Navigating the third space��Professional identity and knowledge equity in academic libraries�

Caroline Ball

University of Derby

“There’s no kind of authority that you come with”��— Whitchurch (2006)��

�Overview�

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• Why ‘third space’ matters for academic librarians
• Reclaiming Bhabha's radical concept of third space
• Examining academic librarians' unique positioning
• Leveraging third space for knowledge equity
• Questions for discussion

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Two Perspectives on Third Space

Whitchurch's Framework: Problematically Neo-Colonial

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• Frames third space as territory to be claimed or occupied
• Uses language of "colonisation" uncritically
• Positions professionals as "pioneers" in unclaimed territory
• Overlooks power dynamics in knowledge production
• Centres Western institutional frameworks

Cultural Difference vs. Cultural Diversity

Bhabha's Vision: Third Space as Resistance

"The third space is a mode of articulation, a way of describing a productive, and not merely reflective, space that engenders new possibility.“

• Homi Bhabha

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• Site for questioning established categorisations
• Location for challenging dominant knowledge systems
• Space for creating new meanings and possibilities

Whitchurch's Framework: Problematically Neo-Colonial

​

• Frames third space as territory to be claimed or occupied
• Uses language of "colonisation" uncritically
• Positions professionals as "pioneers" in unclaimed territory
• Overlooks power dynamics in knowledge production
• Centres Western institutional frameworks

Bhabha's Vision: Third Space as Resistance

"The third space is a mode of articulation, a way of describing a productive, and not merely reflective, space that engenders new possibility.“

• Homi Bhabha

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• Site for questioning established categorisations
• Location for challenging dominant knowledge systems
• Space for creating new meanings and possibilities

Academic Librarians: Genuinely in the Third Space

Our Third Space Responsibility

• Visibility across academic and administrative domains
• Access to both scholarly discourse and operational systems
• Understanding of knowledge production and dissemination cycles
• Positioning at critical knowledge control points
• Ability to influence scholarly communication practices

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With this positioning comes responsibility toward knowledge equity

The Power of the Third Space

• Evolved from bounded librarian role to crossing professional boundaries
• Transformed into academic through Wikipedia module development
• Operating in the third space between librarian and lecturer
• Used third space positioning to highlight knowledge bias and inequity
• Leveraged positioning between academic and library worlds to launch #ebookSOS campaign challenging exploitative publishing
• Freedom to speak out, drive change by operating between traditional roles

Five Approaches to Knowledge Equity Work

Key Takeaways

Third space ≠ a role to negotiate

≠ a territory to claim

≠ professional category to define

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It is a position of responsibility that demands:

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• Challenging knowledge hierarchies
• Advocating for equitable access
• Transforming knowledge systems

Questions for Reflection

Thank you

References