Bridging Knowledge and Culture: House of Wisdom’s Global Endeavours

The House of Wisdom (HoW), Sharjah’s library of the future, had played an active role at the 88th World Library and Information Congress (WLIC), to boost their understanding of emerging best practices that were fostering knowledge societies and making cultural spaces more inclusive than ever.

At the four-day event, organised from August 21-25 by the International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions (IFLA) and held in Rotterdam, Netherlands, under the theme of ‘Let’s work together, let’s library’, HoW also offered its platform for the exchange of ideas, expertise, and local experiences amongst hundreds of participants who represented the world’s leading libraries and cultural institutions.

HoW’s delegation, led by Executive Director Marwa Al Aqroubi, extensively visited the exhibitor pavilions at the congress and also toured several public libraries in the Netherlands. The delegation attended key sessions and discussions taking place and engaged with leading IFLA officials and cultural counterparts to explore new avenues of collaboration.

Marwa Al Aqroubi said: “Our involvement here was geared towards enriching our local community’s knowledge landscape. By immersing ourselves in the diverse cultures of other libraries, we embraced the expansive realm this industry represents — one marked by rapid transformation driven by human innovation and modern technologies that foster inclusivity, accessibility, and exchange. Simultaneously, we took pride in sharing our distinctive experience from Sharjah, hoping it would serve as a model for fellow delegates and visitors to apply in their local contexts.”

HoW’s delegation seized the opportunity to visit the LocHal library in the city of Tilburg, a disused train station depot that had been repurposed as a cultural ‘citylab’. The library’s programmes manager ran the HoW officials through the innovations and cutting-edge designs and technologies that had been implemented to offer this remarkable cultural space to the city. The meeting facilitated the exchange of insights, allowing the HoW to share its experiences in effectively utilizing modern technologies and digital tools to cater to diverse societal needs.

On the sidelines of the WLIC, the delegation held meetings with senior officials and leaders in the library sector, including Dr. Abdulrahman Al-Asim, CEO of Saudi Arabia’s Libraries Authority; and Francesca Baldi, International Project Manager at the National Library of France. The meetings featured fruitful discussions that fostered an exchange of creative visions and ideas and explored opportunities for collaboration and cultural exchange.

The UAE had been selected as the host country for the 2024 edition of the WLIC, which would be held in Dubai from August 19 – 23. This marked the first time the prestigious global conference would be held in the Middle East. As preparations unfolded early that year, a delegation from IFLA visited the HoW in March, and expressed their admiration for its cutting-edge facilities, unique collections, and comprehensive offerings spanning various disciplines and arts.