Danielle Brosseau, Library Manager| Harper Grey LLP, Vancouver BC
Tell us a little about your educational background and how you entered the legal information industry.
I completed a Bachelor of Arts in French and History at McMaster University in Hamilton, then travelled to France for a year to study French at CILEC (Centre International de Langue et Civilisation), and participate in the au-pair program. When it was time to get a job after my European adventure I quickly realized I needed to go back to school, and so made my way to the Burlington Public Library to do some research! While sitting next to the Reference collection, wondering how all the materials got there, and thinking how interesting it would be to collect and organize all this stuff, I realized I was a librarian-to-be! I applied to the Faculty of Information Studies (FIS) at the University of Toronto and haven’t looked back since.
How has being involved in CALL helped you professionally (e.g. scholarships & grants, continuing education, networking)?
At FIS, it wasn’t long before I was introduced to a vast network of peers and mentors from diverse areas of expertise, interest, and practice. Many generous volunteers came forward, helping me navigate a route to career success while introducing me to the value of networking. Being involved in a professional association like CALL is like being part of a huge support network where there’s always someone to talk to from Vancouver to Halifax, and all the places in-between, not to mention all the fun to be had with an amazingly talented group of professionals!
What’s one blog, website, or Twitter account that you can’t go one day without checking?
Our neighbours to the south also benefit from a vibrant, sharing community, and I have also enjoyed and benefited from my membership in the American Association of Law Libraries (AALL) throughout my career. These days, I love getting my daily dose of KnowItAALL!, an eNewsletter, delivered straight to my inbox every weekday morning highlighting legal information, industry trends, law, technology, library, and career development topics. It’s now available to non-members, sign up now!
Where do you see our industry and/or profession in 10 years?
It’s difficult to look 10 years into the future when change and innovation is happening so fast every day, but I think a lot about the future of libraries in the digital age. Especially in law where people so often identify libraries with physical books, the proliferation of digital information and communication technologies has many speculating whether libraries are obsolete. What is our role and responsibility as we continue to expand our online services and adopt new legal technology to add value to our collections and services? Information access has always been a core value of the library profession, and will continue to force libraries to both take on new roles and perform traditional roles in new ways.
Who is your favourite library professional—living or dead, real or fictional?
I don’t get out to the movies as much as I used to with young children at home, but when a bad cold hit a few weeks ago I turned to Netflix to catch up on a few movies I had missed. I stumbled upon the 2016 film based on the Marvel Comics superhero Doctor Strange, and of course loved the scene where Strange visits the library for a book, only to be warned by the librarian about what happens if he steals the book: be killed before leaving the building. I always enjoy encountering fictional libraries and librarians in movies and books. We are currently reading the Harry Potter books with the kids at bedtime, and I especially look forward to reliving moments at Hogwarts Library with Madam Irma Pince. What’s your favourite fictional library and who’s your favourite fictional librarian?
