Gáncsné Nagy Erzsébet: Magyar Könyvtárosok Egyesülete Helyismereti Könyvtárosok Szervezetének története, 1994-2002 (2004)

3. The Local Studies Group of the Association of Hungarian Librarians (HKSZ). - 3.2. The professional work of the HKSZ.

The members of the HKSZ: Because the HKSZ is a professional group, it is not difficult to discover the background of its members. Most work in public libraries and have a responsibility for, or a strong interest in, local history. Of these 42% work in Town Libraries, 30% in County Libraries. The Group also includes librarians working in school libraries and other special libraries. The HKSZ gains strength from its members. These include many experts with management skills who are devoted to all aspects of local studies librarianship 3.2. The professional work of the HKSZ To achieve the professional goals implied in the Deed of Foundation, the Committee of the HKSZ, with the help of its members, formed a framework of activities. These are: • to discuss general themes of interest to the membership and to organise annual three-day Conferences reflecting these themes • to debate current professional concerns and to organise national meetings that would bring these issues to the attention of the national HKSZ assemblies • to organise and support regional meetings in any Hungarian region or county • to form working groups for specific assignments • to take part in the annual MKE Conferences by collaborating with other national Groups in joint programmes Thanks to support from the National Cultural Fund Professional Library Board, the HKSZ has been able to help libraries in two ways. • In 1995 the HKSZ bought the rights for the national distribution of software developed in the Szabó Ervin Metropolitan Library in Budapest to deal with local studies material. • The HKSZ also bought a computer to assist the administration of the Group and its activities. • In 1996 the Hungarica Biography Project gave local studies collections in the County and Town Libraries the opportunity to download data from the Hungarica Biographical Information free of charge for a year. This database consists of more than 20,000 biographical items. 54