LD4 2026 Conference: Full Schedule

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10:00am EDT

Welcome to the LD4 2026 Conference!

Monday September 28, 2026 10:00am - 10:10am EDT

TBA

Welcome to the LD4 2026 Conference!

Speakers

Kyla Jemison

Metadata Librarian, University of Toronto Libraries

Kyla Jemison is a metadata librarian at the University of Toronto working with special formats. She is interested in music and audiovisual cataloguing, and how metadata affects discovery.

Bree Midavaine

Arcadia Director of the Library and Archives, Philadelphia Museum of Art

Mark Pyzyk

Monday September 28, 2026 10:00am - 10:10am EDT
TBA

Welcome

10:15am EDT

Building more complete and linked GLAM datasets: The Smithsonian’s (In)Visible Women’s Project

Monday September 28, 2026 10:15am - 10:45am EDT

TBA

The Smithsonian’s (In)Visible Women Project, based at the National Museum of the American Indian, is developing pan-institutional data practices within Wikidata to support the disambiguation of artists, designers, scientists, etc. documented across fourteen Smithsonian repositories. This work seeks to connect siloed internal collections information systems (ArchivesSpace, TMS, EMu, etc.), an issue that has compounded with gaps in existing authority identifier sources (LCNAF, ULAN, etc.) and historical Smithsonian information practices to obscure the achievements of women.

Our lightning talk will focus on our work to date and reflect on our successes, but also lessons learned from managing a collaborative, pan-institutional, linked data project. Specifically, we will discuss: 1) the process of developing our collaborative, Smithsonian-specific Wikidata data model; 2) the challenges we have encountered in existing Wikidata structures; 3) our approach to managing the privacy of those represented in Smithsonian datasets; and 4) the uptake of Wikidata editing by Smithsonian staff and our strategies to build Wikidata editing skillsets.

Speakers

Amanda Sorensen

Data Manager, Smithsonian National Museum of the American Indian

Rachel Menyuk

Smithsonian National Museum of the American Indian

Richard Naples

Smithsonian Libraries and Archives

Deborah Shapiro

Smithsonian Libraries and Archives

Monday September 28, 2026 10:15am - 10:45am EDT
TBA

Presentation

10:45am EDT

JCricket as an Operational Entity Editor for Shared Cataloguing

Monday September 28, 2026 10:45am - 11:15am EDT

TBA

The transition toward linked data environments, entity-based models, and interoperable metadata ecosystems is reshaping cataloguing into a dynamic, collaborative, and distributed practice based on shared cataloguing. To respond to this change, the Share Family community has developed JCricket, the Linked Data Entity Editor designed for collaboratively curating entities in a multi-institutional, shared space.
Drawing on over ten years of developments within the Share Family Ecosystem, this presentation will show the concrete implementation of JCricket and how it streamlines libraries’ operational workflows and real-world cataloguing practices. Through granular cataloguing, Provenance-based data management, and integrations with FOLIO and Alma library services platforms (and others to come), data entered in libraries’ ILS/LSP is reflected in the central Cluster Knowledge Base underlying JCricket and vice-versa. These new copy cataloguing features allow for a full roundtrip of data transitioning from record transfer workflows to collaborative, entity-based data management.
In JCricket, bibliographic entities are no longer isolated local records or static imported copies, but interconnected data objects continuously enriched, synchronised, corrected, and reused across institutions.
Since JCricket operates on a multi-Provenance dataset, its inherent complexity requires guidelines: a set of best practices is being elaborated to consolidate shared cataloguing workflows and ensure consistent data integration with external systems.

