More librarians trained to develop abilities of relating with Ukrainian refugees

Chisinau, 29 September /MOLDPRES/ - Fourteen librarians benefited from specialized courses, in order to develop their abilities of relating with Ukrainian refugees from their communities, both adults and children, at the National Library (BNRM) today. Under the guidance of physicians specialized in treating trauma, the librarians learned how to better manage the interaction with refugees, in order to able to afterwards implement in their communities activities which are to better meet their needs.  

At a today’s news conference, BNRM director, the head of the Librarians’ Association of Moldova Elena Pintilei said that, ever since the beginning of the refugees’ crisis, public libraries had been among the main points of interaction with the families which fled the war, not only for the information framework which they provided, but also in order to host children and create a space of normality, through the development of activities dedicated to them. ‘’From interviews we had with the librarians, we identified the need to develop their framework of competences, in order to be able to provide the refugees with the assistance necessary. While initially, librarians had to overcome a linguistic barrier, afterwards, a new challenge appeared: the lack of a string of needed competences, in order to psychologically adapt to the interaction with refugees, both children and adults. Thus, the Librarians’ Association of Moldova, in partnership with the Progress Foundation of Romania, today organized a workshop for the librarians who work mainly with refugees on subjects concerning the intervention in the trauma triggered by the war in children and adults,’’ Elena Pintilei noted.      

According to Pintilei, the initiatives are organized by libraries and librarians as a response to refugees’ crisis. ‘’Just as in other crisis situations, librarians from Moldova undertook a string of actions, in order to support as many people as possible, who flee the war. The implementation of this project will back the psychological adaptation and the development of the framework of competences of librarians at the interaction with the refugees,’’ Elena Pintilei also said.     

The project, Emotional accommodation for Ukrainian refugees – a public library service, is implemented by the Progress Foundation, in partnership with the Librarians’ Association of Moldova, within the programme, Sub-granting „Building CSO Capacity for Regional Cooperation within the Black Sea Region, carried out by the Federation of Non-Governmental Organizations (FOND), and financed by the European Union on the period January-December 2022.