This month, our Library User in the Spotlight is Johanna Ospina from Colombia. Johanna is a PhD student at the Institute of Human Rights “Bartoleme de las Casas” of University Carlos III of Madrid, Spain. She tells us that "the Peace Palace Library is one of my favourite places in The Hague.
Since 2012, the library has become the main place where I work on my thesis about peace education in the Occupied Palestinian Territories. Here, I have found a lot of materials on my topic, from different perspectives and some of them are available in different languages such as Spanish, Italian, Portuguese and many others. I could say that the library has become almost like an “office” for me. It is the place where I can access to a wide variety of books, journals and others resources, including the oldest and the last updated versions. Besides, the architecture and atmosphere of the Reading Room is always an inviting place to study and be concentrated.
At the same time, I can also take a little rest and get some inspiration by just enjoying the view of the gardens of the Peace Palace. I am also pleased with all staff members. They are always willing to help you in finding all kind of references and materials and at times even dealing with some technical problems. Finally, I think the Peace Palace Library is one of the best libraries in the world, but not only because is a perfect place for lawyers and researchers. Also because it is an ideal place for any person who lives in the Hague or just visits it and is interested in learning or improving their knowledge on peace, conflict, human rights and similar topics."