February 16, 2006 Author and Internet Pioneer David Weinberger to Speak at FLICC Forum March 23

David Weinberger, noted author and research fellow at the Berkman Center of Harvard Law School, will join an outstanding list of speakers at the 23nd Annual FLICC Forum on Federal Information Policies. The event is sponsored by the Federal Library and Information Center Committee (FLICC) of the Library of Congress and will be held on Thursday, March 23, in the Mumford Room of the Library's Madison Building, 101 Independence Ave. S.E.

As the Forum's keynote speaker, Weinberger will address “The Information Revolution that Wasn’t and the One that Will Be: How the New Dimensions of Information Are Transforming Life.” Weinberger will assert that while profound changes in the most fundamental dimensions of life and work are imminent, adept organizations can take advantage of the new capabilities that are coming to customers and businesses.

The morning panel discussion will review how digitization will drive innovations in health care, intelligence gathering and entertainment. Panelists Daniel Pelino, general manager, Healthcare and Life Sciences, IBM; Lee Strickland, visiting professor and director, Center for Information Policy, University of Maryland; and Abraham Ravid, professor of finance and economics, Rutgers University, will address such topics as the influence of digital information in health care, financial data security, widespread consumer access and intellectual property rights.

The afternoon sessions will begin with a keynote address on the future of digital government by Beverly Godwin, director of FirstGov Operations, Office of Citizen Services and Communications, General Services Administration. She will address how the federal government will collect, keep and share information, as well as citizen expectations for streamlined and responsive services. Godwin will detail her milestones for FirstGov.gov and discuss the future of voting, paying taxes, litigating and visiting a national park in 2015.

An afternoon panel will address digital competencies for librarians and include moderator Janice Lachance, executive director, Special Libraries Association; Laura Campbell, chief information officer and associate librarian for strategic initiatives, Library of Congress; Peter Young, director of the National Agricultural Library; and Keith Cogdill, outreach librarian for the National Library of Medicine.

Trudi Bellardo Hahn, executive director of the National Commission on Libraries and Information Science, will conclude the day by asking participants to explore the implications of a digital world for the nation and for federal librarians.

To attend the FLICC Forum, call the FLICC office at (202) 707-4813 or visit the FLICC Web site at www.loc.gov/flicc/edutraining.html.

The Federal Library and Information Center Committee fosters excellence in federal library and information services through interagency cooperation and provides guidance and direction for the Federal Library and Information Network (FEDLINK). Created in 1965 and headquartered at the Library of Congress, FLICC also makes recommendations on federal library and information policies, programs and procedures to federal agencies and to others concerned with libraries and information centers.