The Past, Present, and Future of Libraries

In commemoration of the American Philosophical Society’s 275th anniversary, the Society’s Library, along with the Gladys Krieble Delmas Foundation and the Association of Research Libraries (ARL), is hosting an interdisciplinary conference that explores the history of libraries, the present opportunities for libraries, and the potential future for libraries as they continue to evolve in the 21st century. 

The conference will begin with a keynote focused on the future of libraries on Thursday, September 27, hosted by Sarah E. Thomas (Vice President for the Harvard Library and University Librarian and Roy E. Larsen Librarian for the Faculty of Arts and Sciences) and including Mary Lee Kennedy (Executive Director, Association of Research Libraries), Khalil Gibran Muhammad (Professor of History, Race, and Public Policy at Harvard Kennedy School and Suzanne Young Murray Professor, Radcliffe Institute for Advanced Studies), and Michael Witmore (Folger Shakespeare Library). 

A second keynote discussion on "The Making of Digital Libraries for the Scholarly Community" with Deanna Marcum (Senior Advisor, Ithaka S+R) and Donald J. Waters (Senior Program Officer for Scholarly Communications, Andrew W. Mellon Foundation) will be held on Friday, September 28.

The conference is free and open to the public. Visit the conference page for more information, including the conference program.