Forthcoming IPC Virtual Salon: At the Intersection of Freedom of Information Legislation and 21st Century Libraries

Recording (Collaborate format) now available at http://elm.elluminate.com/SimonFraserUniversity/play_recording.html?recordingId=1247893786600_1348857018139

Now live! Join us at http://elm.elluminate.com/SimonFraserUniversity/index.html

Update: registration is now available, at: http://ipcaccesstoinformation.eventbrite.com

Mark your calendar! This free IPC Virtual Webinar will be held on Friday, September 28, at noon PST. Registration details forthcoming soon. Details about the session and presenter:

Title: At the Intersection of Freedom of Information Legislation and 21st Century Libraries

In 1965 roughly 0.4% of the world’s population had a right to access information held by their governments. By the end of 2012, almost 80% of the world’s seven billion people will have such a right.

Recently Suzanne Legault, the Information Commissioner of Canada, announced a public consultation on the modernization of the Access to Information Act. This initiative marks the occasion of the thirtieth anniversary of our federal freedom of information legislation. The recently adopted Code of Ethics of the International Federation of Library Associations (August 2012) recognizes the contribution that Canadian librarians and libraries can make to this consultation.

The timing seems right for librarians to discuss “What might be at the intersection of freedom of information legislation and 21st century libraries?”

In this presentation, Mark Weiler, (PhD, Simon Fraser University; MLIS candidate at the University of Western Ontario) will highlight the essential features of freedom of information legislation, challenge popular myths about using access laws (Myth: only journalists use it; Fact: businesses are the number one users of federal FOI legislation), provide examples of how to use access laws, and present concrete suggestions about how libraries and librarians might bring the benefits of FOI legislation to their communities.

ACTA is dead, IFLA & CLA advocate for fair copyright in the Trans Pacific Partnership, US calls for fair use in TPP

ACTA IS DEAD

The European Parliament has overwhelmingly rejected the Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement (ACTA), effectively killing ACT. Details from Michael Geist’s blog:
http://www.michaelgeist.ca/content/view/6578/125/

Falkvinge, founder of the first Pirate Party, describes the victory thus:
Today at 12:56, the European Parliament decided whether ACTA would be ultimately rejected or whether it would drag on into uncertainty. In a crushing 478-to-39 vote, the Parliament decided to reject ACTA once and for all. This means that the deceptive treaty is now dead globally.
– and links this victory to the huge anti-SOPA backlash.

from:
VICTORY! ACTA suffers final, humiliating defeat in European Parliament
http://falkvinge.net/2012/07/04/victory-acta-suffers-final-humiliating-defeat-in-european-parliament/

TRANS PACIFIC PARTNERSHIP DEVELOPMENTS

IFLA and 9 other library associations (including CLA) have issued a statement expressing concern at the Trans Pacific Partnership Intellectual Property Chapter:
http://www.ifla.org/en/publications/library-statement-on-trans-pacific-partnership-agreement-negotiations

The US has called for a fair use provision in the Trans Pacific Partnership – links and strategic comments thanks to Michael Geist:
http://www.michaelgeist.ca/content/view/6577/125/

CLA Press Release on Copyright Modernization Act

The Canadian Library Association has just issued a press release on the Copyright Modernization Act which just received royal assent.

IPC in the July 2012 BCLA Browser

The July 2012 BLCA Browser has just been released! Of particular interest for IPC:

Another awesome Browser! Here are direct links to the info policy committee related items:

Joseph Haigh’s Info Policy News: Access Copyright, Library and Archives Canada, and more:
http://bclabrowser.ca/index.php/browser/article/view/420

News & Features – from the IPC – SLAIS Partnership:

Devin Soper – Bill C-11: a guide for academic instructors
http://bclabrowser.ca/index.php/browser/article/view/391

Anna Christine Hurrell – Open access policies on scholarly publishing in the university context
http://bclabrowser.ca/index.php/browser/article/view/390

