Raphael Gerard C. Dela Cruz's Testimonial

Joining the American Library Association’s International Librarians Networking Program has been a truly transformative journey. It completely dissolved geographical boundaries, opening doors to deep professional connections and lasting global partnerships. I had the wonderful privilege of collaborating with two incredible colleagues: Ms. Trang Nguyen from Vietnam and Ms. Simone Paiva Okuzono from Brazil.
Our vibrant conversations about current trends and local challenges quickly highlighted how connected our worlds really are. I was fascinated to learn from Ms. Okuzono that Brazil offers dedicated PhD opportunities in Library and Information Science. Meanwhile, Ms. Nguyen and I bonded over how both the Philippines and Vietnam uphold the profession by requiring librarians to be official license holders.

Despite the distance and cultural differences, we discovered profound common ground. Libraries in all three of our nations are aggressively upgrading their technology to better serve their communities. As we watched Artificial Intelligence begin to dramatically revolutionize library services worldwide, the three of us found ourselves completely aligned on a core philosophy: AI holds immense promise, but it must be championed with responsibility and deep ethical care in librarianship.

This experience reminded me that while our local policies and languages may differ, our heart for service, innovation, and community is entirely universal. I return to my work inspired, globally connected, and deeply proud to be part of this shifting international landscape.

Raphael Gerard C. Dela Cruz, RL, MLIS

College Librarian

Filipiniana and Special Collection Librarian
Philippines