Speakers

Serena Cericola - Share Family / Casalini Libri, R&D Assistant Cericola

R&D Assistant, Share Family / Casalini Libri

Anna Lionetti

ShareVDE

Monday September 28, 2026 10:45am - 11:15am EDT
TBA

Presentation

11:15am EDT

Connecting Hidden Histories: Reimagining the LSE Suffrage Interviews as Connected Knowledge

Monday September 28, 2026 11:15am - 11:45am EDT

TBA

Speakers

Helen Williams

Metadata Manager, LSE Library, London School of Economics and Political Science

Monday September 28, 2026 11:15am - 11:45am EDT
TBA

Presentation

11:45am EDT

Once-in-an-Instance in BIBFRAME: Describing Manuscripts

Monday September 28, 2026 11:45am - 12:15pm EDT

TBA

Part of the task force for the second revision cycle of the Art and Rare Materials (ARM) BIBFRAME ontology extension, the Manuscripts Subteam has been working to define the role of unique items, such as manuscripts, within the conceptual framework BIBFRAME is built from. Describing manuscripts poses challenges as it requires sets of definitions that can be adapted to objects that, by definition, do not always fit in standardized categories. These unique works and the relationships they may have to other works must be described in such a way that their metadata remains unique but also serves discovery to other resources. Our goal is to extend the ontology to create a system that is flexible enough to be collapsed in on itself when the boundaries between work-instance-item are less distinct but also supports these distinctions where valuable.
This presentation will explore the meaning and ontological implications of "uniqueness," the overlapping definitions of manuscripts, and how some of the distinctive characteristics of manuscripts can be expressed within the BIBFRAME ontology.

Speakers

Hilary Murusmith

Princeton University

Mariagabriella Stuardi

Central Michigan University

Massoomeh Niknia

German National Library

Natalie Kazmin

University of South Florida

Monday September 28, 2026 11:45am - 12:15pm EDT
TBA

Presentation

12:15pm EDT

Vendor 1

Monday September 28, 2026 12:15pm - 1:15pm EDT

TBA

Monday September 28, 2026 12:15pm - 1:15pm EDT
TBA

Vendor

1:20pm EDT

Charting New Territory: Reflections from a New Linked Data Librarian

Monday September 28, 2026 1:20pm - 1:30pm EDT

TBA

This presentation reflects on my first year in a newly created Linked Data Librarian position at Middle Tennessee State University. I will discuss the creation of the role, initial expectations, and my experience learning linked data while exploring future implementations and building professional connections. The talk will highlight challenges, lessons learned, and insights gained along the way, offering a practical perspective for others beginning their own linked data journey.

Speakers

Tomeka Jackson

Linked Data Librarian, Middle Tennessee State University, Linked Data Librarian

Monday September 28, 2026 1:20pm - 1:30pm EDT
TBA

Lightning Talk

1:30pm EDT

Building the Bridge: How WorldCat is Evolving to Support MARC and BIBFRAME

Monday September 28, 2026 1:30pm - 2:00pm EDT

TBA

Libraries around the world are at various stages in their transition to BIBFRAME. Some are learning the impact and benefits of leveraging BIBFRAME data; many are experimenting with BIBFRAME data in their cataloging and discovery workflows; and others are ready to fully productionize BIBFRAME data across their metadata management ecosystems.

When it comes to widespread adoption and implementation, the need for scalable, consistent, and quality data becomes the cornerstone. And while the data formats and workflows evolve, the global infrastructure to support such an important transition already exists. For nearly 60 years, WorldCat has provided the foundation upon which the global library community creates, manages, and shares knowledge—evolving every step of the way as library collections and needs of the communities they serve change.

Building on OCLC’s history of collaboration with the library community on metadata management and linked data innovation, we’re excited to share the next phase of WorldCat’s evolution. In this presentation, we’ll share updates on WorldCat BIBFRAME interoperability, workflows for managing data in both MARC and BIBFRAME, and feedback from our latest library partnership on cataloging in BIBFRAME.

Speakers

Kirk Hess

Lead Software Engineer, OCLC

Morag Boyd

Director of Metadata Applications and Engagement, OCLC

Monday September 28, 2026 1:30pm - 2:00pm EDT
TBA

Presentation

2:00pm EDT

Blue Core MVP Community Update

Monday September 28, 2026 2:00pm - 2:30pm EDT

TBA

The Blue Core project successfully completed its prototype development in 2025, establishing a community-operated and owned BIBFRAME data store. This prototype has served as a critical testing environment for integration with two open-source linked data editors: Sinopia and Marva. Following comprehensive scalability testing, metadata operations validation, and integration assessments with local Library Services Platforms, the project has advanced to its second MVP (Minimum Viable Product) work cycle. The current MVP incorporates agentic AI capabilities designed to enhance cataloger workflows. The project team is now preparing for a phased BIBFRAME implementation scheduled to begin in early 2027. This session will provide an overview of the project's background, current development status, and planned future activities.

