Library and Links

Collections and Services

The Jeannette Rankin Library program offers a wide array of specialized collections and services dealing with topics of conflict prevention, management, and resolution, and more specifically, diplomacy, mediation, and negotiation. Below is an overview of the available collections and services.

Collections

The core collection encompasses more than 12,000 books and other monographs, journals and magazines, newspapers, audiovisual and microform materials, CD-ROMs and electronic files, and access to Internet resources and commercial databases.

The primary subjects of the collections are:

• conflict prevention, management and resolution
• diplomacy, negotiation and mediation

Other basic materials include related topics such as:

• peacekeeping and peacebuilding
• rule of law, international law and international security regimes
• war, violence, regional conflict, low-intensity conflict and security
• human rights, humanitarian affairs, and ethnic conflicts religion and ethics
• United Nations, interstate organizations and transnationalism
• political systems, international relations and economic development
• arms control, disarmament and deterrence

The Reference Collection contains more than 1,400 basic and specialized reference volumes including general encyclopedias, dictionaries, atlases, guides, handbooks, indexes, almanacs and bibliographies in print and CD-ROM formats. Reference materials do not circulate. On-site use only.

The Periodical Collection includes subscriptions to approximately 160 journal and magazine titles and several newspapers in print and electronic formats. Journal and magazine holdings go back to 1989. Generally, newsprint issues are kept for up to two months. Access to the electronic news archives is via the in-house computer network. On-site use only.

The Circulating Book Collection encompasses more than 6,500 volumes. Books may be used on-site by visitors or borrowed for three weeks by patrons using interlibrary loan through their host libraries.

The Grey Materials Collection holds research papers, reports and other ephemeral materials primarily received through complimentary subscriptions. They may be used on-site by visitors or borrowed for three weeks by patrons using interlibrary loan through their host libraries.

The Microform Collection presently consists of the Foreign Broadcast Information Service (FBIS) Daily Reports for all regions of the world from 1989 through 1996. The library provides on-site access to the electronic version available since 1996 on the Internet and some back years on CD-ROM. Microform reading and reproduction equipment are available for on-site use only.

The Audiovisual Collection contains video cassettes on topics relevant to the mission of the library. Viewing equipment is available for on-site use to library users.

The CD-ROM Collection includes the New York Times and the Washington Post complete coverage from 1989 to 1999 and an index to FBIS publications 1997-1994 for on-site use only.

The Oral Histories Project on Stability Operations, collects the full text of interviews with individuals involved in stability operations, to draw lessons learned and address the challenges of post-conflict intervention.

The Peace Agreements Digital Collection contains the full text of peace agreements related to worldwide inter- and intrastate conflicts since 1989 for 40 regions or countries.

The Truth Commissions Digital Collection, contains background information and descriptions of the establishment, mandate, composition and reports of truth commissions in 24 countries and selected commissions of inquiry and related bodies in 12 countries. The full-text charters establishing six commissions have been added, with plans to add more supporting documents and reports.

Services

MERLN

USIP's Library is part of MERLN, the Military Education Research Library Network. Please see our page on the MERLN Group Catalog for more information.

Find in a Library

Web users of Google and Yahoo! Search can now utilize a new search feature to find information about the Institute library's unique book collection. This feature enables users to search a database containing millions of records of library-owned materials in thousands of libraries as part of a web search. If a search phrase entered in a Google or Yahoo! Search matches a title owned by one of the libraries, the search results will return a “Find in a Library” link; users can enter some geographic designation (zip code, state, province, country) to help them locate a library that owns the item. To search for a book, users can narrow a search to "Find in a Library" items by adding site:www.worldcatlibraries.org to their search query.The Institute library, while open to the public, does not lend materials to outside users directly, but does make its resources available through on-site use and library-to-libary resource sharing.

Example: To search for a book on Rwanda, enter "rwanda"site:worldcatlibraries.org in the search box in either Google or Yahoo! Search. This will bring up linked results for "Find in a Library" items with the keyword "rwanda." Both search engines try to remove duplicates or similar entries, but repeat the search with omitted results included to get a full list.

Library Use and Interlibrary Loan

Visitors may use all library materials on site by appointment; they may also borrow circulating books and grey materials using interlibrary loan through their host libraries. Please contact our Library Technician, Kiran Sharma at (202) 429-3852 for any Interlibrary Loan requests.

Reference and Referrals

We are a highly specialized library with in-depth resources in a narrow subject area. We will be happy to assist members of the public with reference queries, but we may refer you to other libraries or information sources if we deem it appropriate. Please call our Information Services Librarian Jim Cornelius at (202) 429-3851 to make an appointment or ask a question, or contact us via our online form.