Sailan Liang, of Carmel, will join Ann Ricciardelli as the Indianapolis Public Library’s representatives for a Sister City exchange with Hangzhou, China, later this fall.
Liang, an 18-year employee of the Indianapolis Public Library, serves as the public service librarian at the Glendale Library. Ricciardelli, a 22-year veteran of the library, works as the adult librarian at the Central Library.
The women will spend their time in the capital of Zhejiang Province in southeastern China – established in 2008 as the fifth of eight international Sister Cities for the City of Indianapolis – learning about the delivery of library services at the Hangzhou Public Library, making presentations about their own American professional experiences and visiting historical and cultural sites.
“These staff exchanges offer us the opportunity to become embedded in a different culture and understand what libraries mean to others, obtain real insights into other approaches to organizing, funding and providing services, and to deepen our appreciation for diversity,” said Jackie Nytes, Indianapolis Public Library CEO.
Liang said she hopes to use the exchange as an opportunity to share lessons she’s learned during nearly 20 years of library work.
“It’s a great opportunity for me to use all my experience, from being a children’s librarian telling stories, to doing book discussions and computer trainings as an adult librarian,” she said.
The library kicked off its part of the Indianapolis-Hangzhou Sister City relationship in May with a public reception featuring Chinese cultural performances as well as a special book exhibit at the Central Library entitled, “Reflections of West Lake: Hangzhou Public Library Book Exhibition,” which continues through July 28. To learn more about the library’s Sister City relationships, visit www.imcpl.org.
