October 8, 2018
Activities: Arts / Culture / Humanities, Economic Development, Education, Societal Benefit, Youth Development
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Annual ROI: 0.0%
Image source: Unsplash
For years libraries have stood as centerpieces in our towns. But with tightening budgets and the rise of internet as a source for information, we find them slipping further and further into obscurity.
Or do we?
More than just books and banks of computers, libraries are still places where individuals gather to explore, interact, and imagine.
Here are some of the top benefits libraries play in our communities. For the rest of the list, see the original article published in Public Libraries Online.
1. Libraries help revitalize struggling or depressed neighborhoods and downtowns.
Place-based economic development stresses the importance of offering attractive, functional, and community-based places, such as libraries, in town squares and depressed neighborhoods. Like a major department store in a mall, libraries attract large numbers of people, creating economic opportunities for a myriad of businesses and organizations in the surrounding area. Large cities (such as Chicago), medium-sized ones (Hudson, Ohio), and even small towns (Putney, Vermont) have successfully transformed their libraries into the hubs of vibrant neighborhoods.
3. Libraries’ special collections grow out of specific community needs.
In addition to RPL’s seed lending library, there are other examples of libraries that provide circulating collections of everything from cake pans to fishing rods to bike locks. The Iowa City (Iowa) Public Library circulates framed posters and original artwork through its Art-to-Go collection. The Temescal Branch of the Oakland (Calif.) Public Library literally builds the community through its Tool Lending Library, which was created in 1991 to help rebuilding efforts after a disaster. Libraries that start such unique collections show how locally responsive and flexible a truly community-centered library can be.
9. Libraries provide important business resources, especially for small local businesses.
With the recent collapse of many big corporations, it has become more widely acknowledged that small businesses provide most of the new jobs in our current economy. Libraries have a long history of serving local entrepreneurs and businesses, but some, like the District of Columbia Public Libraries (DCPL), are taking their business services to a new level. The Urban Libraries Council report, “Making Cities Stronger,” describes several library initiatives, including DCPL’s Enchanced Business Information Center (e-BIC) project. Located at the main branch library, e-BIC includes not only business resources, but also a state-of-the-art video conference room, full-time librarian, and staff-training workshops.
14. Libraries provide access to nonmainstream points of view and give voice to local artists.
Public libraries strive to provide collections and services that represent various points of view, and often work closely with local artists to do so. In many communities, local authors seek out public libraries as places to promote and make their new books available, and library services like Overdrive allow local musicians to upload and distribute their work. From the art gallery at the Newton Free Library in Massachusetts to NYPL’s collection of zines, local arts abound in public libraries.
17. Libraries serve as the “people’s university.”
In a time when education is increasingly expensive, public libraries provide information and educational opportunities free for all people, regardless of their socioeconomic status. Offered by libraries across the county, ALA’s Let’s Talk about It programs are wonderful examples of scholar-facilitated learning opportunities in libraries. In addition, many libraries present classes and discussion programs, and some even provide online continuing education courses such as the Universal Class database.
23. Libraries are important partners in child development.
Through library collections, programs, and physical spaces, children learn to share, to be engaged in their communities, to participate in the arts, and to explore their immediate world and the world at large. There are surely endless examples of innovative library services for children, including the Middle Country Public Library’s (in Centereach, N.Y.) Nature Explorium, which engages children in learning about the natural world.
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