Speakers

Kalliopi Mathios

Authorities and Entity Management Librarian, Stanford University, Authorities & Entity Management Librarian

n/a

Monday September 28, 2026 2:00pm - 2:30pm EDT
TBA

Presentation

2:30pm EDT

EMCO 101: Entity Management for Everyone

Monday September 28, 2026 2:30pm - 3:00pm EDT

TBA

The Program for Cooperative Cataloging (PCC) aims to reduce costs associated with producing bibliographic and authority records to support discovery within public catalogs. The PCC meets this aim by developing metadata application profiles and implementing an apprenticeship-style training scheme within its global membership. The PCC launched a new program in spring 2025, the Entity Management Cooperative (EMCO). The EMCO program aims to empower library staff to manage linked data entities from any source for use in descriptive metadata practices, thereby significantly lowering barriers for participating in the PCC, while fostering the development of the technical expertise needed to forge new paths for linked data adoption within the PCC as a whole. Working in communities of practice, participants have learned to create and describe linked data entities in ISNI, WorldCat Entities, and Wikidata. This panel brings together EMCO participants and organizers to explain why and how the EMCO program was created, explore its work and impact, and discuss what we have learned in our attempts during EMCO’s inaugural year to corral over 250 data enthusiasts into an organized program.

Speakers

Misti Kane

Metadata and Access Librarian, University of Pittsburgh

Hello! This will be my first conference and I'm extremely excited that I have the opportunity to attend. I'm interested in learning as much about Linked Data and BIBFRAME as possible in transitioning from MARC. Electronic resources are also another area of interest. And, I'm in the... Read More →

Kyla Jemison

Metadata Librarian, University of Toronto Libraries

Kyla Jemison is a metadata librarian at the University of Toronto working with special formats. She is interested in music and audiovisual cataloguing, and how metadata affects discovery.

Jill Strykowski

Cataloging & Metadata Analyst, San Jose State University

Mary Campany

Monday September 28, 2026 2:30pm - 3:00pm EDT
TBA

Presentation

3:00pm EDT

Using Wikidata to identify duplicates in the Library of Congress Name Authority File (LCNAF)

Monday September 28, 2026 3:00pm - 3:10pm EDT

TBA

The Library of Congress Name Authority File (LCNAF) has few tools for identifying duplicates. Since February 2026, Wikiproject P244 maintenance has worked as part of the newly-founded EMCO program to use Wikidata to identify and merge more than 160 pairs of duplicate LCNAF records. This lightning talk will discuss our process, the work that remains, and how you can help, whether you can edit the name authority file or not!

Speakers

Mary Campany

Monday September 28, 2026 3:00pm - 3:10pm EDT
TBA

Lightning Talk

3:10pm EDT

From Wikidata to Our Collection Management System: Automating GIS Import for Cultural Heritage Data

Monday September 28, 2026 3:10pm - 3:20pm EDT

TBA

Linking a place authority record to a usable geographic shape is often a manual, time-consuming step in collection management systems — yet the linked data is frequently already there. This lightning talk demos a small, open, dependency-free (Python standard library only) pipeline built for Axiell Collections at the Rijksmuseum, which takes a Wikidata QID, follows its OpenStreetMap relation (P402) or point coordinate (P625), fetches the geometry via Overpass, and converts it into a ready-to-import Axiell record — with no manual GIS work required.
The real value is in the edge cases: real OpenStreetMap and Wikidata data rarely behaves as cleanly as the happy path suggests, and this talk walks through a few concrete examples of how the pipeline handles them without silently producing a wrong result. It also processes hundreds of records in a single batch, with a clear audit trail of what needs human review. These are exactly the kinds of real-world data quirks any institution connecting Wikidata/OSM to a legacy collection system will run into.
Attendees will leave with a concrete, reusable pattern for this kind of linked-data-to-CMS pipeline, regardless of which collection management system they use.

