From digital disruption to digital wellbeing: reflections from an offline window on library work

By Alice Corble

2020 has been a year of many disruptions. Last month, on the eve of another national lockdown and a nail-biting general election in the US, there was a sense of teetering on yet another precipice. At such times of uncertainty, I reach compulsively for information, which nowadays is almost exclusively digital and online, readily available at the instant swipe of a finger or click of a mouse. It was during this moment, however, that I was barred from doing so, as my home broadband connection broke down and my mobile data and coverage rapidly depleted. Four days of disconnection from the online world of information and communication ensued, filled with much panic and frustration, as well as fruitlessly long calls to Virgin Media tech support in international call centres.

Before long I had little option but to embrace the disconnection and use it as an opportunity for a different kind of focus. I estimate that at least 90% of my job coordinating and facilitating reading lists and library teaching is not possible without an internet connection – probably closer to 100% in the present remote working and learning context. After spending some time tidying up my inbox and reading through old emails and digital documents, I turned away from my screen and picked up a book.   

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‘♪ Getting to know you… ♪’

Continuing the series about getting to know our lovely colleagues, next up is Clare, Senior Library Assistant in Cataloguing.

If you’d like to submit your answers to the Q+A, fill out the template and send it to library.innovation@sussex.ac.uk, or get in touch with the Blog admins – Lizzy & Sam…


Clare

A woman sits at a desk in a "work from home" set up

We’d like to include a brief biography before the Q+A.  To help with this, could you tell us, in a couple of sentences, where you’re from, where you live now, and a little bit about your working life so far…

I was born in Brighton and have been hanging around it ever since. Studied at Sussex and lived on campus in the early 2000s and now I live in Lewes. I worked in a load of different shops from the late 90s until I finally escaped retail for library work at East Sussex County Council in 2009 then started here at Sussex in what was then Lending Services in 2013.

What’s your favourite part of the library?

The whole of the top floor. The back bit looking out to the trees and the front when the sun comes up and shines through the windows in the early mornings.

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