The Library of the University of Liechtenstein hosted the annual conference of the Regio Bodenseebibliotheken Association for the first time. Around 20 library directors from four countries in the Lake Constance and Alpine Rhine region attended the meeting in the university’s auditorium.

The University of Liechtenstein Library has been a member of the Regio Bodenseebibliotheken Association since its founding. The association includes 40 diverse libraries. The variety is reflected in this list: Zurich Central Library, University Library of St. Gallen, Schaffhausen Libraries, major German city and university libraries around Lake Constance, Vorarlberg State Library, Library of the University of Applied Sciences Vorarlberg, three Liechtenstein libraries, and the Cantonal Library of Graubünden. The association maintains two databases focused on literature from the Lake Constance region. The “Bodensee-Zeitschriften” database was created in 2008 as a project funded by Interreg IV Alpenrhein-Bodensee-Hochrhein. It involved digitizing approximately 350,000 pages of core regional journals by libraries in Baden-Württemberg, Bavaria, Liechtenstein, Switzerland, and Vorarlberg. The second database contains the Euregio-Bodensee Bibliography, indexing over 100,000 books, journal articles, and anthology contributions on topics, places, and people of the Lake Constance area.

Small and Powerful

Under the theme “Small but Powerful,” the three Liechtenstein libraries introduced themselves during the first presentation block of the conference. They discussed current challenges and the approaches they are taking to address them. The year 2024 marked a significant turning point not only for the University Library but for the entire library system in Liechtenstein. The previously outdated online catalog of the Liechtenstein Library Network was replaced with a new library management system. This allowed the network to provide a modern search interface focused on the public audience.

The University Library also joined the Swiss Library Service Platform (SLSP), enabling it to offer swisscovery.li – a state-of-the-art discovery service. With the SLSP book courier, the university’s access to literature has significantly expanded by over 40 million titles.

In the second presentation block, Oliver Thiele introduced SHAI – the Digital Assistant of the Schaffhausen Libraries – developed using artificial intelligence. The conference concluded with an architectural tour led by Johannes Herburger.

The trip to Vaduz was certainly worthwhile for all attendees. They praised the well-organized event, warm hospitality, engaging presentations, and the opportunity to become more familiar with the University of Liechtenstein and its library.