The Future of the Library · The Future of the Library ... An Abundance of Katherines. Possible...
Transcript of The Future of the Library · The Future of the Library ... An Abundance of Katherines. Possible...
By: Bonnie Brzozowski, Reference Librarian
The Future of the
Library
“Libraries will only survive if the
communities they serve want and
need them to.”
The Library of the Present
Budget decline
Competition for existing dollars
From authoritative to “good enough” info
Rise of ebooks
Changing notion of ownership
Helping to close the digital and economic divides
Commitment to privacy and free speech
Tough Questions
What is the future of knowledge?
How will we access information?
What is the future of learning spaces?
What is the future of attention?
What’s the franchise?
What services are libraries uniquely positioned to
provide that other organizations are not?
Where does local fit in?
“Uncertainty and the Future of Libraries”, Computers in Libraries 33:10 (Dec. 2013, pg 4)
“The Future of Libraries: Seven Questions Librarians Need to Answer”, Lee Rainie’s presentation at the Texas Library Association’s
2014 Annual Conference: http://www.pewinternet.org/2014/04/10/the-future-of-libraries/
Possible Future: No Books
“Books are the ultimate Dumpees: put them down and they’ll
wait for you forever; pay attention to them and they always love
you back.” - John Green, An Abundance of Katherines
Possible Future: Tablet Computing
“Future is mobile computing – smartphones and tablets are just
elements of it. The industry is on the verge of a whole new
paradigm.” – Thorsten Heins, former CEO BlackBerry Ltd.
Possible Future: Librarians
“I'm of a fearsome mind to throw my arms around every living
librarian who crosses my path, on behalf of the souls they never
knew they saved. ” – Barbara Kingsolver
Possible Future: Maker Spaces
“I think we only burned like, one kid…” – Jim R
“If you wanna do goofy s***, use the Bosch table saw.” – Matt N
“It’s a Smallognifyer” – Adam C
Possible Future: Community Spaces
“One can acquire everything in solitude except character.”
-Stendahl