association).

She is a librarian who is interested in patrons, online resources, advocacy, social networks and gadgets. She is passionate about hiking, cycling, nature, society and libraries. Her goal is to allow libraries and librarians to be recognized as the driving force of the local and global society, she believes that librarians have the power to change the world.

Antoine Torrens (France), Project Coordinator, previously: Convenor (2018-2019), Co-convenor (2017 – 2018), Information Coordinator (2015 – 2017)

Antoine Torrens has served as an intern in many kinds of libraries in France, in Germany and in Japan. After working at Dauphine University library in Paris, he is now the director of the Public libraries in Compiègne, France.

He dreams of opening libraries up to many domains and wants to build libraries everywhere: in deserts, in forests, in gardens, in trees, in any place humans can access. He attaches great importance to advocacy and has been taking part in the Cycling for libraries adventure since 2014.

Antoine is passionate about languages and writing systems, about new working spaces and about serious and non-serious games.

Andrés Reinoso (Argentina), Information Coordinator (2017 – 2021)

Andrés works in the Bialet Massé Library of the Argentine Ministry of Labour. He is former Vice President of the Asociación Civil de Bibliotecarios Jurídicos (ACBJ), and also a professor in the career of librarianship of the Instituto de Formación Superior Técnica nº 13, in Buenos Aires.

He likes to research on social librarianship, especially indigenous libraries. He believes in Open Government policies and in the advocacy of the libraries in their communities. Avid reader of J. L. Borges, if he hadn’t been a librarian, he would have liked to be a professional chess player. He loves horse riding and archery, although he does not practice as often as he would like.

And he hasn’t found the book he is looking for yet.

Assane Fall (Senegal), Social media coordinator (2017 – 2019)

Assane is passionate about libraries and the digital. He did his training in library and information science at the EBAD in Dakar and is currently working as Project Manager in Feusseul (an association that works for the promotion and development of libraries in Senegal).
Assane is the communication coordinator of the association of Senegalese librarians (ASBAD) and BSF Campus Leader of Library Without Borders.
His ambition is to make libraries a key space in development, education and innovation in Senegal.

Associates

Jelena Vuksanović (Serbia), Associate

Professional flutist, awarded with international awards, improving and traveling the world as a soloist, member of orchestras and various chamber ensembles. She worked at the City Library in Novi Sad, where by playing flute in the workplace she would attract users of all ages.  Jelena is now the Head of the Music Collection at the oldest national library in Serbia, Matica Srpska Library. 

She has assisted the people, like pastor of one of the inc.org.au/about/ churches, and is the founder of the non-profit organization https://sr-rs.facebook.com/udruzenje.restart/ Here, she has carried out projects, organized events and managed accounts on social networks in cooperation with international organizations and European Parlament.

Jelena applies her experience in the field of librarianship. She thinks globally and acts locally. She wants to be actively involved in the creation of living contemporary libraries with the transformation. She sees libraries as artistic centers. They play comprehensive, fruitful and important role in today’s society and that is why they need improvement and change. She deeply believes that her  ideas and skills will find their place in the global vision of the IFLA organization.

Susanna List-Tretthahn (Austria), Associate

Susanne works at the Austrian Library Association. She  heads the Department for Education and Further Education. She studied Comparative Literature at the University of Vienna and completed her LIS Education at the Austrian National Library. Before that she worked in book-trade and publishing for ten years.

Susanne is a Member of the VOEB Commission for Education and further Education since 2017. She is passionate about public libraries and wants to change the perception of working in a library – being a librarian – as a profession in the public eye.

She likes hiking, yoga and baking.

Borna Udatny (Croatia)

Borna is a school librarian currently working in a small recently opened primary school on the outskirts of Croatia’s capital. He is a member of the Croatian library association (CLA) and a regular attendee of Croatian school library meetings with a couple of articles published in ZKD magazine.

He is interested in programs that enrich lives of children including those that help form reading habits. One of his favorite activities is organising workshops for students . A big wish of his is to connect as many school librarians as possible from all over the world.

Paria Tajallipour (USA), Associate

Elizabeth Mwangi (Kenya), Associate

Heleen Karja (Estonia), Associate

Ruth Navarro (Paraguay), Associate

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Past Leadership and Associates

Andrew Finegan, Associate 2017-2020

Afroditi Fragkou, Associate 2019-2020

Vesna Vuksan, Convenor (2017 – 2018)

Katya Shklyar, Information Co-coordinator (2015-2017)

Milan Vasiljevic, Co-convenor (2015-2017)

Maria Violeta Bertolini, Convenor (2015-2016)

Bridgette Hendrix, Convenor (2014-2015)

Kimberly White, Information Coordinator (2014-2015)

Molly Schwartz, Convenor (2013-2014)

Sebastian Wilke, Convenor (2009-2014)

Dierk Eichel, Information Coordinator (2010-2013)

Joanna Ball, Co-Convenor (2008-2009)

Andrew Cranfield, Founder (2004)

Stuart Hamilton, Founder (2004)

Loida Garcia-Febo, Founder (2004)