GIVES: Interlending and discovery for non-English resources

Purpose - The purpose of this paper is to explore the rationale and the development of the Global Interlending & Verification Enquiry Service (GIVES), which is evolving at a major academic research library in the USA. Design/methodology/approach - Access problems and bibliographic challenges are described, as is the devising of various solutions in the development of the service. Based on an extremely rich collection of foreign language materials, and modeled after the highly successful Slavic Reference Service, this project works to provide materials in many languages to users through detailed and comprehensive searches conducted on an individual basis, drawing on a wide variety of bibliographic resources and catalogs in various formats. Findings - The challenges facing GIVES staff in assisting users with their ILL/DD requests are of three kinds: bibliographic, linguistic, and organizational. Thanks to conventions of bibliography and cataloging that cross all linguistic boundaries, and to the judicious use of GIVES' many bilingual dictionaries, and to GIVES' online Guide, but most of all to the rigorous bibliographic training received by GIVES staff, it is quite possible for a staff member to successfully handle a request with only the scantiest knowledge of the relevant language. The essential elements to the success of this project include expertise, cooperation and, of course, funding. Originality/value - Materials in less-commonly taught languages present challenges to many libraries in the USA. These challenges are increased when users attempt to access these materials through interlibrary loan and document delivery. The paper describes GIVES, an invaluable resource available at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign to help libraries meet these challenges.