Shannon Mills – Censorship issues in school libraries
http://bclabrowser.ca/index.php/browser/article/view/393

plus:

Carla Graebner Round-up: 2012 Annual Gathering of Librarians Interested in Government and Legal Information
http://bclabrowser.ca/index.php/browser/article/view/431

Many of the other articles are very interesting from an info policy perspective too!

best,

Heather Morrison
Co-Chair, Information Policy Committee
IPC blog: https://bclainfopolicycommittee.wordpress.com/
Twitter: @BCLA_InfoPolicy

Caledon Institute of Social Policy saves welfare incomes and poverty profile

Thanks to the Caledon Institute of Social Policy for picking up some of the important social data dropped by the Harper government http://www.caledoninst.org/Publications/Detail/?ID=989

The following excerpt from the announcement is a useful analysis of what we have lost:

Saving Welfare Incomes and Poverty Profile   Ken Battle and Sherri Torjman, June 2012   Information is under attack in Ottawa.  The controversial decision in 2010 to axe the long-form Census grabbed media headlines and sparked a whirlwind of opposition from a wide range of social and economic organizations and researchers across Canada. One of the more insidious results of cutting the long-form Census is that other incredibly important surveys – including the Labour Force Survey and Survey of Household Spending upon which the Consumer Price Index is based – no longer have available the gold standard that the complete Census provided in order to calibrate their estimates. Key social statistics are gone or have been disappeared.

Statistics Canada program cuts 2012

The following list is from the Statistics Canada page on Program adjustments to meet budgetary savings target in fiscal years 2012-13 to 2014-15 – copied here in full for future reference in case budget cuts at Statistics Canada and Canada’s federal libraries result in the announcement disappearing.

Program adjustments to meet budgetary savings target in fiscal years 2012-13 to 2014-15
Program adjustments by sector
Aboriginal Statistics

Aboriginal Statistical Training Program
The end of the Aboriginal Statistical Training Program was announced on May 16, 2012. The course material is available upon request.
Agriculture

Agriculture Value Added Account
The final release of the Agriculture Value Added Account was published on November 24, 2011. Custom data tables on the Agriculture Value Added Account continue to be available on a cost-recovery basis from the Agriculture Economic Statistics Program.

Farm Business Cash Flows
The final release of the Farm Business Cash Flows was published on January 18, 2012. Custom data tables on the Farm Business Cash Flows continue to be available on a cost-recovery basis from the Agriculture Economic Statistics program.

Farm Cash Receipts
Effective May 23, 2012, farm cash receipts data are released semi-annually instead of quarterly. Data for the second and third quarters of 2012 will be released in November 2012. Information on net farm income for 2011 will also be released in November 2012.

Farm Product Price Index
Effective June 2012, the Farm Product Price Index has been released quarterly instead of monthly. The most recent release took place on June 4, 2012. The next release of the Index will be on August 29, 2012.

Farm Product Prices Survey
The following four components of the survey are discontinued: Potato prices; Straw and hay prices; Grain and oilseed prices; Grain and specialty crop prices. Statistics Canada is investigating ways to replace these price components with administrative sources. All other components of the Farm Product Prices Survey will continue to be published.

Field Crop Reporting Series: The December Farm Survey
The last release of the December Farm Survey was on February 3, 2012. Other surveys in the Field Crop Reporting Series will continue to be conducted.

Fruit and Vegetable Survey
Starting in 2013, Statistics Canada will release data from the Fruit and Vegetable Survey once a year instead of twice a year. The spring data collection has been discontinued. The last available results of the Spring Fruit and Vegetable Survey were published on June 23, 2011. The fall data collection will continue, with results for reference year 2012 to be published in early 2013.

Hog Survey
Starting with the July 2012 occasion, data for the Hog Survey will be collected twice a year instead of quarterly. Data for the July and January reference periods will continue to be collected while the October and April collections have been discontinued. Information will continue to be published from the January and July surveys.

