Grief Everywhere All at Once
Event Type
Presentation
Start Date
25-7-2025 9:30 AM
End Date
25-7-2025 10:30 AM
Description
Grief, as defined by the American Psychological Association, is “the anguish experienced after significant loss, usually the death of a beloved person….Grief may also take the form of regret for something lost, remorse for something done, or sorrow for a mishap to oneself.”Grief is an experience that we will all eventually experience, however how do our organizations and individuals within organizations respond when a grief inciting incident happens? What outlets are available to manage grief in the workplace? How can colleagues support one another when experiencing loss in various forms? In this presentation the presenters will provide an in-depth overview of grief in Library and Information Science (LIS) workplaces from the organizational and individual perspective through an examination of the literature and case studies from their own lived experiences navigating grief in the LIS landscape.
Library and Information spaces are integral parts of the broader social ecosystem and are not immune to societal events such as unexpected violence, the ravages of the COVID-19 pandemic, job loss, loss of professional opportunities and the sudden loss of patrons or colleagues. These incidents trigger various forms of grief, which are experienced and responded to uniquely by different members of the academic community.
In this interactive and reflective presentation we will share our findings in the literature and share perspectives about the inevitability of grief. Additionally we will suggest how organizations might develop more nuanced understandings about the different dimensions of grief, and how organizations might implement more effective responses that promote healing strategies, which better support their members and foster a more resilient and compassionate environment. While this presentation aims to contribute to the ongoing dialogue on grief in higher education and provide actionable steps for addressing this critical issue much of what will be shared will be transferable to other LIS environments.
Outcomes
- Participants will learn suggestions from the literature and the author’s lived experiences on how to be with others experiencing grief
- Participants will learn compassionate approaches to grief to apply at the organizational level
- Participants will learn suggestions from the literature and the author’s lived experiences on how to be with your own grief
Grief Everywhere All at Once
Grief, as defined by the American Psychological Association, is “the anguish experienced after significant loss, usually the death of a beloved person….Grief may also take the form of regret for something lost, remorse for something done, or sorrow for a mishap to oneself.”Grief is an experience that we will all eventually experience, however how do our organizations and individuals within organizations respond when a grief inciting incident happens? What outlets are available to manage grief in the workplace? How can colleagues support one another when experiencing loss in various forms? In this presentation the presenters will provide an in-depth overview of grief in Library and Information Science (LIS) workplaces from the organizational and individual perspective through an examination of the literature and case studies from their own lived experiences navigating grief in the LIS landscape.
Library and Information spaces are integral parts of the broader social ecosystem and are not immune to societal events such as unexpected violence, the ravages of the COVID-19 pandemic, job loss, loss of professional opportunities and the sudden loss of patrons or colleagues. These incidents trigger various forms of grief, which are experienced and responded to uniquely by different members of the academic community.
In this interactive and reflective presentation we will share our findings in the literature and share perspectives about the inevitability of grief. Additionally we will suggest how organizations might develop more nuanced understandings about the different dimensions of grief, and how organizations might implement more effective responses that promote healing strategies, which better support their members and foster a more resilient and compassionate environment. While this presentation aims to contribute to the ongoing dialogue on grief in higher education and provide actionable steps for addressing this critical issue much of what will be shared will be transferable to other LIS environments.
Outcomes
- Participants will learn suggestions from the literature and the author’s lived experiences on how to be with others experiencing grief
- Participants will learn compassionate approaches to grief to apply at the organizational level
- Participants will learn suggestions from the literature and the author’s lived experiences on how to be with your own grief