Speakers

Jeroen De Meester

Rijksmuseum Amsterdam, Application Manager Collections

Monday September 28, 2026 3:10pm - 3:20pm EDT
TBA

Lightning Talk

3:20pm EDT

What goes around comes around: Leveraging linked data in cataloging workflows

Monday September 28, 2026 3:20pm - 3:30pm EDT

TBA

The benefits of linked data in the cataloging community are often tied to improved search and discovery for library users, but in this lightning talk, I share a small use case of linked data also benefiting us, the catalogers creating the linked data. To tackle a backlog of CDs and vinyl requiring original cataloging at the UCLA Library, I worked with music catalogers to create a Python tool that could retrieve not only existing metadata from Discogs - a widely used crowdsourced music database - to generate a basic MARC record; the tool could also look beyond this database to incorporate authorized access points from the Library of Congress Name Authority File (LCNAF) by using identifiers across Discogs, Wikidata, and LCNAF - essentially, using the linked data that we've collectively created to reduce manual effort in cataloging work. This project thus highlights how the cataloging community's investment in linked data can benefit not just our users, but also ourselves, allowing us to leverage community-created data to enhance our own metadata workflows.

Speakers

Erica Zhang

UCLA Library, Metadata Librarian for Open Access

Monday September 28, 2026 3:20pm - 3:30pm EDT
TBA

Lightning Talk

3:30pm EDT

Naive Bibliometrics: The ongoing bibliometric impact of a racist article

Monday September 28, 2026 3:30pm - 4:00pm EDT

TBA

As part of two larger projects in 2025 I identified four articles about bibliometrics published in journals identified as sources of racial hereditarian research. These four articles are relatively insignificant in the larger bibliometrics literature, but they form a natural experiment for both testing the scope of what is available in the bibliometrics data sources and the impact of racial hereditarian research on bibliometrics as a field.

An outlier paper in the study is the most highly cited paper for all of the authors in the paper. While the total number of citations is small, the impact on these particular authors is large. This unique linked data set identifies a new problem with the naive use of citation counts as a basis of quality in scientific communication.

Speakers

Brett Williams

Senior Research Analyst, Ontario Medical Association

Monday September 28, 2026 3:30pm - 4:00pm EDT
TBA

Presentation

4:00pm EDT

Passing the BF Vibe Check: A Workshop on Chat-Based BIBFRAME Creation

Monday September 28, 2026 4:00pm - 5:00pm EDT

TBA

This workshop introduces a pre-release version of BF Vibe Desktop, an application where catalogers describe a resource in chat and receive validated BIBFRAME to edit and download. The AI runs on your own computer, like any desktop program, and descriptions are never sent to a commercial AI service. BIBFRAME structure comes from templates modeled on Library of Congress patterns, and shared validation rules check the result, while every cataloging decision stays in human hands.

The session opens with a brief demonstration, followed by hands-on record creation and feedback. Participants will create BIBFRAME records from chat and edit the resulting Work and Instance. They can validate against profiles developed by the BIBFRAME Interoperability Group and review rule-backed repair suggestions. They can also inspect the pre-loaded validation rules and author their own, running both together against records. The session collects feedback to shape the version one release, guided by a broad question: does the application provide the right support, at the right moments, for catalogers new to BIBFRAME?

Please install and launch the application once before the session (first launch downloads a ~5 GB AI model).
MacOS Download: https://github.com/jimfhahn/bf-vibe-desktop/releases/latest/download/BF-Vibe-1.0.0-rc2-arm64.dmg
Windows Download: https://github.com/jimfhahn/bf-vibe-desktop/releases/latest/download/BF-Vibe-Setup-1.0.0-rc2.exe

Application/installation mirror (macOS/Windows):
https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.22036542

Speakers