By Madison Lee, Undergraduate Library Making Fellow, 2024-2025
As my time as a Makerspace Fellow comes to a close, I’ve been reflecting on the past year—and realizing the Makerspace has become so much more than a workplace. It became a second home.
Some days, I’d stop by just to finish a 3D printing project. Other times, I found myself in the Fiber Arts Room on a quiet weekend—not to sew, but simply to sit, fold a piece of origami, or breathe in the calm energy of a space filled with texture, color, and possibility.
This semester wasn’t about tying up loose ends. I knew my fellowship was ending, but there are still unfinished stitches on the embroidery I started last fall. The serger machine I wanted to try on a hem is still waiting. A potential Makerspace website redesign still lives in a PowerPoint. And yet, I’ve learned not to measure this experience by a checklist of completed tasks. If I had, I might have missed the joy of turning a personal experiment—the paper flowers I once made for some friends—into a full-fledged Valentine’s Day workshop, with students designing heartfelt bouquet cards of their own.
In preparation, we experimented with different petal shapes and sizes to add variety, created card templates, and even designed a 3D-printed rolling tool that students could attach to a pencil to make flower assembly easier. Some students were hesitant at first—unsure how a flat spiral could transform into a flower—but we worked through it together, modifying layouts, adding leaf cutouts, and building layered bouquets on cardstock that opened like pop-up scenes. One student even turned theirs into a lily pad design with floating flowers and hot glue dew drops. It was exciting to see everyone personalize their cards with unique color combinations, messages, and interpretations. The workshop reminded me that making is never a one-size-fits-all process, but rather a shared act of discovery, with space for every style, pace, and idea.
What stays with me most are the small, vibrant moments: The joyful chaos of the Cal Merch workshop, where even a misbehaving Silhouette cutter couldn’t stop students from printing their own tote bags. The Fiber Arts room buzzing with activity—tables covered in fabric, stickers, stamps, and sewing machines humming as students helped each other troubleshoot. The thrill of watching someone discover they can make something with their own hands.
Beyond the hands-on projects, I also had the chance to reshape our digital space, such as revamping our LibGuides to feel more visual, more intuitive, more Makerspace. Shifting the tools page design from a carousel to a gallery format became its own form of crafting: thoughtful, iterative, and grounded in empathy for the user.
Throughout the semester, I kept hearing students say, “I wish I had found the Makerspace sooner.” I used to feel that way too. But now, I think we all found it when we were ready—when we needed it most.
In a campus culture where productivity often overshadows presence, the Makerspace taught me how to slow down—to make room for creativity, imperfection, and spontaneous joy. It reminded me, and so many others, that creativity doesn’t have to be perfect or even purposeful to be meaningful. Sometimes, it’s enough just to show up. To experiment. To be surrounded by others who are also figuring it out.
I’ll carry that mindset with me through the rest of my time at Berkeley—trying new things, savoring moments, and resisting the urge to reduce everything to a checklist. Because the most meaningful things we make here aren’t always physical. Sometimes, they’re the quiet moments of connection, the confidence built one attempt at a time, the joy of learning something unexpected. Those are the memories that last.
Looking ahead, I know I’ll return to this lesson—not just in how I make, but in how I live, learn, and show up for others. And for that, I’ll always be grateful.
In a campus culture where productivity often overshadows presence, the Makerspace taught me how to slow down. How to make space for creativity, imperfection, and spontaneous joy. The Makerspace reminded me and so many others that creativity doesn’t need to be perfect or productive to be meaningful. Sometimes, it’s enough to show up. To experiment. To be surrounded by people who are also figuring it out, together.
Looking ahead, I carry that lesson with me—not just in how I make, but in how I live and learn. And for that, I’ll always be thankful.
By Willow Beyer, Undergraduate Library Making Fellow, 2024-2025
One of the best parts of working as a Makerspace Fellow this past year has been showing new people around and watching the space fill up. During Drop-in Hours in the past weeks have seen all of our sewing machines in use, at least one project 3D printing, and several people in the button maker room. People come with very specific plans, an idea that needs support in execution, or just wanting to wander through and see what we have to offer. Whatever brings them, the energy that comes from people learning, collaborating, and making together makes the space feel so alive.
