John Brudenall

Michael John Brudenall (31 October 1938 – 27 January 2016) was an Australian librarian and library educator. He contributed to the development of library technician education and employment in Australia. He planned the Commonwealth Parliamentary Library for the new Parliament House building in Canberra and advocated for stronger collaboration between the parliamentary libraries in the Asia Pacific region.

Early life Michael John Brudenall was born on 31 October 1938. He attended Melbourne High School and he moved from Melbourne to Canberra in 1960 to join the staff of the newly created National Library of Australia.He was one of 16 graduates selected Australia wide to train as professional librarians at the National Library. His wife, Sue Morcombe also joined as part of this group. They subsequently had 4 children.

Career John worked at the National Library of Australia from 1960 to 1966. In 1966, the Commonwealth Parliamentary Library separated from the National Library of Australia and John joined the Parliamentary Library staff When civilian government was restored in Cambodia in 1993, he spent time there advising the new government on the establishment of a parliamentary library.

Library technicians John Brudenall was a major figure in the development of library technician education and employment in Australia. John spent time as a part-time tutor and lecturer in Librarianship at Canberra CAE. He encouraged the establishment of the Library Technicians Section of the Association in 1979, arguing that the Association had a strong role to play in support of technicians. He was a key figure in the development of the curriculum for the Library Technicians Course at Canberra College of TAFE.