Helping to teach
Baldacchino donates to UPEI’s Robertson Library
Godfrey Baldacchino, coholder of the UNESCO chair in island studies and sustainability, has donated several of his latest publications to UPEI’s Robertson Library. The donation includes five books in the “Rethinking the Island Series” (Rowman & Littlefield), which he co-edited with Elizabeth McMahon and Elaine Stratford, as well as two books he edited: “Solution Protocols to Festering Island Disputes: ‘WinWin’ Solutions for the Diaoyu / Senkaku Islands” (Routledge, 2017) and “The Routledge International Handbook of Island Studies” (Routledge, 2018). “For the whole time Dr. Baldacchino has been involved with island studies at UPEI — and that’s going on 20 years now — he’s always been collegial and generous in helping us develop our island studies collections,” said Simon Lloyd, university archivist and liaison librarian for island studies. Lloyd said this sort of partnership is especially important in the case of a scholar like Baldacchino, who writes and edits a large number of academic books, book chapters and journal articles. “Island studies as a multinational and interdisciplinary field of study has grown a lot, but Dr. Baldacchino remains one of the most active people in this field, especially in terms of published scholarship,” added Lloyd. This published output — reflected in more than 180 references in islandscholar.ca, the Robertson Library’s database of UPEI research — translates into a lengthy list of books and articles, many of which the library would have to acquire through expensive purchases or subscriptions if not for Baldacchino’s generosity. “A university professor’s publications don’t just magically appear in the university library,” said Lloyd. “It’s important that faculty keep us informed of what they’re publishing and, where possible, deposit copies with us.” Lloyd recognized it is not always possible for faculty members to donate publications. The library will purchase faculty publications when necessary, but donations are always appreciated. “When you consider the average list price of a scholarly social sciences book last year was nearly $170 Canadian, it’s easy to see why new book donations matter.” Baldacchino has also been a leader in the open access movement, which encourages the sharing of published research without charge to readers.