The Library creates a 5-year Plan

I have spent the last two weeks working on translating the Library’s 5-Year Plan (called a “Concept” here) into English. I do not have the language skills to do Russian translations, so I depend on Google translate, hope it is somewhat correct, and then rewrite the translation so it is understandable for English readers. Sometimes when I don’t understand what is translated, I try other online programs and ask my fellow workers here at the library, but even so, I do know much gets “lost in translation.” However, I think that at least in this case, the major ideas came through.
I have added the translated 5-Year Plan to the Pages on my blog, but here are a few highlights. The Plan clearly states the library's mission: “The I. Gasprinsky Crimean Tatar Library is responsible for the preservation, growth, and transfer to present and future generations, of the intellectual wealth, native language, and culture of the Crimean Tatars,” or more simply, “the keeper of the memory of the Crimean Tatar people.” To continue to fulfill this mission, a number of directions for the library are presented: preservation and digitizing of historic documents; bringing the library into the “electronic age” with increased development of its online presence; improving the library environment to make it more user friendly and accessible to the disabled; maintenance and needed repairs to the library building, which is a historical monument; construction of additional book storage; reaching out to the remote Crimean Tatar settlements; promoting ethnic tolerance across the peninsula. For elaboration of these ideas and to find out other interests of the library, please read the 5-Year Plan. It is also available in the original Russian on the library’s website.
I will be gone from Crimea for the next two weeks, first to a training in Kyiv sponsored by the Peace Corps on HIV/AIDS prevention, which I am attending with my counterpart from the Orlova Children’s Library in Simferopol where I work one day a week. Following the training, I will be going to the Carpathian Mountains in western Ukraine to attend a “close of service” conference with my fellow Peace Corps Volunteers who are ending their service in June of this year. I have elected to stay an additional year but am still required to attend the conference. And it will be a chance to see the beautiful Carpathian Mountains in the winter.