The price of insights: Cross-national inequity in LIS conferences participation by Yi Wan
Channel: Scholarly Communication Network
Date: 19/06/2023

International conferences in the Library and Information Science (LIS) are spaces for exchanging
ideas and networking, attracting information professionals worldwide. However, international
LIS conferences are dominated by Western and rich countries. The systematic excluding of low-
income non-Western countries will hinder global knowledge production due to the ignorance of
issues and wisdom in these countries. By reviewing influencing international conferences like
iConference and IFLA World Library and Information Congress, the webinar will discuss and
facilitate conversations with peers on the underrepresentation of non-Western researchers in
international LIS conferences, the barriers facing non-Western LIS researchers to participating in
the conferences, the inherent link between excluding non-Western researchers and colonialism in
LIS, and the potential ways to make LIS conferences more inclusive.