Public Libraries In Society Research Articles

Public libraries and crisis management: Iranian public libraries and the dust crisis

Dust crisis is one of the most important environmental problems caused by climate change and drought during the last three decades in some parts of Iran, especially in its eastern and western borders. The present study is a qualitative semi-structured interview study of 11 managers and employees of public libraries in the Iranian provinces of Ilam, Khuzestan, Kurdistan, and Kermanshah. In the article, we document that public libraries can take major steps to better manage community needs arising from disasters and emergencies. The findings show that public libraries can take on educational, cultural, executive, and informative roles in the pre-crisis stage, executive and informative roles in the during-crisis stage, and executive and documentation roles in the post-crisis stage. Based on the results, a conceptual model is constructed, showing the role of Iranian public libraries in dealing with the dust crisis as a rotational process. In order to improve the role of public libraries in society, it is necessary that library managers and employees take appropriate measures in the three stages of pre-crisis, during-crisis, and post-crisis.

Public libraries and popularisation of science

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to present the findings from the research carried out among the directors of Croatian public libraries about cooperation between public libraries and the academic community and about promotion of science in Croatian public libraries. Owing to their number, strategic position in society and the skills and knowledge of librarians, public libraries have an opportunity to cooperate more intensively with the scientific community, expand their holdings with science‐related content and to offer new services. Some already cooperate with the Croatian scientific community by participating in joint research projects and in promoting science. Although cooperation with the scientific community is not among their priorities, Croatian public libraries are enthusiastic to continue with this type of activity.Design/methodology/approachThe first part of the paper offers an introduction followed by a short review of the current position of public libraries in society and possibilities for strengthening their position by cooperating with the scientific community (in the second part of the paper). The third part introduces the research among the directors of Croatian public libraries followed by the presentation of the findings of the same research. An online survey consisting of 19 closed questions was used as a method of research. An e‐mail invitation to participate in the research was sent to all public libraries in Croatia.Practical implicationsThe outcome of the research may serve as an orientation to the members of the Croatian academic community when planning new cooperation with public libraries and vice versa. The findings of the research may also serve as an orientation to the directors of Croatian public libraries when considering expansions of their holdings with new material related to science and in the development of new offline and online services.FindingsThe strategic position of public libraries in society makes them of interest for promotion of results of developments in many areas of human endeavour, including science, by using their holdings, services and premises. According to the research findings, public libraries participate actively in popularisation of science by using their existing holdings and services. Public libraries in Croatia are promoting science actively and are participating in scientific projects led by scientific institutions. Their holdings contain popular science titles, and they offer services to facilitate access to scientific information. Public libraries included in the survey plan to continue with the promotion of science, as they believe that this activity is important for them.Originality/valueThe paper aims to advance understanding of the role of public libraries in Croatia and their role in promotion of science, and contributes to the growth of library and information science literature on topics related to public libraries.

The 2004 and 2005 Gulf Coast Hurricanes: Evolving Roles and Lessons Learned for Public Libraries in Disaster Preparedness and Community Services

SUMMARY In the aftermath of the 2004 and 2005 Gulf Coast hurricanes, public libraries played many important roles in their communities, though ensuring access to vital information may have been the most critical service. This article explores the participation of public libraries in the recovery of their communities, the implications of this involvement for the place of public libraries in society, and lessons learned and recommendations for public library disaster planning. As this article demonstrates, public libraries successfully provided a range of disaster preparedness and recovery services that were not provided and could not have been provided by other government agencies.

Fishing with grenades or greening the mind

Looking at the value of public libraries in society, this paper discusses actual potential and unrealised value in the Australian context. Value is analysed in relation to an increasingly competitive environment, and with particular reference to library collections and their enduring place in the services provided by libraries. In addition, measuring library performance is stressed as a significant factor in determining the value of libraries.