Welcome to the United Nations
Ministry of Culture of the Republic of Latvia
Virtual side event "Libraries and Museums as Safe Spaces for Dialogue and Information Literacy" is organized by the Ministry of Culture of the Republic of Latvia, in cooperation with the Cross-Sectoral Coordination Centre of Latvia, Latvian National Commission for UNESCO, the Latvian National Committee of the International Council of Museums (ICOM) and the International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions (IFLA). The event will take place on 13 July at 13:00 EST/New York time.
The event will highlight how libraries and museums can be excellent partners and support us in achieving Sustainable Development Goals. At a time, when society is becoming more polarized and fragmented, culture can reach the hearts and minds of people through other means of expression than politicians, scientists or the media. It promotes a respectful dialogue in society on a wide variety of topics. Side event builds on one of the conclusions regarding transformative factors that accelerate change from Latvia’s second Voluntary National Review to be presented during HLPF on July 12.
Side event will feature presentations on museums and libraries as reliable partners in the implementation of SDGs by the following experts:
- Mr Henry McGhie, museum expert and member of the ICOM Sustainable Development Working Group;
- Ms Kristīne Pabērza-Ramires, head of the IFLA project "World Library Map";
- Ms Maha Bashri, Professor at the University of the United Arab Emirates, information literacy expert;
Ms Tetyana Hrančak (Тетяна Гранчак), a member of the board of the Ukrainian Library Association, Mr Edgardo Civallero (Ecuador's Galapagos Islands) representative of the Charles Darwin Foundation, and Ms Lolita Thomsone (Latvia), head of the Žanis Lipke Memorial, will share their experience in uniting communities, promoting peace and media literacy.
Opening remarks will be provided by Ms Anita Muižniece, Minister of Educationa and Science of Latvia, and H.E. Mr Andrejs Pildegovičs, Permanent Representative of Latvia to the UN. Mr Uldis Zariņš, Deputy State Secretary of the Ministry of Culture for Cultural Affairs will moderate the event.
The event will be livestreamed on YouTube and Facebook page of the Ministry of Culture of the Republic of Latvia, and it will offer viewers the opportunity to express opinions and ask questions to the participants. Event will be held in English.
YouTube livestream
Ministry of Culture of Latvia Facebook
