Very pleased to be invited to keynote at the new CORE Exchange conference this year. Here’s the in-depth interview they did with me before the event.

Shout out to Lisa Kropp for her great article in American Libraries this month! Lisa led her library in Lindenhurst, NY to be one of the very first libraries certified under the new Sustainable Library Certification Program. Love this quote from the article:

“I’m convinced that because our library was involved in sustainable work over the past two years, we were ready to bounce back from this social disruption—and show our grit and resiliency in the face of adversity.”

Library Journal | April 2020
Rebekkah Smith Aldrich

Unprecedented. Heartbreaking. Heartwarming.

These three words have been most prominent in my mind as I observed and consulted with my colleagues, near and far, as they make tough decisions about how to keep their communities and staff healthy in the face of the COVID-19 pandemic.

As the reality set in as to what was going to be necessary to “flatten the curve,” I watched library directors go through a fast-paced version of Elisabeth Kübler-Ross’s “stages of grief”: denial, anger, bargaining, depression, and acceptance.

Library leaders were listening intently to public health officials, government officials, stakeholders, and their own intuition. First, we had to acknowledge that we all need to pull in the same direction. But close the library? People need the library, they rely on it, we have advocated so hard to help funders understand that libraries are essential in people’s lives. If we close, what message are we sending?… read the full article here.

I pulled over to take a pic of this sign on my way out of town today after closing up our offices due to the Governor’s Stay at Home order caused by COVID-19. This is the Bardavon Theater in Poughkeepsie, NY. Be safe folks, I don’t know what the future holds, but this is not going to be easy.

So pleased to be interviewed by Catherine Hakala-Ausperk for Public Libraries magazine! Even better? It was a whole issue of the magazine devoted to equity, diversity and inclusion.

Three New York libraries have been certified as “Sustainable Libraries” through the award-winning Sustainable Library Certification Program, the first of its kind in the world, through the New York Library Association.  The Hendrick Hudson Free Library, Saratoga Springs Public Library, and Lindenhurst Memorial Library were recognized at the 2019 Conference of the New York Library Association held in Saratoga Springs, NY, November 13-16, 2019.

“These three libraries have demonstrated leadership in conducting the operations of their organizations, as well as program and service design, with a critical eye towards environmental stewardship, economic feasibility and social equity, said Jeremy Johannesen, Executive Director of the New York Library Association, “Their efforts serve as a model for the 16,500 public libraries in the United States.

“The decision to undertake the certification process was an easy one for us. “It was a chance to help educate our community to the benefits of sustainable practices in all areas of our operations, to save a bit of money and more importantly the environment.”

Jill Davis, Director of the Hendrick Hudson Free Library

International Impact

The three libraries participated in the Sustainable Library Certification Program, the first program of its kind in the world to assist libraries of all types – public, academic, and school – to assess their opportunities to make better choices on behalf of the local and global community.  

“The most important take away we’ve learned from this process is that it isn’t just important for libraries to consider – it is essential to the long term health and strength of the library within the community. Our patrons have reacted positively to the changes we made, in large part because they recognize that we are helping to create a more viable and sustainable community experience for everyone.”

Lisa Kropp, Director of the Lindenhurst Memorial Library

The program was recently recognized by the International Federation of Library Associations at their 2019 World Congress in Athens, Greece, becoming the first program from the United States to be recognized through their “Green Libraries” Award.

Comprehensive Approach

Each Library completed action items in twelve categories such as organizational commitment, waste management, energy consumption, land use, partnerships and social equity and resilience.

“Our Library has a more defined long-term outlook now regarding sustainability, and the important role we play in creating a more environmentally, fiscally, and socially just community for our patrons,” said Kropp, “We’ve become a leader within the community for sustainable practices, and our programs, partnerships, and environmental decisions reflect our dedication to the importance of this work.”

Fifty public libraries statewide are currently working on their certification and the school librarian and academic programs will launch in January of 2020.

“The itsy bitsy spider will drown if you do nothing.”—Climate Strike Protest Sign, September 2019

Check out my latest Library Journal article and challenge yourself to consider how future generations will judge the library leaders of today who are not activating around the issue of climate change… read the full article here.

Check out my latest Library Journal article, “Social Cohesion Means Survival“:

“Two-thirds of the United States, 195 million Americans, recently suffered through a dangerous heat wave in mid-July, bringing to mind the 1995 Chicago heat wave that caused more than 700 deaths due to heat-related illnesses. That heat wave, at its peak, resulted in a heat index—a combination of heat and humidity—of 120. This type of weather is predicted to occur with more frequency and increased severity in the coming years.

“Climate change and its consequences are already manifesting in the form of deadlier storms, rising sea levels, droughts, wildfires, and floods,” the Union of Concerned Scientists stated in its “Killer Heat in the United States” report, released this year. “Yet the heat extremes forecast in this analysis are so frequent and widespread that it is possible they will affect daily life for the average U.S. resident more than any other facet of climate change…” Read the whole article here.

I was thrilled to be interviewed by Adriane Herrick Juarez for the Library Leadership Podcast recently! Check out episode 37: Sustaining Your Library’s Future in an Uncertain World!

Very excited to finally see an article I co-write with my academic friends and colleagues from the ALA Special Task Force on Sustainability published in PORTAL! Rene Tanner, Monika Antonelli and Adrian Ho have been wonderful to work with both on the task force and while writing this article. You can check it out here: https://preprint.press.jhu.edu/…/s…/ajm/files/19.3tanner.pdf