Russian State Library

The John R. Borchert Map Library at the University of Minnesota developed a K-12 Summer Teacher Fellowship in 2023. The program was modeled on programs at other map libraries through research and conversation. This article explores how the program is related to the continuing relevance of map libraries and map librarianship, the impetus for exploring a K-12 program, and the process of developing the program. The article then examines the program alongside three similar initiatives around the country. These four case studies offer a set of common elements of success that could inform the development of similar programs elsewhere, as well as justification for funding such a program. The article highlights how a collaborative approach builds a strong community of teacher fellows and demonstrates how map libraries can function as intersectional hubs with the ability to bridge the gap between the University’s extensive academic research resources and the practical needs of K-12 educators. The article includes an appendix with example calls for proposals, acceptance and rejection letters, lesson plan templates, and follow up surveys.

In the personal collection of Lidiya P. Zhukovskaya, famous researcher of old Slavic literature, kept in the Department of Manuscripts of the Russian State Library, among other unpublished materials are her letters to famous scientists of the second half of the 20th century. The article reveals previously unknown facts about the biography of Lidiya P. Zhukovskaya and her family members. Her letters with various correspondents contain valuable information about the fruitful scientific communication between domestic and foreign scientists, about the current problems of studying the textual criticism and language of Slavic written monuments.

The topic of the Great Patriotic War of 1941—1945 remains important and relevant for Russian scholarship. The article aims to present a brief overview of the research activities of the V.I. Lenin State Library of the USSR (GBL, now the Russian State Library) during the war, comparing them with pre-war achievements, identifying the main areas of research, and evaluating its results. On the eve of the war, the GBL was the largest scientific information base in the USSR and was part of the network of research institutions of the RSFSR. Possession of vast collections determined the priorities of its research activities: the study, scientific description, systematization, and introduction into scientific circulation of monuments of book culture, archives of outstanding historical figures, scientists, and cultural figures; development of current and retrospective bibliography; study of problems of cataloging and systematization of documents; conservation and restoration of library documents; study of issues of librarianship organization. With the onset of the Great Patriotic War, the efforts of the GBL staff, regardless of their location, were redirected to tasks primarily related to the preservation and evacuation of collections and defense measures. In June 1941, the personnel situation worsened, and structural changes were made, including within the research departments. Despite the serious adjustments and problems entailed by the Great Patriotic War, scholarly activity at the library did not cease: it took on other forms and addressed issues supporting Victory, not only on the information and library fronts. The primary indicator for assessing the GBL’s scholarly activity was the practical significance of the results obtained. Bibliographical work took first place in terms of thematic breadth and results. At the same time, the study, bibliographical, and scholarly description of archival documents, handwritten and early printed books continued; empirical data for the further development of Soviet library science and book science was actively accumulated, and the theoretical foundations of bibliographical science, collection management, readership (reading guidance), and library management were formed. For their work under difficult wartime conditions, many GBL researchers were awarded government awards.

In the scientific and publishing activities of the Russian State Library (RSL), one of the important and constant topics is The Library During the Great Patriotic War. The article examines the publications of the RSL and the publications of its staff on the history of the library during the Great Patriotic War, prepared in 1991—2025. Among the book publications devoted to this issue are the collection The Voice of the Past (1991), The Memorial Book of the Russian State Library (1995), the publications The Russian State Library During the Great Patriotic War: Chronicle of Life (2005), The Russian State Library During the Great Patriotic War: Front Line (2014), Not Only with Weapons: The Russian State Library During the Great Patriotic War (2020), published under the editorship of L.M. Koval; the collection of memoirs Remembering Wartime Childhood (2021), prepared by the Council of Veterans of the RSL; the richly illustrated publication Pages of Victory: Leninka in 1941—1945: Chronicle. Documents. Memoirs (2025), published under the supervision of A.Yu. Samarin. Among the articles presented in the professional press, we highlight the materials published in the journal Bibliotekovedenie: Book Exhibitions During the Great Patriotic War of 1941—1945 (from the History of the Russian State Library) by E.A. Tatarinova (2009, no. 5), Training of the Lenin Library Staff During the Great Patriotic War by E.B. Dudareva (2010, no. 2), The Lenin State Library of the USSR from Evacuation to the Great Victory (Following the Selected Documents and Photographic Materials of the Archives of the Russian State Library) by A.L. Divnogortsev (2015, no. 3), The Lenin State Library of the USSR During the Great Patriotic War: Preparation and Release of Bibliographic Publications by E.V. Gubina, G.L. Levin, and N.S. Maslovskaya (2020, vol. 69, no. 5). We also note the article by A.L. Divnogortsev, Lenin’s Library Employees in the Days of the Battle of Moscow, published in the journal Scientific and Technical Libraries (2016, no. 9). The activities of the State Library of the USSR named after V.I. Lenin (now the RSL) during the Great Patriotic War of 1941—1945 are discussed in a number of presentations by RSL employees at the conferences Rumyantsev Readings (in various years), Book Culture: The Experience of the Past and the Problems of the Modernity: On the 70th Anniversary of Victory in the Great Patriotic War. One of the key events of 2025 was the All-Russian scientific and practical conference Preserving the Historical Memory of the Great Patriotic War: The Role of Libraries, held at the RSL, dedicated to the 80th anniversary of the Great Victory. At the event, RSL specialists delivered 11 papers on the topic, which are presented in the conference proceedings. RSL publications are an important contribution to the history of the institution and the entire librarianship in Russia.

