Free International Webinar Series for Library Professionals

Capacity Building for Library Staff

The Maldives Library Association (MLA) is pleased to endorse an upcoming international webinar series designed to support the professional development and capacity building of Library and Information Services (LIS) professionals.

This webinar series is conceptualised and moderated by Dr Gina de Alwis Jayasuriya, and is presented under the
American Library Association (ALA) International Relations Round Table (IRRT) Mission Enhancement Project,
in collaboration with the
IFLA World Library and Information Congress (WLIC 2026) Korea National Committee.

Participation is completely FREE of charge.

Upcoming Webinar 2:

Digital Literacy & Pop-up Teaching

Jennifer Nardine, Asst Prof/Librarian/Coordinator of Int’l Outreach & Katlyn Griffin

Teaching & Learning Engagement Librarian, University Libraries at Virginia Tech, USA

Explore innovative “pop-up teaching” activities on digital literacy topics.  Grounded in Virginia Tech’s Digital Literacy framework, this webinar introduces key competency areas and offers adaptable examples for diverse learning contexts.

Webinar 2 Date & Time

March 5, 2026
6:00 to 7:30 pm
(Maldives time)

Online via Zoom

Register for Webinar 2.
https://us06web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_D1mrKzEpQmuItCovxuSAxQ#/registration

 About the Webinar Series

The series focuses on strengthening the knowledge, skills, and global engagement of library professionals through structured capacity-building sessions.

This initiative builds upon previous Mission Enhancement Grant–funded programs and contributes to ongoing efforts to expand Continuing Professional Development (CPD) opportunities in the LIS sector.

Webinar Series Moderator

The series is moderated by
Dr. Gina de Alwis Jayasuriya,
CPD Researcher & Program Coordinator, and recipient of the ALA IRRT Mission Enhancement Grant 2025.

Dr. Jayasuriya’s research since 2019 has focused on capacity-building opportunities for LIS professionals in contexts where limited CPD research exists. She previously served for over 25 years as Head of the Singapore Institute of Management Library.

Global Context
The series is connected to the lead-up to the 90th IFLA World Library and Information Congress (WLIC 2026),
which will take place from 10 to 13 August 2026 in Busan, South Korea.

Certification
While MLA is not the organiser or host of the webinar series, the Association formally endorses this initiative as an important professional development opportunity.

MLA member Participants who complete the sessions will receive a formal Certificate of Participation issued by the Maldives Library Association, with consent from the series organiser.

Certificates will be ready at the conclusion of the series on 10 April 2026.
You can opt to participate in all OR in some of the sessions.

If you wish to receive certification of participation, REGISTER here. [https://tinyurl.com/ALAWRegCert26]
(Important Note: To Register for the session to receive the participation link,  complete your registration in the link at Webinar 1 section at the top of this post)

For further details, you may contact the Training Officer of MLA (Dr Aminath Riyaz) at 7221510, the President of MLA (Fathimath Nashfa) at 7546744, the Secretary of MLA (Rishfa Ibrahim) at 7727511 or any member of MLA Council or write to info.malias@gmail.com

 Who Should Attend?

  • Library and information professionals
  • Academic librarians
  • School librarians
  • Public library staff
  • LIS students
  • Early-career professionals seeking CPD opportunities

Join this global learning opportunity and strengthen your professional practice at no cost.

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Key Points

  • To register for the event, follow the link for the Webinar.
  • To register to receive certificate of participation from MLA complete the second form