This workshop was held with the Cambodia Higher Education Association (CHEA) in Phnom Penh during July of 2015. It focused on librarianship in Cambodia, and the understanding of collections, communities, and curation. The workshop was given to mostly librarians and library professionals, but also to administrators and office workers. Currently the PPT is only in English, but the goal is to have it translated into Khmer. You can follow @bembrarian and @cambodianbem on Twitter for more of Greg Bem's insights into Cambodian librarianship and information management.

1. COLLECTION
DEVELOPMENT
IN CAMBODIA
Greg Bem, Phnom Penh,
2015
@cambodianbem
@bembrarian
Bookcase in Thinker’s Lodge by Chris Campbell via Flickr.com

2. WORKSHOP
SCHEDULE Morning 1 (8-930): Introduction to Workshop
 Break 1 (930-945)
 Morning 2 (945-11): Exploring Collections 1
 Lunch (11:15-2)
 Afternoon 1 (2-330): Exploring Collections 2
 Break 2 (330-345)
 Afternoon 2 (345-515): Future Thinking and Conclusion

3. INTRODUCTIONS
 Kolap Mao, PUC and Cambodian Library Association
 Sereyrath Aing and Phalkun Chan, Interns at WCS

4. Hello! I’m Greg Be
Sre Ambel, July 2015

5. Google Maps (http://maps.google.com)
Seattle, Washington, USA
Phnom Penh, Cambodia
12,000 Kilometers (15.5 Hours on a
plane!)

6. GREG AND CAMBODIA
. . .
2013-2014 Highlights
 First time in Cambodia
 Graduate Student at University of
WA
 Internship at Open Development
Cambodia (ODC)
 Workshop with Cambodia Library
Association on Information Literacy
 Two Workshops with Nou Hach
Literary Association on Writing in
Your Environment
2015 Highlights
 Second time in Cambodia
 8 Week Contract with Wildlife
Conservation Society (WCS)
 Poetry Performance at Meta House
 Workshop for Cambodia Higher
Education Association (CHEA) on
Collection Development
 Workshop with Nou Hach on
Collaborative Writing

7. QUESTIONS WE WILL
EXPLORE What is a collection?
 What can be included inside a collection?
 How does a collection support a community?
 What collections do you already work with?
 How can you better curate your own collection?
?

8. BUT FIRST . . . LET’S GET TO KNOW
EACH OTHER!

9. ACTIVITY ONE: MEET
YOUR TEAM
 Please divide into groups of 8.
 Choose one person to be the group leader.
 Go around the circle and introduce yourself. Share the following:
• Your name
• Where you are from
• Where you live now
• Where you work
• Why you chose to come to this workshop
• What you hope to learn
• Your favorite fruit
 When finished, please have the group leader inform one of the
organizers.

10. ACTIVITY TWO: CONSTRUCT A
TEAM FLAG
• Use what you know about each other to create a team flag.
• When the flag is complete, please tape the flag so the audience can
see.
• After all flags are complete, please be ready to share.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flag_of_Cambodia#/media/File:Flag_of_Cambodia.svg

11. BREAK
ONE:
15
MINUTES!
Rest, Angkor by Luca Setti via Flickr.com

12. EXPLORING COLLECTIONS 1:
WHAT WE KNOW
Pro Tips:
Take Many Notes
ave Questions for Group Discussions

13. Phat Wad, Break me off some
by Refracted Moments via Flickr.com

14. DVD Collection - Movies and Family/Children by chapstikaddict via Flickr.com

15. Rubber Duck Collection by Alien Graffiti via Flickr.com

16. Yashica ML Lenses - All together now! By loeffel_1 via Flickr.com

17. ACTIVITY THREE: THE MYSTERIOUS
COLLECTION
Within your group, answer the following questions:
1. What is the definition of a collection?
2. What do you think can be found within a library collection?
3. What is the purpose of the library collection?
4. Who is responsible for creating a library collection?
5. What are other places collections can be found in Cambodia?

18. ACTIVITY THREE: THE MYSTERIOUS
COLLECTION
 We will now share our answers to the entire room.
 Please take notes as you hear what everyone has to
say.
 When the discussion is over, each group will share
what they have learned from this activity with each
other.

19. COMING UP THIS
AFTERNOON! This afternoon we will learn more about collections and how they
affect communities that use them.
Photo by Greg Bem, 2014

20. LUNCH
BREAK:
UNTIL 2PM
Fried Tarantula, Phnom Penh Cambodia by Adam Cohn via Flickr.com

21. EXPLORING COLLECTIONS 2:
NEW UNDERSTANDING
Pro Tips:
Ask yourself:
How does this relate to me?
What do I want to learn more about?

