Atlanta, GA – March 16, 2020 – LYRASIS, as the administrative agent for the International Coalition of Library Consortia (ICOLC), announces the ICOLC Statement on the Global COVID-19 Pandemic and Its Impact on Library Services and Resources (https://icolc.net/statement/statement-global-covid-19-pandemic-and-its-impact-library-services-and-resources).

The statement, written on behalf of the many library consortia across the world, has two purposes. It is intended to help information service providers that license and sell online and printed content to libraries understand how the current global COVID-19 pandemic is affecting the worldwide information community. The second purpose is to suggest a range of approaches that ICOLC believes are in the mutual best interest of libraries and the information service providers.

ICOLC participating consortia consider the current global crisis of such significance that they cannot assume that libraries and content service providers share a common perspective about the magnitude of the impact and the best approaches to cope with it moving forward. Rick Burke, Chair of the ICOLC Coordinating Committee and Executive Director of SCELC, the Statewide California Electronic Library Consortium, states that “Libraries and consortia around the world are adapting to dramatic change as they continue providing services to their user communities. ICOLC encourages all publishers and other content providers to work with the library community and create paths forward that address the critical global need for information at this time.”

About LYRASIS 

LYRASIS, a not-for-profit membership organization of more than 1,000 libraries, museums, and archives supports enduring access to its shared academic, scientific and cultural heritage through leadership in open technologies, content services, digital solutions and collaboration with archives, libraries, museums and knowledge communities worldwide

About ICOLC

The International Coalition of Library Consortia (ICOLC) is an informal, self-organized group currently comprising approximately 200 library consortia in North and South America, Europe, Australia, Asia, and Africa. The member consortia serve all types and sizes of libraries. ICOLC has been in existence since 1996.