Copyright Education and the Role of Library Associations: Current Practices and Needed Support

The International Federation of Library Associations (IFLA)’s 2018 “Statement on Copyright Education and Copyright Literacy” highlights the need for librarians to be copyright literate and for library associations to support copyright education for library professionals. Nonetheless, while the role of library associations in supporting copyright education is foregrounded, little research has investigated the copyright initiatives of library associations. This study addresses that gap, documenting the current copyright training activities of library associations and providing recommendations for how IFLA might address copyright education needs of library workers. The research for this study took place in two phases, beginning with case studies of six library associations, followed by a multinational survey, with respondents representing 28 library associations from 25 countries. This study reveals that associations struggle to provide the full extent of copyright education resources they would like to due to a lack of funding and lack of copyright expertise among other issues. Based on survey responses, IFLA has an opportunity to directly address a global need in the library association community and overcome the barriers to developing and delivering copyright education, beginning by providing a website with basic copyright information and resources, providing training for association members on how to develop and deliver their own copyright education training, or providing guidelines on a copyright education curriculum.