Two new editors join up//root!
Greetings in the new year! For our first announcement of 2021, up//root would like to welcome Megdi Abebe (she/her) and Kristina Santiago (she/ella) to the editorial team. We are very excited to work (read: disrupt) alongside and learn from Megdi and Kristina. As current Library and Information Science (LIS) graduate students engaged in antiracist work, they will no doubt bring meaningful dimensions to the in(ter)vention that is up//root. Learn more about Megdi and Kristina below.
up//root was established in October 2019, bringing together a team that is committed to: 1) centering the works of Black, Indigenous, and other People of Color (BIPOC) that impact libraries, archives, LIS education, and other information environments; 2) building a publishing/knowledge-making experience for BIPOC that prioritizes wellness; and 3) compensating contributors and peer reviewers.
At the end of September 2020, we published a call for current students to apply to be an editor for up//root. We were intentional about seeking a student to join the editorial team, as Black, Indigenous, and other Students of Color (BISOC) are rarely, if at all, given an opportunity to contribute to LIS initiatives as full decision-makers.
We wanted to provide a supportive, generative, and creative space for a student to gain or further develop skills around knowledge-making that would help them reach their educational and early career goals; to exercise trust in themselves; to challenge their own (and our) biases and social conditioning; to embrace their power; and to do so in community with other BIPOC.
Fortunately, up//root is able to extend this opportunity to not one, but two students, and we absolutely can’t wait to see them in action. Be sure to read their short bios below.
Please join us in welcoming the newest up//root editors for 2021, Megdi Abebe and Kristina Santiago!
Joyce, Sofia, Jorge
Meet the newest editors of up//root!
Megdi Abebe (she/her/hers) is a first-generation Ethiopian-American, public library worker, and MS/LIS student at the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign. She hopes for a career in libraries rooted in radical change and material benefits for her community. She is thrilled to serve as an editor for up//root as well as connect deeply with the We Here family this year.
Kristina Santiago (she/ella) is an MLIS candidate and Knowledge River scholar at the University of Arizona iSchool. Kristina identifies as female and Afro-Puerto Rican. Her work is driven by her commitment to supporting the joy, education and self-determination of BIPOC people through libraries. She holds a BA in Creative Writing & is eternally interested in finding just the right word.
Kristina is stoked to kick off 2021 by joining the up//root editorial team. She looks forward to the opportunity to support, converse, and work alongside the We Here community in its continued disruption of the LIS field in the year ahead. ¡Salud!
