Public libraries will avoid being relegated to the scrap heap of history in a digital age as long as they continue to serve as platforms for learning, creativity, and innovation that strengthen their communities.
That’s the conclusion of a new report “Rising to the Challenge: Re-envisioning Public Libraries,” which the Aspen Institute has produced in partnership with the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.
There are nearly 9,000 public library systems and 17,000 branches and outlets across the U.S. Nearly seven in 10 Americans say they have at least “medium” levels of engagement with their public libraries. And nearly a quarter of U.S. adults use their local libraries for Internet access.
“The public library is a key partner in sustaining the educational, economic and civic health of the community during a time of dramatic change, [and] there is already a significant physical presence and infrastructure to leverage for long-term success,” the report states.
As important, the library "is a core civil society institution, democracy’s 'maker space,'" the report asserts.
But as public libraries shift from being repositories for materials to platforms for learning and participation, their ability to provide access to vast amounts of content in all formats will be vital. “Libraries face two immediate major challenges in providing access to content in all forms,” the report says. “Being able to procure and share e-books and other digital content on the same basis as physical versions, and having affordable, universal broadband technologies that deliver and help create content.”
A 21st-century library will remain relevant only if it is built on three key assets: people, place, and platform. The report observes that libraries are “shifting from building collections to building human capital, relationships, and knowledge networks in the community.”
While a library is both a physical and virtual place, the report believes its physical presence “anchors it most firmly in the community.” But the library as a learning center is also becoming more of a destination, “a way station on the learning journey.” In that capacity the library in a digital age should also be “a virtual space accessible from anywhere 24/7.”
A library’s goal, says the report, should be to enable individuals and communities “to create their own learning and knowledge.” So a library “platform” needs to be adaptable to the individual’s needs. “The library as platform radically reshapes [its] daily activities, shifting away from the old model of organizing and ‘lending’ the world’s knowledge toward a new vision of the library as a central hub for learning and community connections.”
To be successful in a digital age, libraries, says the report, will require a different kind of access and distribution infrastructure, more sophisticated analytics “that will enable the library itself to become a “learning organization,” and the ability to scale themselves to facilitate innovation and competition.
The report recommends four strategic opportunities for action to guide libraries’ transformation: aligning their service to support community goals, providing access to content in all formats, ensuring the long-term sustainability of public libraries through greater attention to potential financial resources, and cultivating “leadership.”
But library professionals face several leadership challenges, such as taking advantage of digital tools; building the library’s capacity, which might benefit from exploring best practices outside the U.S.; thinking harder about succession planning; including trustee and “friend” groups in leadership development activities; and developing strategies that can keep pace with larger disruptive changes.
Libraries and their communities must also be watchful, and be prepared to respond to, several important developments and trends, including new technologies and their impact on a global information economy, online education, the boundaries of privacy and data protection, and “hyperconnected” societies.
Related Stories
| Jan 17, 2012
SOM Chicago wins competition to design China's Suzhou Center
The 75-level building is designed to accommodate a complex mixed-use program including office, service apartments, hotel and retail on a 37,000 sm site.
| Jan 17, 2012
FxFowle and CO Architects form joint venture
FxFowle and CO Architects creates a dynamic alliance built on a shared dedication to collaboration in process, innovation in programming, and excellence in design.
| Jan 17, 2012
Capital Engineering joins AECOM
With 160 employees based in Taipei and Kaohsiung, CEC specializes in environmental, water, hydraulic and land development engineering consulting services for clients in Taiwan's public and private sectors.
| Jan 17, 2012
SOM launches Los Angeles design studio
Expert team to join the firm's West Coast practice, focusing on innovative urban and environmentally sustainable design in Southern California
| Jan 16, 2012
2012 40 Under 40 applications due Friday, Jan. 20
Building Design+Construction's 40 Under 40 is open to AEC professionals from around the world who are under 40 years old, as of January 1, 2012.
| Jan 16, 2012
Mid-Continent Tower wins 25 Year Award from AIA Eastern Oklahoma
Designed by Dewberry, iconic tower defines Tulsa’s skyline.
| Jan 16, 2012
Suffolk completes construction on progressive operating suite
5,700 square-foot operating suite to be test bed for next generation of imaged-guided operating techniques.
| Jan 15, 2012
Hollister Construction Services oversees interior office fit-out for Harding Loevner
The work includes constructing open space areas, new conference, trading and training rooms, along with multiple kitchenettes.
| Jan 15, 2012
Smith Consulting Architects designs Flower Hill Promenade expansion in Del Mar, Calif.
The $22 million expansion includes a 75,000-square-foot, two-story retail/office building and a 397-car parking structure, along with parking and circulation improvements and new landscaping throughout.
| Jan 15, 2012
535 Madison Avenue achieves LEED Gold certification
Class-A commercial building meets sustainability requirements of LEED Program.