Oleh Serbin

Director General of the Yaroslav Mudryi National Library of Ukraine, Vice President of the Ukrainian Library Association

Ukrainian librarian, public activist, volunteer, bass baritone of Ukrainian pop-music, Director General of the Yaroslav Mudryi National Library of Ukraine, Vice-President of the Ukrainian Library Association, Doctor of Science in Social Communications, PhD of Historical Sciences, Senior Research Associate, Professor at the Educational and Research Institute of the Kyiv National University of Culture and Arts and the Department of Archival Studies and Special Branches of History at Taras Shevchenko National University of Kyiv. Oleh is a leading expert in the field of systematisation, indexing, and library and information classification in Ukraine. He has over 10 years of teaching experience. He researches the methodology of creating and using library and bibliographic classification systems, the evolution of classification systems, the historical and technological features of the evolution of systematic library catalogues, the representation of information retrieval languages in web-oriented systems, and the systematisation of bibliographic information. He is the author of about 200 scientific works, including monographs and textbooks. Oleh is actively involved in public activities for the development of librarianship in Ukraine. He has been a volunteer since the beginning of the full-scale invasion. He is a singer with a unique bass-baritone voice and has recorded over 20 songs.

Change yourself. Change your library. Change your country. Change the world

The library has undergone significant transformation since its inception – from a simple book collection to a vibrant social hub. Today, libraries face continuous change, uncertainty, and crises, driven by rapid societal shifts and emerging challenges. They must respond flexibly, helping communities overcome these obstacles. Librarians must be adaptable and quick learners, constantly updating their skills and modifying their institutions to meet new demands. Ukrainian libraries, in particular, encounter unique challenges amid ongoing war and societal upheaval.

The Ukrainian library system faces chronic issues: underfunding, outdated infrastructure, preservation threats, declining personnel, and inadequate integration of IT. The war has exacerbated these problems, threatening the existence of many libraries as social institutions.

However, Ukrainian libraries demonstrate resilience and leadership in helping communities recover and rebuild despite these challenges.

Their capacity for adaptation and international support opens new partnerships and resource mobilisation opportunities. Looking ahead, the vision for Ukrainian libraries, developed by the Ukrainian Library Association and Yaroslav Mydryi National Library of Ukraine, raises the issues of post-war recovery, advancing human capital, and contributing to a strong, democratic, and economically prosperous Ukraine.

Date and time: 2025-12-02, 16:40-17:00 (20 min)

Hall: ALFA