Our users teach each other newly learned skills, trade old tricks, and compliment each others’ design choices. As a fellow, I get to do tons of button making and sewing machine tutorials, troubleshoot with heat press complications, and answer questions about miscellaneous materials, but mostly I just watch the space breathe. On one particular occasion, a student was working on a sewing project and needed help with garment construction. I had a few ideas, but the four or five other people also sewing were able to come up with a whole range of possibilities to choose from. The collaboration was not only helpful for her project, but gave everyone a chance to get to know each other.
The Makerspace is for anyone who wants to explore, experiment, or just take a break from the rest of their day. You don’t need to be any kind of expert or even know what it is you want to learn. The materials and support are here, and I’ve witnessed how our growing community is more than ready to welcome new people and fresh ideas. During our Cal Merch Workshop, participants complimented each other’s designs, taught each other how to use the equipment, and provided support in troubleshooting issues as they came up. We are always looking for ways to make the space more fun and inviting, so whether it’s signing up for a workshop, dropping in for the Make of the Month, or bringing in a project of your own, stop by and see what the space can do for you!
Map of Luso-African Literary Publishers by City generated by Bee Lehman
More than 80 works of literature from Angola, Cabo Verde, and Mozambique arrived in Doe Library last week. This selection of poetry, short stories, and novels in Portuguese was made possible through a generous 3-year grant from the Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia (FCT) in Lisbon. The absence of Lusophone African literature from mainstream African literary studies (mostly in English and French) has been noted by contemporary scholars. These new works of post-colonial fiction and verse listed below are held by few academic libraries and reflect the UC Berkeley Library’s longstanding commitment to collect and make accessible underrepresented voices from across the world in more than 400 distinct languages. Please enjoy this curated list by book dealer Susanne Bach Books which provides a snapshot of the rich literary output from Lusophone Africa over the past three years:
100 poemas para Neto / Poetas da União dos Escritores Angolanos. Luanda, Angola: EAL – Edições de Angola, 2022.
Celebrate this May’s Asian American & Pacific Islander Heritage Month with our collection of amazing authors and stories centered on AAPI people! Check out more on UCB Overdrive.
We are delighted to provide information on the Spring 2025 Digital Humanities Faire at UC Berkeley. The continuation of more than a decade of tradition, these DH Faires are designed to celebrate the broad, interdisciplinary digital humanities projects at UC Berkeley.
Keynote
dana boyd is presenting “Data are Made, Not Found” on Wednesday, April 23, 2025 5-6:30pm, Jacobs Institute for Design Innovation, Studio 310 (for more on the talk).
Poster Display:
Tuesday and Wednesday, April 22 and 23, 2025, Poster Display, Doe Library 2nd floor Reference Hall (see attached image with star).
The Gold Start shows the location of the Doe Library, 2nd floor Reference Hall
Celebrate Sri Lankan voices this Sri Lankan New Year with a curated collection of powerful stories and vibrant perspectives. All titles and more are available to read now on UC Berkeley’s OverDrive!
Discover two acclaimed Sri Lankan novels—The Seven Moons of Maali Almeida, winner of the 2022 Booker Prize, and A Passage North, a Booker-shortlisted gem:
Just in time for the end of the semester, a couple hundred ebooks have recently flown in from from Spain from publishers like Akal, CSIC, Prensas Universitarias de Zaragoza, Ediciones Universidad de Cantabria, Plaza y Valdés, Dickinson, Editorial Egales, Trotta Editorial, Ediciones Complutense and the Universitat Oberta de Catalunya. All are available through the Digitalia Hispánica platform. Below are some highlighted from Iberoamericana Editorial Vervuert available to you wherever you may find yourselves this summer:
Date/Time: Tuesday, April 8, 11:00am–12:00pm Location: Zoom. RSVP.
