Dear all, Please check your diary for Monday August 22 and see if you can cancel anything that is not important for the future, so that you can have a conversation with Joann Ransom <https://www.linkedin.com/in/joannransom>. This is an invitation for a coming together during the day on Monday August 22nd somewhere in the Sydney region. You suggest the time <http://doodle.com/poll/5scm8hq6txx3xzft> and place <https://www.google.com.au>. Joann is open to meet anyone who wishes to share their current situation and she will respond drawing from her extraordinary contributions and achievements within her local community of Levin in New Zealand and the global implications of her work. This is also an invitation for a coming together from 17:30 PM for a Koha-OZ meet-up somewhere in Sydney's CBD with our guest speaker, Joann Ransom. Dinner afterwards for those who can stay. Complimentary refreshments on arrival. Meet-up location suggestions are welcome. Librarian extraordinaire Joann Ransom has recently left Te Horowhenua Library Trust in New Zealand, where Koha <https://koha-community.org/> was developed in 1999 and where she had been the CEO for the last 6 years. Joann’s roles have been many including to lead Te Takeretanga o Kura-Hau-Pō, the Horowhenua Culture and Community Centre, to become the multi-functional heart and hub of the community. What's in a name? The meaning of takeretanga is the ‘dispersal of knowledge’. The Takere is also the hull of the waka where treasures are kept for safety. Like the hull of the waka, Te Takere holds many taonga for the benefit of all. Since early 2016, Joann was ready for fresh challenges and these are including 3 months of travelling the globe meeting the Koha community members who have grown the original Koha into one of the world’s most popular library management systems today. The world tour includes Sydney, Malaysia, Mumbai, Pune, London, Prague, Vienna, Berlin, Ireland, Norway, Sweden, Marseille, New York, Montreal, Chicago, Kansas, Oregon, San Francisco,Utah, Texas and Argentina. “Releasing Koha under an open source licence made so much sense to us; we were a public library not a software development company and we needed a much wider pool of librarians to develop the software further”. Today, Koha is one of the world’s most widely used library management systems with a strong development community that provides 24/7 support. Koha is used in an increasing number of libraries in Australia and some of these libraries are listed here <https://wiki.koha-community.org/wiki/Koha_Users_Worldwide> or can be found on this map <http://librarytechnology.org/map.pl?ILS=Koha>. In addition to her work on Koha, which won the 2000 3M Award for Innovation in Libraries, Joann was the first librarian outside of USA to be named an American Library Journal Mover and Shaker – Tech Leader, largely for her work developing Kete <http://www.tetakere.org.nz/horowhenuas-history/kete-horowhenua/>, another open source project that won the 2008 3M Award for Innovation in Libraries and a 2007 World Summit Awards : Special Mention (North America and Oceania) in the e-inclusion section. Thanks to her vision and passion, Joann also brought into being and then managed Te Takere <http://www.tetakere.org.nz/>. Horowhenua’s new library, culture and community centre. The project was developed by the Horowhenua District Council and the Horowhenua Library Trust in consultation with the Muaupoko Tribal Authority. This is what locals say "We are so incredibly lucky to have Te Takere in our community, locals, travellers, tourists....don't miss it." "Te Takere is a safe, supervised and all-inclusive family/whanau destination. It is “the place to go” in the Horowhenua providing quality activities and opportunities to positively engage and extend everyone." Here is a short list of Services & Facilities available in Te Takere, an absolute change agent for the local community: Open seven days a week, it offers a wide range of services to both the community and to visitors to the Horowhenua District, including: Library materials and resources Visitor Information AA Vehicle licensing and driver testing Toilets and baby changing facilities Lounges to relax in and spaces for study Fully equipped meeting and function facilities Exhibitions, performances and a range of programmes to suit all ages Family and local history displays and resources A well resourced children’s area Business, Council and Community support services. A large youth space and a recording studio Self contained and fully equipped education spaces A Chinese garden and outdoor play area. Library and information services are also available at the Foxton, Tokomaru and Shannon Libraries. Since the opening of Te Takere in 2012, the town of Levin has seen a 50% reduction in the rate of petty crime and un-employment has significantly reduced. This is your opportunity to hear from Joann how a mix of library and community services can have strategic impact in a community. Joann's world tour starts in Sydney. You are invited to meet with Joann on Monday August 22, 2016. Suggest a time and location. For further information and RSVPs please contact Irma <irma@calyx.net.au> Birchall founder of CALYX information essentials, a Koha support company since 2003. With kind regards, Irma ------------------ Irma Birchall CEO & Founder : CALYX information essentials Open Source Software Koha LMS and Digital Repositories Installation, Data Conversion, Configuration, Training, Hosting, Support T: +61 (2) 9437 4848 <%2B61%20%282%29%209437%204848> ~ M: +61 (0) 413 510 717 <%2B61%20%280%29%20413%20510%20717> irma@calyx.net.au ~ www.calyx.net.au ~ http://koha-community.org/ ~ https://kohaforschools.com.au/ Office : North Sydney, NSW, Australia For Australian Koha users communications and events, join the e-list: http://lists.koha-community.org/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/koha-oz