Why this topic for the Conference 2026?
The title of the 2026 conference sounds like an invitation to a joint conversation about the future – a future in which university libraries form an ethical and sustainable ecosystem of knowledge in the era of AI and digital transformation.
- We Are Living Through a Major Shift
The world of knowledge is transforming before our eyes. What yesterday required months of work is now done by algorithms in minutes. Algorithms generate texts, analyze data, and shape recommendations. Yet with this speed comes a fundamental question – whom do we trust, and why? In this new landscape, libraries are once again moving to the center of the intellectual space.
- Intelligence as a Challenge to Trust
AI does not only help us discover information – it increasingly produces it. In such a reality, libraries become more than service providers; they serve as spaces of ethics, critical thinking, and responsible knowledge use. Their mission is to help society navigate growing digital complexity.
- Rethinking means responsibility for memory and the future of culture
By 2026, it is no longer enough to adapt – it is time to make strategic choices.
What should a library be in the age of algorithms?
How can technological innovation be aligned with humanistic values and national cultural heritage?
How can digital transformation remain inclusive and open?
To protect and develop science and education is to protect and develop culture itself – its language, memory, identity, values, and future.
- The Post-Crisis and Wartime Context: Libraries as Guardians of Identity
The pandemic and war have revealed how fragile educational and research systems can be. At the same time, they have demonstrated the resilience of libraries as pillars of community support, continuity of learning, and access to reliable information.
For countries defending their sovereignty, libraries also serve as guardians of cultural memory, documentary heritage, and truth.
In this context, digital transformation is not merely modernization – it is a matter of resilience, solidarity, cultural preservation, and rebuilding national knowledge infrastructures.