Conference on Academic Library Management 2026

We live in an individualistic achievement society that encourages people to chase external validation by putting the focus on innovation and competition over collaboration and collective care. Many of these dynamics are at play in our own profession, leading to toxic cultures of scarcity, low morale, burnout, and disproportionate harm to BIPOC library workers and patrons. We have the power to imagine new futures that will equip us to better serve our patrons and support our collective well-being. Slow librarianship focuses on relationship-building, values-driven work, quality over quantity, solidarity, antiracism, and reflective practice. Meredith will describe how managers can embed slow practices in their own work to support their employees and foster meaningful culture change.

Meredith Farkas (she/her) is a faculty librarian at Portland Community College in Oregon, a perpetual beginner, a passionate union member, and a recovering workaholic. She has authored the blog Information Wants to be Free since 2004. Her research interests include slow librarianship, time, leadership, reflective practice, disability justice, antiracism, and collective care. Meredith has been in many different leadership and management roles throughout her career, but her favorite role is working with students and faculty as an instruction librarian.