IYKYK! In New York, this is a big deal so I’m sharing it here: the Sustainable Libraries Initiative was recently featured in Newsday!

The American Library Association (ALA), in collaboration with the Sustainable Libraries Initiative (SLI), is launching Resilient Communities: Advancing Sustainability in and through Libraries, a new initiative designed to equip public library workers with the knowledge and tools to lead on sustainability.

Through this program, 100 library workers will receive free tuition to complete Sustainable Librarianship: Core Competencies and Practices, a four-part asynchronous e-course, and join a community of practice with peers and advisors. By modeling sustainable practices within their facilities and communities, participating libraries will strengthen their role as leaders in building a more resilient future.

Applications are now open through November 14, 2025, with accepted participants notified by December 5, 2025: https://www.ala.org/tools/programming/climatechange/advancing.

The Sustainable Libraries Initiative empowers library leaders to advance environmentally sound, socially equitable and economically feasible practices to intentionally address climate change and co-create thriving communities.

100 selected library workers will experience the following over the course of six months:

• Cohort Creation: Selected library workers will be split into cohorts and will have access to Mentors from the Sustainable Libraries Initiative who will serve as advisors throughout their learning journey. Cohorts will be designed for information-sharing to be as tailored and relevant as possible.
• Learning: Each learner will be given free access to the “Sustainable Librarianship” course and be expected to watch each module and complete related course work. The course was created by Rebekkah Smith Aldrich (president of the Sustainable Libraries Initiative and founder/past president of the ALA Sustainability Committee), along with expert speakers, lecturers and writers. The modules will lead participants through the principles and practices of sustainable librarianship.
• Action Plan: As they complete the course, learners will develop an action plan of how to implement aspects of the training in their own library and community.
• Community of Practice: Following the course,ALA will host virtual, advisor-led “office hours.” Advisors will be available to answer cohort members’ questions about how to get started, building buy-in, and technical questions about the particulars of the work. They will also review each cohort member’s action plans, and coach cohort members to success. Learners will also participate in a private online discussion forum in ALA Connect, which will provide space for conversations to continue outside of the scheduled meetings and a repository for resource-sharing.
• Sharing What They’ve Learned: Participants will be asked to submit a brief report to ALA about steps they’ve taken from their action plans by June 17, 2026. Stories will be amplified to the library field, including at ALA’s Annual Conference and on the Programming Librarian website.

“Libraries have an incredible opportunity to lead the way on sustainability,” said Rebekkah Smith Aldrich, president of the Sustainable Libraries Initiative. “This program is about giving library workers the tools and support they need to get started and feel confident making a real difference.”

The Resilient Communities: Advancing Sustainability in and through Libraries program has been made possible by a private funder.

About the American Library Association

The American Library Association (ALA) is the only non-partisan, nonprofit organization dedicated entirely to America’s libraries and library professionals. For almost 150 years, ALA has provided resources to inspire library and information professionals to transform their communities through essential programs and services. The ALA serves academic, public, school, government, and special libraries, advocating for the profession and the library’s role in enhancing learning and ensuring access to information for all. For more information, visit www.ala.org.

About the Sustainable Libraries Initiative

The Sustainable Libraries Initiative (SLI) is a member-driven organization that empowers library professionals to be leaders using triple-bottom-line sustainability (environmental stewardship, social equity, and economic feasibility) throughout their organizations and in their communities. The Sustainable Library Certification Program is now enrolling public and academic libraries, library systems, and school librarians nationwide.

Thank you to Mallika Talwar of the Yale Program on Climate Change Communication for joining forces with the Sustainable Libraries Initiative for our latest free webinar offering:

Strategic Climate Communication: Insights and Tools for Effective Strategies
October 23, 2025 | 2:00 PM Eastern
Presented by: Mallika Talwar, Yale Program on Climate Change Communication (YPCCC)

Free registration!

Thank you to the folks at American Libraries magazine for inviting me to write the anchor article for the issue devoted entirely to the topic of sustainability! It’s a thrill to see sustainability in the spotlight like this and I so appreciate seeing many of the wonderful colleagues I’ve had the pleasure to work with over the years to advance this topic in the profession in this issue as well, like the one and only Matthew Bollerman, the co-founder of the Sustainable Libraries Initiative (SLI); Rene Tanner, who I have had the honor of partnering with on several key projects I feel have been critical to advancing an understanding of the importance of this core value in our profession; and Sarah Tribelhorn, a leading voice on this topic in the academic library community. What a line up!

In 2022, I joined up with some of my favorite folks to work with: Rene Tanner, Monika Antonelli, and Adrian Ho (we met through the ALA Task Force on Sustainability – which resulted in sustainability being named a core value of our profession! – and then collaborated on a book project together) to study the role of public libraries in disaster preparedness and community recovery (and I thank all of you who helped with that survey!)

We ultimately heard from over 1,000 people in our professional from all 50 states.

We have published our initial findings this month: The Storm is Here: Public Libraries’ Role in Disaster Preparedness and Community Recovery. This may be of use to you as you consider reviewing your disaster preparedness and business continuity plans and consider the role your library plays in building resilience in the communities your libraries serve.

Check out my latest column for Library Journal: It’s a New Era of Climate Activism in Libraries.

Do what you can, with what you have, from where you are, but rest when you need to. We are in this for the long haul.

We could not be more proud of our board of trustees here at the Mid-Hudson Library System for winning the 2024 Velma K. Moore Award from the Library Trustees Association Section of the New York Library Association! The Mid-Hudson Library System Board of Trustees was recognized for their leadership in becoming the first public library system in the country to complete the Sustainable Library Certification Program, inspiring hundreds of trustees here in NY (and across the country!) to follow their lead.

Thanks to WebJunction for inviting me back, this time to talk about best practices for discussing climate change.

“What are the best practices for discussing climate change? Join us to explore effective communication strategies developed through the Sustainable Libraries Initiative (which has been advancing this work for over a decade) and the new National Climate Action Strategy for Libraries. Gain insights from Seeding Action, an initiative aimed at fostering a culture of planetary health action with communities through science centers and museums. Discover how libraries and museums communicate about climate change, its causes, and its solutions. Participants will leave empowered to engage staff, board members, and community members in meaningful conversations that inspire action and foster a proactive response to climate challenges.”

Check out the recording and related resources on WebJunction.

Thanks to Library Journal for continuing to give me a platform to spread the word about sustainability in our profession.

This time around I used my column to spread the word about the join project of the Sustainable Libraries Initiative and the American Library Association to produce a National Climate Action Strategy for Libraries and an implementation guide to help libraries of all types focus their efforts on this topic in the ways experts agree will have the biggest impact.

We could not be more excited here at the Sustainable Libraries Initiative (SLI) to be partnering with the Association of Research Libraries! Thank you to Trevor A. Dawes & Andrew Pace for their foresight and leadership!

Read their press release here.