Press Release from HDC PR
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September 14, 2007
An interactive website with a strong emphasis on the Horowhenua District and its people has edged out the National Library of New Zealand and the University of Auckland by winning a national award for ground-breaking innovation and doing so for the second time.
The Horowhenua Library Trust won the prestigious 2007 3m Award for Innovation in Libraries in Rotorua on Monday night for its Kete Horowhenua project.
The 3m trophy and prize is hotly contested and awarded each year for a project which shows original thinking in solving a library problem.
Judging is by both a panel of experts and by popular vote of association members with marks given not only for an innovative solution but also for a development which can be applied to other libraries.
Head of Libraries Rosalie Blake said Kete Horowhenua uses very new technologies and she was quietly confident at the awards night.
"We thought we had a good chance. Kete is about the inter-relationship with the users and how they can use the site to tell their stories.
"The award was for ground-breaking work on Kete and the availability to the wider community."
Kete horowhenua is an online do-it-yourself framework on which to build an archive and gallery.
It is designed so that anyone can enter data into Kete from any computer on the internet, whether from home, work, or in the library.
Kete holds stories, photographs, audio and video clips. anything that can be recorded digitally and is relevant to the Horowhenua District can be entered.
"It's the build-your-own archive aspect which is innovative, and the range of material which can be included.
"Step-by-step instructions help people arrange material into topics, and link related material together," Ms Blake said.
In 2000, the Horowhenua Library Trust won the same award for Koha, an integrated library system used for book cataloguing, circulation, and membership.
Though it has not been implemented widely in New Zealand, it is believed thousands of libraries overseas use the Koha system.
Ms Blake said the Trust became the first library to win two 3m awards for innovation in libraries and felt it was a real thrill to receive the award for Kete.
"The Trust has won several awards previously for its Koha software, and it was a good demonstration that we can continue to produce excellence."
Kete Horowhenua
The horowhenua Library Trust is currently waiting to find out if Kete has been short-listed in the e-inclusion category of the World Summit Awards, for best e-content and creativity after initial judging was held in Croatia earlier this month.
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for further information, phone Rosalie Blake or Jo Ransom on (06) 368 1953
Colleen Sheldon
Communications Officer
126-148 Oxford Street,
Private Bag 4002, Levin.
Mobile: 027 687 3921
Email: colleens@horowhenua.govt.nz