Net Farm Income
Statistics Canada will release data on net farm income once a year instead of twice a year. As a result, the release of preliminary data for net farm income for 2011, scheduled for May 23, 2012, was cancelled. Data for 2011 will be released on November 26, 2012.
Culture

Surveys of Government Expenditures on Culture
The elimination of two surveys of government expenditures on culture was announced on May 17, 2012. Information on culture continues to be available through other Statistics Canada programs such as the Labour Force Survey, the Census Program and some service industries’ surveys.
Economy – General

Composite Leading Indicator
Statistics Canada published the last release of data for the Composite Leading Indicator on May 23, 2012. Similar information is available from other sources, in particular the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development, which publishes more up-to-date leading indicators for Canada and other member nations.
Education

Education Matters: Insights on Education, Learning and Training in Canada
The final issue of Education Matters: Insights on Education, Learning and Training in Canada was released on May 1, 2012. In future, analytical articles on education themes will be published directly on Statistics Canada’s website.

Salaries and Salary Scales of Full-time Teaching Staff at Canadian Universities
The final issue of Salaries and Salary Scales of Full-time Teaching Staff at Canadian Universities was released on May 3, 2012. The Full-time University and College Academic Staff Survey has been discontinued.
Energy

Annual Coal Mines Survey
The last release of the Annual Coal Mines Survey was on May 4, 2012. The survey has been discontinued.

Annual Contract Drilling and Services to Oil and Gas Extraction Survey
The last direct release of the Annual Contract Drilling and Services to Oil and Gas Extraction Survey took place on March 17, 2008. Since then, the data have continued to be used as an input into products of the System of National Accounts and made available to the public through the release of those products. The survey was discontinued on April 1, 2012.

Annual Electricity Utility Financial Survey
The last release of information from the Annual Electricity Utility Financial Survey was on February 2, 2012. The survey has been discontinued.

Annual Gas Utilities/Transport and Distribution Survey
The last release from the Annual Gas Utilities/Transport and Distribution Survey took place on March 12, 2008. Since then, the data have continued to be used as an input into products of the System of National Accounts and made available to the public through the release of those products. The survey was discontinued on April 1, 2012.

Annual Oil Pipeline Transport Survey
Statistics Canada published the last release of the Annual Oil Pipeline Transport Survey on March 12, 2008. Since then, the data have continued to be used as an input into products of the System of National Accounts and made available to the public through the release of those products. The survey was discontinued on April 1, 2012.
Health

Residential Care Facilities
Statistics Canada will publish the final release on Residential Care Facilities in September 2012. The program is discontinued.
Labour and Income

Survey of Labour and Income Dynamics
The final release of longitudinal data from the Survey of Labour and Income Dynamics was published on June 18, 2012. Statistics Canada will continue to conduct a survey to produce annual estimates on income.
Non-profit Sector

Satellite account of non-profit institutions and volunteering
The last release of the Satellite account of non-profit institutions and volunteering was in December 2010. This program has been discontinued, however, as part of the Canadian System of National Accounts historical revision (2012) a portion of this account will be published on a quarterly basis, specifically the activities of non-profit institutions serving households. Statistics Canada will publish a paper outlining how users can construct estimates of the non-profit sector account using data from Statistics Canada.
Public Sector Statistics

Public Sector Employment Program
The final release of the Public sector employment program was published on May 30, 2012. Statistics Canada continues to produce data on public administration employment through the Survey of Employment, Payrolls and Hours and the Labour Force Survey.
Science and Technology

Provincial Scientific Activity Surveys
Statistics Canada is ending its contribution to a number of provincial surveys that measure scientific activities by provincial governments. The final release is currently planned for the end of the summer of 2012.

Survey of Federal Intellectual Property Management
The final release of the Federal Intellectual Property Management Survey was on May 16, 2012. The survey has been discontinued.

Survey of Intellectual Property and Commercialization in the Higher Education Sector
The final release of this survey is currently planned for the end of the summer of 2012. The survey has been discontinued.
Service Industries

Annual Survey of Service Industries: Personal Services
Statistics Canada published the last release of data from this survey on February 28, 2012. The survey has been discontinued.

