Posts in: 2026

25 years of Jeugdbieb.nl: A small idea that became a public good

Twenty-five years ago, a youth librarian in the Netherlands saw a problem that many parents, educators, and librarians are still grappling with today: finding trustworthy information for children online.

The internet was young, search engines were primitive, and digital literacy was barely a concept. Yet even then, librarian Hennie Borstlap recognized that children would increasingly turn to the web for answers—and that someone needed to help them navigate it safely.

What began in 2001 as a simple website built by Borstlap herself using borrowed HTML books and a determination to serve young learners has grown into Jeugdbieb.nl, one of the Netherlands’ most trusted online information resources for children. Today, as Jeugdbieb.nl celebrates its 25th anniversary, it stands as a remarkable example of what can happen when librarians, communities, and mission-driven organizations work together to create lasting public value.

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AI needs context. Linked data provides.

Artificial intelligence is at the center of today’s technology conversation.  At conferences, in headlines, and across product roadmaps, AI is everywhere. At the same time, linked data, once a major focus, seems less visible.

That perception may mislead in an important way. AI is not replacing linked data. It’s highlighting how essential structured, connected data really is.

These are not competing priorities. They’re converging technologies that are evolving together and, in many cases, making each other better.

Understanding that relationship starts with how AI systems actually work.

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Making accessibility metadata work at scale

Illustration for accessibility

Digital content is evolving quickly, and so are expectations for inclusive access. Libraries are being asked to deliver e-books, audiobooks, and streaming media in ways that work for everyone. But there’s a practical challenge underneath those expectations: accessibility features are only discoverable if the metadata describing them is structured, consistent, and able to travel intact across the full metadata ecosystem.

Over the past two years, particularly as the European Accessibility Act (EAA) has increased attention on accessibility requirements for digital content, we’ve focused on a clear goal: making accessibility metadata reliable, standards-based, and scalable across WorldCat and the systems that feed it.

Here’s what that looks like in practice.

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Listening to library leaders: Surveys capture real-time perspectives shaping decisions across the field

Funding and resourcing, technology, staffing, community needs and expectations—the pace of change library leaders now need to navigate and lead their organizations through is nothing short of breathtaking. Trends that took years to evolve now demand responses and strategic planning within months, or even days. Grounding those choices in rigorous, in-depth research remains essential.  

At the same time, library decision-makers benefit from collective wisdom and insights shared among peers. Knowing how others are responding to similar pressures can help leaders calibrate their strategies and avoid reinventing the wheel. When those insights are confined to personal or regional networks, the limited perspective can restrict leaders’ views of how priorities and decisions are shifting. 

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