Sustainability Track
Thursday, January 26
This track is geared toward making decisions that strengthen environmental sustainability, economic sustainability, and social sustainability.
Thursday, January 26
This track is geared toward making decisions that strengthen environmental sustainability, economic sustainability, and social sustainability.
9 a.m. - A Sustainable Approach – Following the Lead of the Community
“Empower, Engage, Energize,” Rebekkah Smith Aldrich’s “Three E’s of Sustainable Libraries,” provides a framework for planning programs that are inspired by library users. Neighborhood libraries, which usually are smaller and more intimate, can directly empower their patrons to take initiative to improve their communities through these library programs. An engaged community recognizes the authentic interest a library has in being a part of the community’s conversations to find community-based solutions specific to individual neighborhoods. From the creation of signature programs like the teen garden club to storybook puppet parades, Marina will share snapshots of several intentional engagement efforts. These programs demonstrate practical tips and ideas about how following the lead of the community reciprocates goodwill and investment back to the library.
Participants Will:
- Empower community members of all ages to make their neighborhoods a better place
- Learn to engage community members who claim the library as theirs
- Recognize community members energized by the library
Marina Márquez, Manager of The People's University, Cleveland Public Library (Ohio)
“Empower, Engage, Energize,” Rebekkah Smith Aldrich’s “Three E’s of Sustainable Libraries,” provides a framework for planning programs that are inspired by library users. Neighborhood libraries, which usually are smaller and more intimate, can directly empower their patrons to take initiative to improve their communities through these library programs. An engaged community recognizes the authentic interest a library has in being a part of the community’s conversations to find community-based solutions specific to individual neighborhoods. From the creation of signature programs like the teen garden club to storybook puppet parades, Marina will share snapshots of several intentional engagement efforts. These programs demonstrate practical tips and ideas about how following the lead of the community reciprocates goodwill and investment back to the library.
Participants Will:
- Empower community members of all ages to make their neighborhoods a better place
- Learn to engage community members who claim the library as theirs
- Recognize community members energized by the library
Marina Márquez, Manager of The People's University, Cleveland Public Library (Ohio)
10:30 a.m. - Climate Justice: The Interdependence of Sustainability and Equity, and
How Libraries Can Act As Hubs for Both
Building resilient communities in the face of climate change requires a focus on equity, diversity, and inclusion. There is a role for libraries to play in making sure that all the voices in the community are heard, however input sessions and discussions often gather white voices and those that have more socio-economic power. The Racine Public Library is working to change that pattern. With the help of a grant in 2020 through ALA’s Resilient Communities: Libraries Respond to Climate Change initiative, the library began hosting discussion sessions specifically for Black and Latinx community members. To incentivize participation, some community members were paid stipends to participate. Nick Demske will explain why they used this approach, how it worked, suggest ways to achieve better and more balanced outcomes around equity, and explain how these equity outcomes relate to long-term organizational and community-wide sustainability.
Participants Will:
- Understand how equity outcomes relate to long-term organizational and community-wide sustainability
- Learn ways to achieve better outcomes around equity
Nick Demske, Deputy Director, Racine Public Library (Wisconsin)
How Libraries Can Act As Hubs for Both
Building resilient communities in the face of climate change requires a focus on equity, diversity, and inclusion. There is a role for libraries to play in making sure that all the voices in the community are heard, however input sessions and discussions often gather white voices and those that have more socio-economic power. The Racine Public Library is working to change that pattern. With the help of a grant in 2020 through ALA’s Resilient Communities: Libraries Respond to Climate Change initiative, the library began hosting discussion sessions specifically for Black and Latinx community members. To incentivize participation, some community members were paid stipends to participate. Nick Demske will explain why they used this approach, how it worked, suggest ways to achieve better and more balanced outcomes around equity, and explain how these equity outcomes relate to long-term organizational and community-wide sustainability.
Participants Will:
- Understand how equity outcomes relate to long-term organizational and community-wide sustainability
- Learn ways to achieve better outcomes around equity
Nick Demske, Deputy Director, Racine Public Library (Wisconsin)
1 p.m. - Addressing Trauma in Public Libraries
The groundbreaking Urban Library Trauma Study (ULTS) used emancipatory and participatory action research frameworks to explore how public library workers in urban centers experience trauma while providing library services and create a path forward for exploring institutional and individual solutions to enable library workers and their institutions to continue providing vital library services to communities in need while caring for the well being of staff.
We will discuss our series of recommendations to address the pervasive issue of trauma in the library workplace and how the library field can research solutions to problems while being radically inclusive of the workers those problems most impact.
Participants Will:
- Learn how to balance providing vital library services to communities in need while caring for the well-being of staff
- Learn about trauma in the library workplace
- Discover how workers affected by trauma in the workplace are heard and included
Leah Dudak, Ph.D. Student, Syracuse University (New York)
The groundbreaking Urban Library Trauma Study (ULTS) used emancipatory and participatory action research frameworks to explore how public library workers in urban centers experience trauma while providing library services and create a path forward for exploring institutional and individual solutions to enable library workers and their institutions to continue providing vital library services to communities in need while caring for the well being of staff.
We will discuss our series of recommendations to address the pervasive issue of trauma in the library workplace and how the library field can research solutions to problems while being radically inclusive of the workers those problems most impact.
Participants Will:
- Learn how to balance providing vital library services to communities in need while caring for the well-being of staff
- Learn about trauma in the library workplace
- Discover how workers affected by trauma in the workplace are heard and included
Leah Dudak, Ph.D. Student, Syracuse University (New York)