Reflecting on Critical DEI Practices in Spatial Collection Development, Metadata, and Instruction

Abstract

Knowledge, as it has been shaped in the United States, is grounded in whiteness. As a result, maps and geospatial data can be particularly harmful in perpetuating historically and experientially inaccurate narratives of space. As stewards of knowledge, librarians are uniquely positioned to implement policies advancing antiracist practices. The following paper analyzes diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) in cartographic collection development, metadata, and instruction, and discusses the opportunities for librarians to employ critical theory in their cartographic and geospatial library praxis.