Donor Guidelines

These English language resources (2000) still wait to be sorted but now they are in a container

The following general guidelines will help in selecting resources.

• Resources should be tertiary level (introductory to research) including textbooks, books, reference works, and online, CDROM and audiovisual resources.
  
  
• Indonesian, English & Portuguese language materials are all suitable, but Indonesian is the current priority for development.
  
  
• Weed resources carefully – the library wants only resources which are relevant, up-to-date, in good condition and, in particular, appropriate to an underdeveloped tropical nation which is building a library from virtually nothing.
  
  
• Electronic resources should be in a format suited to equipment available or sought by the library (PC, Windows 95-2000 plus and PAL video). Microfilm/fiche resources will also be welcome.
  
  
• WARNING – the library has received some of the most appallingly inappropriate resources – how to ice skate, breeding Miniature Schnauzers, computer manuals with complimentary 5 inch floppies, 1938 pamphlets on geometry, how to read your stars, many boxes of Australian Bureau of Statistics publications, bound volumes of 1968 education newsletters, obsolete audiovisual formats....all these unwanted donations create an enormous amount of work for the already overworked library staff, waste precious volunteer time, waste shipping space and escalate transport costs. It is disheartening that people thoughtlessly dump their unwanted rubbish in East Timor. There is no rubbish disposal system - it has to be burnt in the backyard of the University.
  
  
• PLEASE, please DO NOT pack books with foam chips – Timorese ants love to eat them and the result is a horrible mess of ants, with foam debris and ant faeces adhered to books. The chips also have to be burnt.
  
  
• If you are posting resources, please send them to the University Library. Do not send them to Faculty offices. Address parcels to:
  
  

Venceslao do Rego
Biblioteca Universidade
Universidade Nacional Timor Lorosae
Avenida Cidade de Lisboa
Dili, East Timor

• Please ensure that books are sent only through recognised UNTL Library collection agencies, preferrably Friends of the UNTL Library to ensure they are reviewed and sent at an appropriate time.
  
  
• There are no funds available for the University to pay for shipping, port or postage costs. The Friends groups are volunteers with no funding source for operational costs. Contributions to shipping costs are always welcome.
  
  
• Temporary storage in Australia is a major problem and The Friends of UNTL Library Groups would like to establish secure and accessible storage spaces in each capital city, for sorting and weeding incoming donations. Please, please let us know if you can help in any way!
  
  
• The logistics and costs involved in transporting donated books to East Timor present significant challenges. The best way to forward materials to East Timor is by shipping container. Volunteer assistance for packing containers is always welcome. Funds are always needed to cover shipping costs. The Friends Group would like to establish mutually beneficial relations with existing support groups from each state that are sending containers and palettes to East Timor.
  
  

For more details go to How you can help.