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Presentation Title:

Missing from the Table: Reclaiming Libraries in Australia’s Digital Inclusion Agenda

Presenters:
Michelle Carter, Dr Kim Osman, Dr Ash Watson
Date:
Tuesday 12 May | 11:00am – 12:00pm 

Presentation Description:

In Australia, the challenge of digital inclusion remains a pressing concern. While academia and government policy continue to explore best-practice interventions, public libraries – despite offering internet access, digital devices, and hands-on support, have remained largely absent from the policy conversation. Yet libraries are uniquely positioned to deliver scalable, community-driven solutions that foster equity and empowerment.
This growing recognition has prompted significant research into the role of libraries in bridging the digital divide. Notably:
· Dr Ash Watson is a Scientia Fellow and Senior Lecturer at UNSW in the Centre for Social Research in Health. Her research explores the intersection of digital technology and social life including in civic cultural spaces like libraries.
· Dr Kim Osman is spearheading an ARC Linkage Project focused on promoting digital media literacies among low-income parents through social living labs.
The State Library’s Digital and You program offers a compelling case study in action. These initiatives are transforming communities by embedding digital capability where it’s needed most – among Australia’s most digitally excluded populations, including First Nations and remote regional cohorts, as identified by the Australian Digital Inclusion Index (2023).
Through two flagship programs—Regional Digital Development and Growing Indigenous Knowledge Centres (IKCs)—the library delivers place-based solutions that build digital skills and stimulate economic growth. Four Regional Digital Development Officers (RDDOs) collaborate with 33 councils and 5 Regional Organisations of Councils to support small businesses in enhancing digital operations and e-commerce, helping communities overcome geographic isolation. Meanwhile, partnerships with 16 First Nations councils are expanding access to technology and learning through IKCs, with new centres launched in Kowanyama and Mornington Island, and Doomadgee set to open by late 2025. The Digital and You app connects users to workshops, mentors, and achievement tracking – building a future-ready Queensland where no one is left behind.
This panel will explore
· Practical insights – from the implementation of Digital and You, including what’s working and why.
· Evidence-informed practice – drawing on research and lived experience to strengthen library staff and community capability.
· Collective advocacy – examining how libraries can unify their voice to secure sustained recognition and investment in digital inclusion policy.
Join us for a dynamic conversation on the future of digital inclusion—where libraries move from the margins to the centre of Australia’s digital transformation

 

Michelle Carter 

Director Digital Inclusion, State Library of Queensland

Presenter Bio

With over 25 years practicing government policy development and project delivery, Michelle has implemented several key government strategies. Experience has included the development and delivery of several of the state’s Digital Economy programs including the award-winning Advance Queensland Community Digital Champions and GetOnlineQld – digital mentor network. Most recently, Michelle has led the development and delivery of the State Library’s Digital and You program targeting some of Queensland’s most digitally excluded cohorts.

Dr Kim Osman 

Senior Research Associate, QUT, Digital Media Research Centre

Presenter Bio

Kim is a Senior Research Associate with the Digital Media Research Centre at the Queensland University of Technology. She explores the complex relationship between digital and social inclusion focusing on the role of social infrastructure and informal education in improving digital literacies and wellbeing. Kim is currently researching how low-income families access and use technology for education and parenting as part of their everyday lives. Kim’s background is in communications and policy for the voluntary sector in the UK and Australia.

Dr Ash Watson

Scientia Fellow and Senior Lecturer, UNSW Sydney.

Presenter Bio 

Dr Watson’s research explores the intersection of digital technology and social life. She writes on various topics such as artificial intelligence, civic cultural spaces like archives and libraries, digital futures, belonging, maps, literature, the COVID pandemic, DIY, and more. She has held a number of visiting and affiliate positions including with the University of Glasgow in 2025, the ESRC Centre for SocioDigital Futures at the University of Bristol in 2023, and as an Endeavour Research Fellow at Goldsmiths, University of London in 2017. Ash is Fiction Editor of The Sociological Review. She is an invited Editorial Board Member of Qualitative Research, Journal of Sociology, and DIY, Alternative Cultures & Society. Her debut novel Into the Sea was published by Brill in 2020. She runs the independent zine publisher Frances St Press and is the creator/editor of So Fi Zine, an open-access publication for experiments in social inquiry.