[Libs-Or] Fwd: [District Dispatch] Coalition to highlight professional integrity launches May 20; invites stories and ideas from public

[Diedre Conkling]

 Coalition to highlight professional integrity launches May 20; invites
stories and ideas from public
<http://www.wo.ala.org/districtdispatch/?p=2891> May 19th, 2009
http://www.wo.ala.org/districtdispatch/?p=2891

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact: Jenni Terry, press officer
ALA Washington Office; (202) 628-8410

Washington, D.C. – The American Library Association (ALA) and the American
Library Association-Allied Professional Association (ALA-APA) will join a
coalition of 19 national and global organizations in announcing the
formation of Professionals for the Public Interest (PftPI) at a press
conference at 9:30 a.m., Wednesday, May 20, in the First Amendment Lounge
(13th floor) of the National Press Club. The organizations include
professional associations and unions representing professionals in science,
engineering, health, the arts, and human services.

Professionals across a range of government and private enterprise positions
are experiencing pressures and challenges to the integrity of their work.
PftPI will engage those professionals, the public, and policy-makers in
discussing ways to defend against those external pressures said Paul E.
Almeida, President of the Department for Professional Employees, AFL-CIO. He
termed the event a launch of the coalition and a “national invitation to
professionals to tell their stories and share their ideas about integrity at
work.”

“With his March 9 memorandum on scientific integrity, President Obama has
taken a significant step in defending professional integrity in the
scientific community,” said Glenn Ruskin of the American Chemical Society.
Ruskin said the ACS will work within the coalition to support improving
policymaker’s access to scientific information, proper unbiased use of
scientific information in policymaking and political discussion, and freedom
of scientific exchange.

Other speakers include Randi Weingarten, American Federation of Teachers;
Ann Converso, United American Nurses; Mary Ghikas, American Library
Association; and Mark Frankel, American Association for the Advancement of
Science.

In addition to the press conference, PftPI is launching its Web site
accessible at www.pftpi.org to allow professionals to share ideas and
experiences related to professional integrity and its connection to the
public interest.  The stories will be entered into a contest and several
will be highlighted on Labor Day 2009 on the Web site.   The site also
highlights the members of the coalition and their statements on professional
integrity.




-- 
Diedre Conkling
diedre08 at gmail.com
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