22. COLLECTIONS: THE DEFINITION
• the act or process of getting things from
different places and bringing them together
• a group of interesting or beautiful objects
brought together in order to show or study
them or as a hobby

23. COLLECTIONS: FUNCTIONS
• Collections can have many different functions.
• Functions depend on who is creating/curating the collection and
why.
• Functions also depend on the community, if any, a collection serves.
• Archival: some collections are designed to preserve materials.
• Subject-specific: some collections are topical in nature and serve to
centralize.
• General: some collections aim to include every material available in a
geography.
• The curator of the collection should have a description of their
collection so they know how to keep the collection in existence.

24. COLLECTIONS AND COMMUNITIES
• Collections are often found within a specific community.
• Communities, like collections, are all very different.
• A collection can aid a community by supporting the function and
behavior of the community.
• A community that does not find value in the collection might not use
the collection.
• A collection might still be valuable to a community that does not use
it.
• A community might have multiple collections of the same types of
resources available to them.
• The curator of the collection should understand how the collection
relates to its community and how the community relates to the
collection.

25. COLLECTIONS WITHIN THE
LIBRARY
• A library is not a collection, but a building (or digital space) that is
used to contain collections and allow people to access them.
• A library may have more than one collection depending on the size
and purpose of the library.
• A library may also serve multiple communities or different groups of
people within a singular community.
• Collections within a library, like collections in general, grow in many
ways: some gain new items, some lose old items.
• It is the goal of the librarians to understand how to best keep and/or
change their collections to make the library the best place it can be
for the enhancement of knowledge among the people who visit the
library.

26. LIBRARY COLLECTION EXAMPLE:
FICTION BOOKS
Image from
http://apilgriminnarnia.com

27. EXAMPLE: REFERENCE BOOKS
Image from
http://asiacambodia.blogsp
ot.com

28. LIBRARY COLLECTION EXAMPLE:
DVDS AND VIDEO
Image from
http://phnompenhpost.
com

29. LIBRARY COLLECTION EXAMPLE:
MAPS
Image of Seattle Public
Library Map Room from
http://adrianrae.wordpress.
com

30. NEW COLLECTIONS WITHIN THE
LIBRARY
 Communities are constantly changing.
 Collections usually need to change as well to meet the new needs of
the community.
 A collection within a library should be reliable but should be
interesting and engaging.
 The prevalence of digital culture throughout the world has
challenged libraries.
 Many libraries are now going beyond keeping only books in their
collections.

31. EXAMPLE: VIDEO GAMES
Image from
http://idigitaltimes.com

32. EXAMPLE: TOOL LIBRARY
Image from http://kctoolco.com

33. EXAMPLE: INTERNET HOT SPOTS
Image from
http://blog.toggle.com

34. EXAMPLES: CAMERAS AND
TECHNOLOGY
Image from
http://thetravelingtripod.com

35. OTHER COLLECTIONS
How can the
librarians with their
own collections learn
from the following
collections?
Pay attention to the
possibilities that
might exist as you
think about
developing your own
collection.
Phnom Tamao, via http://fcccambodia.com

36. SEED BANKS
http://www.kew.org/science-
conservation/collections/millennium-
seed-bank

37. FACEBOOK AND SOCIAL MEDIA
http://facebook.com

38. FONTS
http://www.selapa.net/khmerfonts/

39. LAWS
http://opendevelopmentcambodia.net

40. ACTIVITY FOUR: INDEPENDENT
REFLECTION (10 MIN)
 Silently write down a short
response about what they have
learned and what has surprised
them.
 Additionally, everyone is
required to think of one type of
material that they would like to
see collected by a library or
other organization (or a
business or individual) and how
it would benefit a specific
community.

41. BREAK
TWO:
15
MINUTES!
Napping in the Shade by Aaron Gilson via Flickr.com

42. FUTURE THINKING
Pro Tips:
Challenge your understanding
Apply new knowledge
Think critically

43. ADDITIONAL THOUGHTS ON
COLLECTIONS
 Collections are composed of information objects.
 Information is created, shared, received, and then interpreted.
 Collections represent the people who have access to them.
 Collections can represent very diverse information sets.
 Collections can be composed of many different types of objects.
 Collections require constant care and attention to be useful.
 Collections can move in many directions: they can grow, and they
can lessen.

44. FINAL ACTIVITY: THE BETTER
COLLECTION, PT 1
 Each group chooses one
collection that exists in the
real world. This should be a
collection one of the team
members works on.
 If no one in the group
works in a collection, the
team will have to create a
fictional collection.
National Library of Cambodia by Peta Hopkins via
Flickr.com

45. FINAL ACTIVITY: THE BETTER
COLLECTION, PT 2
 Once the collection is described and the team
members understand it, the group will answer the
following:
 Who uses this collection/what is the community the collection is a
part of?
 What are the benefits of the collection so far and how is it already
being used?
 What can be improved upon?
 Is there anything radically different that could be done to the
collection to encourage its use?
 What risks are at play (what problems might occur) with changing

46. National Poetry Month Display at LW Tech, April 2015 – Photo by Greg Bem

47. THANK YOU FOR YOUR
PARTICIPATION!
ANY QUESTIONS?
Stay in Touch:
@cambodianbem
@bembrarian