Quarterly Industry Revenue Indices
Statistics Canada published the last release of data from this survey on March 28, 2012. The survey has been discontinued.
Transport

Air Carrier Operations in Canada Survey (Civil Aviation Surveys)
Statistics Canada will continue to publish the same information from the Air Carrier Operations in Canada Survey. However, the information will be released 20 months after the reference period instead of 14 months.

Air Passenger Origin and Destination, Canada – U.S.A.
The same data will continue to be published on air passenger origin and destination between Canada and the U.S. However, the information will be released 20 months after the reference period instead of 14 months.

Annual and Quarterly Trucking Surveys
Information collected with trucking surveys were last released on February 16, 2012 and April 3, 2012. Both surveys have been discontinued.

Fare Basis Survey
The same data will continue to be collected and published for the Fare Basis Survey. However, the information will be released 20 months after the reference period instead of 14 months.

Marine Origin and Destination Survey
The final release of the Marine Origin and Destination of Commodity Shipments Survey was published on April 26, 2012. The survey has been discontinued.

New Motor Vehicle Sales Survey
The last release of the monthly New Motor Vehicle Sales in its current format was on April 17, 2012. Effective on May 14, 2012, with the release of data for the March 2012 reference month, only unadjusted data on new motor vehicle sales are available. The unadjusted data continue to be available on CANSIM.
Program adjustments across sectors
Efficiencies through increased use of electronic data collection

Statistics Canada will continue its migration to electronic data collection for a number of business and household surveys. Increasing the use of online collection improves the cost-effectiveness of programs and provides respondents with an easy, accessible way to complete surveys.
Streamlining dissemination of publications

Statistics Canada is developing an innovative, web-based approach to releasing publications and analytical reports. This new approach will reduce the number of print publications to make analytical products accessible online to Canadians in a more timely fashion, at no charge.

130 members of U.S. House of Representatives write letter seeking greater transparency in Trans Pacific Partnership agreement negotiations

Over 130 members of the U.S. House of Representatives have written a letter seeking greater transparency in the Trans Pacific Partnership (TPP) negotations.

Excerpt:

We write with regard to the ongoing negotiations over a potential Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) Free Trade Agreement (FTA), an agreement that continues to grow in scope. Specifically, we write to urge you and your staff to engage in broader and deeper consultations with members of the full range of committees of Congress whose jurisdiction touches on the wide-ranging issues involved, and to ensure there is ample opportunity for Congress to have input on critical policies that will have broad ramifications for years to come.

As the President noted in his remarks at the November Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit, those involved in the TPP FTA negotiations are seeking “a high-level trade agreement that could potentially be a model, not just for countries in the Pacific region, but for the world generally.” In doing so, this pact would establish rules that extend far beyond traditional trade matters to include “a whole range of new trade issues that are going to be coming up in the future – innovation, regulatory convergence, how we’re thinking about the Internet and intellectual property.”

The TPP FTA represents an opportunity to create a new, sustainable model that respects domestic policy choices and promotes economic development with shared prosperity. Unfortunately, reports indicate the agreement is likely to repeat, rather than improve upon, the existing trade template—including the weakening of Buy America provisions, providing extraordinary investor-state privileges, and restricting access to lifesaving medicines in developing nations, to name a few.

Comment: since Canada just joined the TPP negotiations, wouldn’t it be nice if our politicians wrote a letter like this, too?

Progressive Librarians Guild Announces Redesigned Website

The Progressive Librarians Guild has just announced the launch of their redesigned website.

Media Democracy Days Vancouver November 2-3, 2012

KNOW THE MEDIA! BE THE MEDIA! CHANGE THE MEDIA!

Dates and keynotes have been announced for the November 2-3, 2012 Media Democracy Days in Vancouver.

Bibliocracy – blog worth following

Myron Groover’s Bibliocracy blog – musings of an archivist / librarian, possibly deranged, definitely political – is worth a look!