Public Libraries and Resilient Cities

Editor Dudley (urban planning librarian, Inst. of Urban Studies, Univ. of Winnipeg) brings together 14 original essays authored by 17 international scholars and librarians. Each piece explores roles that public libraries can play in urban planning, offering ideas from those who have been involved in public library planning in urban areas. Applicable to public libraries of any size, in any urban setting from large to small, from wealthy to poor, the pieces offer guidance on how to demonstrate your library's ability to adapt to change, its capacity to educate, and its value to a city's diversity. Whether looking at the small, local impact of public libraries on groups such as the homeless, or the effect of larger urban disasters such as hurricanes on a library's functions, this book will provide case studies to help others demonstrate their library's resiliency and value. The international coverage, including pieces from Zimbabwe, Canada, the United States, and Finland, presents not only a worldwide view of the services libraries provide to their communities but enables readers to gain ideas from those with differing approaches and use of resources, encouraging the possibility of thinking outside the box.