NSLA

National and State Libraries Australasia (NSLA) is a leading library sector collaboration, delivering value for the people of Australia. The nine members are the National, State and Territory libraries of Australia and the National Library of New Zealand are committed to achieving more through working together, sharing strategic thinking, expertise and specialist solutions to increase productivity and achieve better outcomes.

Our libraries are at the centre of the cultural and creative life of our jurisdictions. We enable people to access, use and share local and global knowledge and ideas. We have a legislated role to collect and preserve cultural heritage and to make the intellectual and historical record of the 21st century available for the future.

We connect people to information and to each other; we create opportunities for creativity; we engage diverse communities; we are trusted collaborators with public libraries and many other partners and we inspire learning.

NSLA is the shared voice and peak body for these leading libraries. Our collaboration respects and appreciates their different environments and priorities, and delivers results for each jurisdiction. Since 2007 NSLA has undertaken an extensive program of activity to maximise the benefits of this partnership.

The State Library contributes to the following NSLA groups:

  • The Culturally Safe Libraries Working Group leads a shared approach to strengthening Indigenous cultural competency for library staff. 
  • The eResources Consortium secures access to commercial online databases for NSLA libraries, aiming to simplify and improve licensing arrangements, maximise efficiency, innovation and sustainability, and look at making databases more widely available to all Australians especially during COVID -19 restrictions. 
  • The Digital Preservation Community of Practice continues to support professional development through sharing knowledge and information.
  • The Visitor Experience Network shares information about trends and issues relating to library service delivery across the country.
  • The Literacy and Learning Network explores the role of libraries in life-long learning with discussions ranging from early years literacy and adult literacy to evaluation and adaption of library programming for current educational trends.
  • The Digital Archives Network shares specialist knowledge and insights to foster innovation and a sense of community in digital collecting and digitisation practice. 
  • The Copyright Community of Practice shares knowledge regarding the impact of copyright legislation on library collections and practices. The group aims to ensure consistent information is available to library clients across Australia regarding their rights to use and reuse materials in library collections under the Copyright Act 1968.
  • The Corporate Services Group shares knowledge and issues common to State and Territory libraries. Issues include workforce planning, resource management, compliance, reporting and budgeting.
  • The Heads of Collections Group shares knowledge, advice and insights relating to many collection management issues and trends. 
  • The National edeposit (NED) Steering Group oversees the development of NED and the work of the NED Operational Group. 
  • The Conservation Network develops relationships between colleagues across Australia in this niche area of work. It is a space for sharing of techniques, knowledge and experience in preserving some of the more fragile or unusual collections of NSLA libraries, as well as in communicating about and advocating for this work.
  • The Community Engagement Network shares strategies for community and audience engagement both onsite and online, including improving the diversity of library audiences.
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