On June 24, 2026, UBC Library came together to celebrate Dr. Susan E. Parker’s retirement and honour her nine years of leadership as the University Librarian.
At a reception held at Cecil Green Park House, Susan spent time with colleagues and friends, reflecting on the many milestones from her long career in academia and sharing memories of her time at UBC Library. Excerpts from her address at that event are included below, along with her fond farewell to the UBC community.
I started my career 46 years ago, in 1980, when I graduated library school. As a librarian, I have had the privilege to stand at the forefront of our changing information landscape for almost 50 years.
I was trained on card catalogues, print indexes, and searches coded on punch cards. It was a world where your computer was hardwired to a central database; reference requests required courier deliveries between libraries; and sometimes you simply needed to know who to call at which institution for a specific knowledgebase.
But libraries have always been among the first organizations to adopt new technology.
I saw the shift from print indexes to the relatively futuristic use of DOS, WordPerfect and DIALOG. At the time, academic search methods were highly specialized, often expensive, and centered librarian expertise.
“As a librarian, I have had the privilege to stand at the forefront of our changing information landscape for almost 50 years.”
Then the widespread use of the internet pushed us forward again. The ability to search became more democratic, and many people believed Google would be the end of librarians as intermediaries altogether.
But those of us in this profession know that librarians are still intermediaries. In fact, the need for information literacy makes our work more important than ever.
With the dawn of AI, we are at a turning point again; another moment of evolution. Librarians are well positioned to provide the guidance needed for this moment. Our licensing and copyright expertise is more critical than ever for untangling ownership, as is our ability to determine provenance, and archive materials in the face of digital precarity.
Having seen librarianship through the past 50 years, my vision for our future is the same as what it was in our past: we must be a source of truth; determine what is true and reputable; preserve what exists for the future; and help others find, interpret and use information and technology.
Amid all this change, my years at UBC were a deeply rewarding way to cap off a long career. From developing UBC Library’s Strategic Framework to opening new spaces like the Chung | Lind Gallery and even spearheading an undergraduate research prize, my time at UBC was varied and exciting.
This work is only made possible through the incredible partnership of hundreds of people working across UBC Library. I also could not have done it without the support of UBC leadership and a strong collective of peers at research libraries across Canada. Thank you for all of your remarkable collaboration over the last nine years.
“UBC Library will continue to evolve, but it’s the same work it has always been; it’s really just the tools that change.”
I am optimistic about the future of UBC Library, and I wish all of the best to both University Librarian pro tem Julie Mitchell and incoming University Librarian Dr. Dale Askey in their continued leadership of the library’s next chapter.
UBC Library will continue to evolve, but it’s the same work it has always been; it’s really just the tools that change.
Sincerely,
Susan E. Parker
