CFP: Special Issue on Diversity in Library Technology (Code4Lib Journal)

The Code4Lib Journal (C4LJ) exists to foster community and share information among those interested in the intersection of libraries, technology, and the future.

We are now accepting proposals for publication in our 28th issue, a special issue on diversity in library technology. Discussions on the Code4Lib listserv and keynotes by Valerie Aurora and Sumana Harihareswara at Code4Lib 2014 show that diversity is a topic of ongoing importance to the Code4Lib community. A recent editorial in the Code4Lib Journal by Ron Peterson originally sparked discussion of the idea for a special issue among the journal’s editorial committee; the demographic breakdown of both the author community and the committee itself laid bare the fact that diversity is a major challenge even in communities that are highly supportive. With this in mind, the C4LJ editorial committee hopes that this special issue will further the conversation around this important topic, while also encouraging a greater diversity amongst the Journal’s contributors for this and future issues.

C4LJ encourages creativity and flexibility, and the editors welcome submissions across a broad variety of topics that support the mission of the journal. For this issue, we would like to consider perspectives and topics that may not have been considered in-depth in the past, in the spirit of being open to diverse uses, interpretations, and needs of technology. In the context of structural inequalities and group/individual experiences (e.g. based on country, gender, race, ethnicity, class, disability, age, sexual orientation, etc.) people perceive, experience, and create technologies in different ways. It will strengthen our libraries if we enjoy and engage with these differences.

Possible topics could include, but are not limited to:

– Attracting and retaining diverse technology teams
– Implementing a code of conduct and/or assessing its efficacy
– Designing for accessibility
– Partnerships to foster inclusivity in the field
– Library tech programming for underserved populations
– Inclusive project management and communication
– Surfacing diverse items in digital libraries
– Digital projects and programs involving outreach to diverse communities
– International perspectives on library technology and access
– Intersections of social justice and library technology
– Theoretical consideration of digitally sharing information (e.g. big data, crowd work, surveillance, privacy) for different groups
– Critical examination of technology trends, and how they are perceived or adopted, by different groups

C4LJ strives to promote professional communication by minimizing the barriers to publication. While articles should be of a high quality, they need not follow any formal structure. Writers should aim for the middle ground between blog posts and articles in traditional refereed journals. Where appropriate, we encourage authors to submit code samples, algorithms, and pseudo-code. For more information, visit C4LJ’s Article Guidelines or browse articles from the first 26 issues published on our website: http://journal.code4lib.org.

Don’t miss out on this opportunity to share your ideas and experiences. To be included in the 28th issue, which is scheduled for publication in April 2015, please submit articles, abstracts, or proposals athttp://journal.code4lib.org/submit-proposal or to journal@code4lib.org by January 12, 2015. When submitting, please include the title or subject of the proposal in the subject line of the email message and the acceptance of the Journal’s US CC-By 3.0 license in the body of the message. The editorial committee will review all proposals and notify those accepted by January 19, 2015. Please note that submissions are subject to rejection or postponement at any point in the publication process as determined by the Code4Lib Journal’s editorial committee.

Send in a submission. Your peers would like to hear what you are doing.