The AUPresses/Library Publishing Coalition Cross-Pollination program provides registration waivers at both organizations’ annual conferences for members of the other to attend, in order to foster cross-professional knowledge sharing. In 2021, Hannah Brooks-Motl and Maia Desjardins received registration waiver grants to attend the virtual Library Publishing Forum; Robert Browder and Sarah Wipperman received registration waiver grants to attend the virtual AUPresses 2021.

Maia Desjardins, Digital Projects Coordinator, Wilfrid Laurier University Press

I had been working in libraries for over a decade before making the move to Academic Publishing in the already tumultuous year of 2020. I was eager to learn about new standards and workflow of the publishing world whilst still pulling from my knowledge of Library Sciences. When the Cross-Pollination Program was brought to my attention, I leapt at the opportunity to explore this intersection of libraries and publishing armed with my varying experience in both fields. I am glad that I did as it proved a great way to stay in touch with contemporary library issues and provided insight for my current role.

The AUPresses/Library Publishing Coalition Cross-Pollination program provides registration waivers at both organizations’ annual conferences for members of the other to attend, in order to foster cross-professional knowledge sharing. In 2021, Hannah Brooks-Motl and Maia Desjardins received registration waiver grants to attend the virtual Library Publishing Forum; Robert Browder and Sarah Wipperman received registration waiver grants to attend the virtual AUPresses 2021.

Robert Browder, Digital Publishing Specialist, Virginia Tech University Libraries

Attending the AUPresses Annual Meeting was an enriching experience. My thanks to the Association of University Presses (AUPresses) and the Library Publishing Coalition (LPC) for making it happen. I felt the conference was well organized and the convenience of Zoom delivery allowed me to attend while maintaining a presence with my regular duties; I hope to attend the AUPresses Annual Meeting in person in the future.

The AUPresses/Library Publishing Coalition Cross-Pollination program provides registration waivers at both organizations’ annual conferences for members of the other to attend, in order to foster cross-professional knowledge sharing. In 2021, Hannah Brooks-Motl and Maia Desjardins received registration waiver grants to attend the virtual Library Publishing Forum; Robert Browder and Sarah Wipperman received registration waiver grants to attend the virtual AUPresses 2021.

Sarah Wipperman, Scholarly Communications Librarian, Villanova University

I feel very fortunate to have been able to attend AUPresses 2021: It is a conference that has been on my wish list for a while but which I had never had the pleasure of attending. I was certainly not disappointed. 

AUPresses 2021 took place in half day increments over a two-week period, June 7-18, 2021. Given the length of time, the conference sometimes felt like a marathon, but the days themselves were fairly well-balanced. Each day started with a brief welcome message and introduction for the day’s events. This was normally followed by a couple of sessions (plenaries, general sessions, concurrent sessions, interactive collaboration labs), and the day typically ended with a networking event. Most of the conference ran through the Whova platform, which provided a unique yet familiar interface for watching videos, chatting with other participants, asking questions, and creating community groups. I would be remiss if I did not also mention the oddly fantastic music that played while the clock counted down to the start of each session. It was a welcome and energizing interlude between events!

The AUPresses/Library Publishing Coalition Cross-Pollination program provides registration waivers at both organizations’ annual conferences for members of the other to attend, in order to foster cross-professional knowledge sharing. In 2021, Hannah Brooks-Motl and Maia Desjardins received registration waiver grants to attend the virtual Library Publishing Forum; Robert Browder and Sarah Wipperman received registration waiver grants to attend the virtual AUPresses 2021.

Hannah Brooks-Motl, Assistant Acquisitions Editor, Amherst College Press & Lever Press

Amherst College Press and Lever Press are library-funded fully open access members of the Association of University Presses; they exist in both university-press and library-publishing worlds. A common way to put it—that there are different “worlds” of UPs and libraries. “I’m learning a lot about the library world,” I’ll say. “In UP world” is sometimes “in press world” or “in the world of publishing.” While the two presses orbit both planets, it’s not always intuitive navigation. One key takeaway for me from this year’s Library Publishing Forum was “infrastructure” and the opportunities for press and library worlds to think and act infrastructurally together.