The Mortenson Center for International Library Programs strengthens international ties among libraries and librarians worldwide for the promotion of international education, understanding, and peace.
Upcoming events
Thursday, SEPTEMBER 24, 2026; 5:45-8:30pm. AsiaLENS/Mortenson Screening | “One Big Hapa Family” (Screening + Discussion) | Jeff Chiba Stearns. Location: School of Information Sciences, Rm 126; 501 E Daniel St,. Champaign. FREE REGISTRATION.
5:15-5:45pm Registration and light refreshments | 5:45pm Film screeneing
Post-Film discussion with Jeff Chiba Stearns and Jason Finkelman (School of Music) and Audience Q&A
About the Film: After a realization at a family reunion, half Japanese-Canadian filmmaker, Jeff Chiba Stearns, embarks on a journey of self-discovery to find out why everyone in his Japanese-Canadian family married inter-racially after his grandparents’ generation. This feature live action and animated documentary explores why almost 100% of all Japanese-Canadians are marrying inter-racially, the highest out of any other ethnicity in Canada, and how their children perceive their unique multiracial identities. One Big Hapa Family challenges our perceptions of purity and makes us question if mixing is the end of multiculturalism as we know it
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Saturday, SEPTEMBER 26, 2026; 1:00-2:30pm. 36th Annual Mortenson Distinguished Lecture & Youth Literature Festival (YLF) Keynote – JEFF CHIBA STEARNS (Animation and Documentary Filmmaker, Author and Illustrator) will present on “Animation Meditation: 25 Years of Exploring Mixed-Race Identity and Japanese Canadian History Through Visual Storytelling“. Location: I Hotel & Conference Center, Alma Mater Room; 1900 S. First Street, Champaign, IL.
FREE REGISTRATION
To learn more about the Lecture and related activities, please visit: go.library.illinois.edu/mortensonlecture
Mortenson Associates
The Mortenson Center Associates Program offers individuals working in a library setting outside the United States an opportunity to explore current issues and trends in the library field and to engage with librarians implementing cutting-edge programs and services
Libraries for Peace
The Libraries for Peace (L4P) initiative promotes the role of libraries to advance peace internationally. This website and social media provide resources for libraries and others to learn about what libraries are doing to promote peace, how they can initiate their own efforts, and where these actions are taking place; to discuss and share ideas of libraries and peacebuilding; and to serve as an information hub for an international library celebration and action day for peace.
Strengthening Innovative Library Leaders (SILL)
Strengthening Innovative Library Leaders (SILL) is a 2-day foundational leadership training curriculum developed at the Mortenson Center for International Library Programs with assistance from librarians around the world. The project is funded by the Global Libraries Program of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. SILL is designed for public and community librarians, but can be used with other groups.
Community-Library Inter-Action (CLIA) Project
Libraries are community anchors and catalysts of social transformation. Join libraries across the world to participate in the Community-Library Inter-Action (CLIA) Project to facilitate local dialogue and community action that drives social transformation. In engaging CLIA, libraries contribute to the collective action and impact on the part of libraries worldwide to advance peaceful and sustainable communities.
Project Welcome
Project Welcome: Libraries and Community Anchors Planning for Resettlement and Integration of Refugees and Asylum Seekers is funded by an Institute of Museum Library Services (IMLS) planning grant. In partnership with the American Library Association (ALA), Project Welcome aims to learn about and articulate ways libraries can address the information needs of refugees and asylum seekers in order to support and empower them in their resettlement and integration process.
Libraries for Sustainable Development
Libraries for Sustainable Development (LSD) is a project of the Libraries for Peace (L4P) Initiative of the Mortenson Center for International Library Programs at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign (USA). LSD promotes the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) by serving as a hub for resources on library efforts to advance sustainable development across the globe, and the access point to our Information Action Brief (IAB) series.
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