The Core Board of Directors has endorsed the Cataloguing Code of Ethics for use by the cataloging community. Developed by the Cataloging Ethics Steering Committee in consultation with six Working Groups and members of the international cataloging community of practice, the final version of the Cataloguing Code of Ethics was released in January 2021 on the Cataloging Ethics Steering Committee website. Formed in early 2019, the Cataloging Ethics Steering Committee is composed of six members from the United States, Canada, and the United Kingdom. The Cataloguing Code of Ethics was released in multiple drafts over the course of 2020 and presented to the cataloging community of practice for feedback.
You can also watch the recording of Walking the Talk: Realizing Ethical Considerations in Cataloging Work, a free webinar Core hosted that was presented by the Cataloging Ethics Steering Committee.
Part 1 of the Cataloguing Code of Ethics consists of an introduction, which includes background information, definitions, and the scope of the document. The scope contains ten principles and values identified during the course of the Code’s development as being fundamental to cataloging work. Part 2 of the document contains ten statements that elaborate upon the principles and values stated in Part 1.
As stated in Part 1 of the Cataloguing Code of Ethics, the Cataloging Ethics Steering Committee believes that the document “provides a framework for approaching cataloguing work that will be a useful tool for practitioners, employers, standards’ developers, vendors, students, and educators when ethical situations arise.”
The Cataloguing Code of Ethics can be found on the Cataloging Ethics Steering Committee website and in the ALA institutional repository.
