Final reflections: Annie
As others have mentioned, was a difficult decision to bring uklibchat to an end.
In the 10 years since our first foray into Twitter chats, the uklibchat project/community/whatever you would like to call it, has evolved and adapted almost continuously.
uklibchat was initially conceived as a space for new professionals and LIS students, but since then the community has grown far beyond this. We have collaborated with other individuals and organisations, run hybrid conference sessions, and virtually toured libraries and bookshelves (despite Twitter’s rather temperamental video features). The day, time and frequency of the chats may have varied over the years but the aims were always the same, to spark off conversations and connect individuals online.
Scrolling through my phone’s camera roll when looking for photos to illustrate this blog post, I was struck by how many of the captured moments would not have happened if not for my involvement in uklibchat. With the friends I have made I’ve travelled to London, the Norfolk Broads, Folkestone, Cork, and Bruges. We have shared vast quantities of delicious food, sung a great deal of karaoke, and dragged each other round escape rooms, crazy golf courses, haunted houses and performance art installations. With several uklibchat team members having had children, these friendships are now extending to the next generation.
As we are drawing uklibchat to a close, we are hosting one final chat on Monday 6th December to discuss what the future might hold for online discussion platforms in the library and information sector. This will be on Monday 6th December at our usual time of 7pm GMT.
Annie Gleeson (@Annie_Bob)
#uklibchat 