The authors present the main statistical indicators of domestic print books and periodical editions publishing for the first half of 2025. The text and the tables with comments give a clear picture of the number of book titles and brochures, newspapers, journals and magazines, their circulation, themes and the most popular authors in the fields of fiction for adults and children. Particular attention is paid to the problem of interrelations between the publishing of books and periodicals in our capital cities and regions. The comparison of two main statistical figures for book publishing of the first half of 2025 with the same period of 2024 indicates a slight increase: 103,06% for the total number of titles of books and pamphlets and 101,76% for their total print runs. As about periodicals we can see significant differences between segments of newspapers and journals with magazines. The total number of titles for newspapers is shortened from 6129 to 5967 and their total circulation — from 1,6 billion copies to 1,5. At the same time the total number of titles for journals and magazines is increased from 5389 to 5518, though their total circulation is shortened in comparison with the first half of 2024 — in that period it was 295 million copies and now — 281.

The International Library and Philosophical School (ILPS) was first organized in 2004 in Kaliningrad, where I. Kant lived and worked. The legacy of the great philosopher became its theoretical basis. In 2024, when the world scientific community was widely celebrating the 300th anniversary of I. Kant’s birth, the 20th Anniversary Session of the ILPS was held.The conceptual idea of the ILPS is to contribute to the scientific search for answers to questions concerning the prospects of libraries in the new socio-cultural paradigm of society development, formed under the influence of global digitalization, as well as to the understanding of the role of information, books and reading in the modern world as socio-cultural phenomena and important channels of social communications in general. The interdisciplinary approach is realized by combining the efforts of philosophers, culturologists, sociologists, psychologists, scientists, ecologists, librarians, book historians, specialists in the field of social informatics and communication studies from different countries.For 20 years of work, the attention of the ILPS participants has been focused on analyzing the modern information space: its genesis, structure and properties, development trends, information socio-cultural interaction in modern society and the role of libraries in this process, as well as the phenomenon of information in the context of historical development of society. A range of broader problems has been covered: meaning-genetic theory of culture, historical continuity of cultures, cultural and social anthropology, etc.Important topics of the ILPS scientific programme also included research of the ontological status of the book in the historical and cultural aspect, analysis of philosophical and cultural models of personal social identity and theoretical foundations of cultural and information competence as basic markers of members of modern society, the role of books and reading in their formation.On the ILPS platforms the following topical philosophical aspects of library science were discussed: social and functional metamorphism as a regularity of historical development of libraries, interpretation of the concept “library” in the modern system of social and human sciences, cognitive function of the library and its role in knowledge management, ontological bases of realization of the memorial function of the modern library in the context of preservation of documentary heritage in the digital age, etc.Over 200 specialists and scientists from various branches of knowledge delivered reports, lectures, presentations and master-classes, which made a significant contribution to the development of research potential of library and information sciences, enriched them in conceptual, epistemological, methodological and heuristic aspects. The ILPS has stimulated interdisciplinary scientific research in the humanities and technology, contributed to the expansion of their problem field.

The authors of the article cite the main statistical indicators of the output of printed domestic periodicals in 2024, especially analyzing in detail the current state and trends in the development of this sphere in Russia. 14 tables with comments give an idea of the number of journal, magazine and newspaper titles, their circulation, geography and languages of issue, subject matter and purpose. There has been an almost continuous decline in all annual core indicators for both these groups of publications since 2015, with the exception of total circulation of 2024 magazines and journals which exceeded the indicators of 2023 (588,4 millions of copies against 543,6).

In 2025, declared in our country according to the Decree of the President of the Russian Federation V.V. Putin of January 16, 2025, no. 28 as the Year of the Defender of the Fatherland, the 80th anniversary of the Victory in the Great Patriotic War is celebrated. In this regard, it seems relevant to turn once again to the history of the Lenin State Library of the USSR (LSL, now the Russian State Library) and, in particular, to the consideration of its bibliographic activities in 1941—1945. All the work of the LSL was rebuilt on a war footing, the forces of bibliographers were directed to help the active army and workers on the home front. As a result of the analysis of wartime bibliographic aids prepared by the library, 75 editions issued from 1942 to 1945 were identified. The main groups of readers for whom the bibliographic aids were created were identified: combat commanders, agitators and propagandists, librarians, grassroots leadership promoted during the war. The leading type of bibliographic publications created by the State Library during the Great Patriotic War were bibliographic guides. They are brief annotated indexes and lists of literature. The distinctive features of wartime publications are their small volume, clear structure, short annotations, selection of the necessary minimum literature. The content and themes of the bibliographic publications under consideration are related to the training of soldiers of different military specialties and other pressing problems of wartime. The manuals are aimed at patriotic education, assistance in general and professional self-education, and solving economic issues.

The purpose of the article is to prove the possibilities and limitations of studying childhood events to justify practice-oriented projects in the field of youth policy and childhood support. The article describes main directions of the evidence-based approach in applied research. Authors argue the need to use sociological data on the scale, specifics of various situations, episodes, debut events in childhood for making management decisions in evidence-based state policy in the field of childhood and youth. The data of panel studies “Eventfulness of Childhood” implemented in 2018 and 2023 are analyzed. From an array of 100 significant childhood events, those that are most relevant for designing various programs for children and youth (deviant childhood events, introduction to subcultural practices, mastering information and communication technologies, traditional practices of mastering culture) were selected to argue the evidence-based approach. It has been revealed which groups of children and adolescents are the target audience for projects on the prevention of deviation and associative subcultural groups, introduction to reading, digital hygiene programs, etc. The prospects for development of an evidence-based approach have been identified: the imperative of using it not only at the initial stage of creating projects, but also upon completion of programs to prove effectiveness, the need to introduce research as a mandatory condition in grant programs, and a change in the priorities for selecting experts.