Meet your MDL: Leslie Barnes

Leslie Barnes is the Digital Scholarship Librarian at the Map & Data Library (MDL). She has an MA in English from the University of Toronto, a PhD in English from New York University, and a MSLS from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. She has worked at the University of Toronto Libraries since 2014, beginning in Information Technology Services and then joining MDL in 2022. 

Learn more about Leslie:

Q: What's your area of specialization within maps and data services?

A: I focus on Digital Scholarship, which is a pretty broad term, encompassing all kinds of digital research and communication. I support digital projects through consultations and project support, including data preparation and databases and website creation, and digital research methods, especially helping patrons acquire textual data for their text and data mining projects. I’m increasingly interested in bibliometrics and have been able to help researchers with relevant tools in that field as well, particularly Web of Science and Scopus.

I also manage the Exhibits UofT service, which allows faculty and librarians to easily create online exhibits that showcase their research. 

Q: What makes MDL a unique place for research support?

A: MDL is a really collaborative and supportive department. Each of us has a different background, work experiences, and areas of focus, which means that the department is full of different perspectives and lots of expertise. I’m constantly learning from my amazing colleagues. If a patron comes in with a complex question, we will work together to resolve it.

Q: What's your approach to helping researchers navigate their complex data and research?

A: My first step is always to learn from the researcher what their goals are and then try to find the simplest path there, whether that’s by finding the right tool, database, or data. This is especially true at the outset of a digital project. In the planning and ideation phase, it can be challenging to imagine actual outputs. I try to offer examples, ask questions, learn about the data and research so that we can think about what a finished product might look like. Once we have figured that out, it’s a lot easier to advise them towards a successful outcome.

If you think Leslie or someone else at MDL could help you with your research, please reach out!