Three Different Ways to Hold Conversations About AI: Peers, Patrons, and Staff

Unconferences.com will be hosting free online events for librarians and teachers, where participants drive both the agenda and the conversations. Voting starts today for the first unconference topic (choices include "AI and Libraries," "AI in Education," "Burnout and Compassion Fatigue," "The Future of Libraries," "Difficult Patron Behaviors," and "Homeless / Unhoused Patrons." You can vote for one or all. We'll pick the most wanted topic and schedule it for October. The goal is to hold one three-hour unconference each month.

 

 

The AI Safety Awareness Project is leading a nationwide initiative to equip library staff to host thoughtful discussions about AI at their branches with resources at no cost. This is a great avenue for staff to host an engaging event for their community. If you are interested in hosting a discussion at your library, or if you're a librarian or teacher who would like to volunteer your abilities as a conversation host, reach out to them at info@aisafetyawarenessproject.org. 

They are looking to organize 100s of events nationwide in October. AI is developing very quickly, and they think communities should have the opportunity to learn about + discuss how this technology is changing society. These facilitated discussions are similar to book clubs - a library staff member organizes the event and leads a discussion based on a shared piece of media (in our case, a video). The goal is for facilitated discussions to be easy to pick up and deliver. More at aisafetyawarenessproject.org.

 

Our staff training program on AI is being recorded today, and you can find out how to purchase an inexpensive license to use it with your staff, your region, your consortium, or your state here. This is a four-part training program, 30 minutes each, with a facilitator's guide for local discussion.

"AI Foundations for Your Library Team" is designed to get an entire staff to a shared starting point. The content starts with the basics and is library-specific. For staff who already use AI, the sessions provide an opportunity to slow down, reflect on their habits, and strengthen their practice with new strategies for evaluating, prompting, and using AI responsibly. It doesn't assume anyone has used these tools before, and it doesn't try to talk anyone into using them. Breaking the material into four shorter sessions gives people time to absorb the ideas, discuss them with coworkers, and come back with better questions.

The goal is to give your staff enough shared understanding to ask better questions, make better judgments, and help patrons navigate AI with confidence.