Reflection Blog 2 – Hyperlinked Environments: Innovation in Libraries

Libraries today are becoming much different places than the book repositories of the past. They are becoming important links to help bridge the future of technology with the present. Many libraries are offering innovative services that reflect this changing climate. Here are a few examples of programs that can be added to ensure the world is becoming more connected and less divided.

Television & Radio

Memphis Public Libraries is the only library in the United States to offer a free public television and radio station. It is available to stream for anyone with an online connection and helps bring free streaming to the community.

https://www.memphislibrary.org/wypl/

Cell Phone Lending

This program lends smart phones with unlimited data to low-income members of the Las Vegas Valley community. People have been able to use these phones to apply and get jobs to get back on their feet and become connected to the world around them.

https://thelibrarydistrict.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/54/2022/11/Library-District-Funding-Update.pdf

Community Wellness & Pool

The Cambridge Public Library offers health and wellness classes to the community in addition to a library adjacent pool giving patrons a venue to stay active. Wellness classes help many people who have work burnout in addition to the mental health crisis.

https://www.ifla.org/wp-content/uploads/IFLA-GL-2022-USA.pdf

Dogs in the Library

Eight libraries in Scotland have started bring-your-dog-to-the-library Fridays to promote the importance of dogs as companions. Being around and seeing dogs is also a quick way to destress. Peoples’ pets are an extension of their families, and this helps keep the family together while out of the home.

https://www.thecourier.co.uk/fp/news/perth-kinross/758282/well-behaved-dogs-now-welcome-at-perth-and-kinross-libraries/

AI Classes & Workshops

San José Public Library offers in-person and online classes and workshops on artificial intelligence to help the public learn to navigate this growing technology.

https://www.sjpl.org/blogs/post/ai-at-your-library-getting-started/

Information Literacy Teaching Tools

In a world where factual information is getting harder to decipher, libraries can be important places to teach people information literacy or the ability to gather and evaluate information. New York Public Library offers a robust set of tools on how to teach information literacy for free on their website.

https://www.nypl.org/blog/2021/09/10/teaching-information-literacy-resources

It is up to libraries today to adapt to change and embrace the technological landscape. These are just a few of the endless possibilities for ensuring libraries remain hyperlinked environments.