Are you wondering what processes, platforms, and funding are available at UC Berkeley to publish your research open access (OA)? This workshop will provide practical guidance and walk you through all of the OA publishing options and funding sources you have on campus. We’ll explain: the difference between (and mechanisms for) self-depositing your research in the UC’s institutional repository vs. choosing publisher-provided OA; what funding is available to put toward your article or book charges if you choose a publisher-provided option; and the difference between funding coverage under the UC’s systemwide OA agreements vs. the Library’s funding program (Berkeley Research Impact Initiative). We’ll also give you practical tips and tricks to maximize your retention of rights and readership in the publishing process.
When you take a sip of a delicious caffeinated beverage—for example, a latte from FSM or a can of Guayakí Yerba Maté—did you know that you are enjoying a product of the evolutionary arms race between plants and insects? Coffee and tea plants, along with cacao and cola trees, produce bitter caffeine to deter insects from eating them, but humans have learned to enjoy (although in excess we can also be damaged by) the stimulating effects of this toxic compound.
Most Delicious Poison: The Story of Nature’s Toxins—From Spices to Vices by Noah Whiteman
Nature’s toxins and the sometimes surprising uses to which they are put by humans is the subject of Noah Whiteman’s Most Delicious Poison: The Story of Nature’s Toxins—From Spices to Vices. On March 5th, the Library’s Sciences Division hosted Whiteman, Professor of Integrative Biology and Molecular & Cell Biology at UC Berkeley, at the Morrison Library for a talk on his acclaimed book, recently out in paperback. Following the talk, Professor Whiteman was joined by Michael Silver, Professor of Neuroscience and Vision Science at UC Berkeley, for a discussion of the book’s themes: how humans became attracted to, learned to harness, and—in some cases—became dependent on nature’s toxins; and how our discovery and use of these natural products intertwine with global histories of colonialism and imperialism.
An interdisciplinary audience of students, staff, faculty, and members of the broader UC Berkeley community packed the Morrison Library reading room to hear stories of terpenoids in coastal redwoods older than the rings of Saturn, of alkaloids in coffee and nutmeg, and the evolutionary wars that produced these molecules in nature. One highlight of the audience Q&A was learning Whiteman’s preferred method for brewing coffee: pour-over through a paper filter. Most Delicious Poison is available in print at the Biosciences, Natural Resources & Public Health Library (QP631 .W45 2023) and as an ebook.
Do the Work!: An Antiracist Activity Book by W. Kamau Bell and Kate Schatz
On March 11th, the Engineering Library, the College of Engineering’s Inclusive Excellence team, and the Black Graduate Engineering & Science Students (BGESS) hosted W. Kamau Bell and Kate Schatz for a discussion of their book, Do the Work!: An Anti-Racist Activity Book, at Sutardja Dai Hall. Aaron Streets, Associate Professor in the Department of Bioengineering and Vice Chair of Undergraduate Affairs for Berkeley Engineering, moderated a fireside chat with the authors, who discussed how our STEM community can engage with the activities in the book, the challenges of Diversity, Equity & Inclusion work in the current political climate, and how educators can build safe and brave spaces for current and future generations.
Do the Work! is part of the Kresge Engineering Library’s Inclusive Excellence Book Collection, currently located and browseable at the Earth Sciences & Map Library while the Engineering Library is closed for construction. The Inclusive Excellence Collection brings together resources on the subject of diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging to support students, faculty & staff in the College of Engineering in their efforts to foster a diverse and inclusive climate in the College and beyond. In fall 2024, the Engineering Library and the College of Engineering hosted Minette Norman, author of The Boldly Inclusive Leader, for the inaugural event in the Berkeley Engineering Book Talk Series.
Have a look at this selection of rare and out of print photography books. This is only a part of a recent, generous donation from Richard Sun. These books are located in the Art History/Classics Library within the Doe Memorial Library. Click on the titles to view their catalog records in UC Library Search.
