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03 The library of the future will....
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- Provide access to information through library services available on demand, anywhere, anytime
How people consume information changes rapidly. While still providing physical spaces libraries will be aligned with the needs of a more technologically focussed clientele.
- Operate with one library card
We’ll have one library card allowing the user to access any library within New Zealand.
- Have every New Zealand child as a library member
We’re not leaving anyone behind. Every child in the country will be a member of the library – and we’ll be there at every step of their lives supplying them with a safe space in their community where they can come to learn, experiment with new technologies, or just hang out with friends.
- Have aligned operating systems
Libraries will be interconnected with software creating a seamless interface across their operating systems for the end user.
- Reflect the communities we serve
New Zealand is a diverse nation and our libraries will reflect this through their hiring practices, their collections and the programs they offer.
- Have qualified librarians passionate about life long learning
Our future librarians will have a broader skills mix and come to the profession with a wide range of backgrounds, particularly in education, IT, and digital.
Library qualifications will have been revolutionised creating a new breed of library and information professional.
- Operate a collaboration process with the sector and the wider business community
The future library will have stronger connections with the GLAM sector, and also with publishers, local and central government, businesses, NGO’s and anyone else who wants to partner up.
- Capture statistics that reflect our values
A running tally of the number of people coming through the doors isn’t enough. We’ll be reporting outcomes as a better way for recording how many people’s lives we touch, communicating our value through storytelling as well as numbers.
- Manage a kete supporting communities to create knowledge
We will have clearly articulated the library’s role in capturing New Zealand heritage, and will be supporting digitisation with shared standards, and systems that enable access to this heritage, not just it’s preservation.
- Be “Open” as much as possible
The open access debate will have extended beyond content to the platforms that content rests upon. At minimum all software used in New Zealand will have an open API interface allowing data to be shared across networks. Creative commons licensing will be more widely understood and used and libraries will be playing a key role in demonstrating how “open” drives innovation and economic return.
- Embrace Consortia purchasing
Consortia purchasing increases buying power and reduces overheads for member libraries. It will extend beyond traditional library supplies.
- Embrace change as a sector – not just as individual libraries
We’ll get more done if we work together! Libraries will look to discover shared aspirations and goals rather than focusing on their differences.
- Support the NZ Inc Agenda
Libraries will join forces with Government helping to strengthening New Zealand’s economic, political and security relationships with key international partners.
- Implement a Recruitment strategy that will diversify the profession
A diverse workforce will provide tangible benefits to libraries besides simply fulfilling legal compliance and good faith efforts. A multicultural, talented, and trained employee base gives the sector the key advantage of being able to understand and reach out to the individual needs of people from other cultures and regions. Real diversity starts with an undertaking to gain strength as a sector through recruiting a group of outstanding people with diverse backgrounds, skills, ideas and cultures.
- Be made up of Librarians passionately advocating for the sector
Librarians who are passionate about providing access to information, literature, and lifelong learning have always been at the heart of the sector. Future librarians will use their voices to ensure the library legacy remains viable and fully funded. Library advocacy will start within the profession.
- Showcase World-renowned digital library expertise
We’ll improve access to knowledge by contributing to the cyberinfrastructure of New Zealand.
Related to
Event
Future of Libraries Summit 2015Description
On July 31st 2015 the Library and Information Association of New Zealand Aotearoa and Te Rōpū Whakahau co-hosted Taking Libraries to 2025: The Future of Libraries Summit at the Michael Fowler Centre in Wellington.
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Lianza (6th Jan 2025). 03 The library of the future will..... In Website Lianza. Retrieved 19th Mar 2026 19:11, from https://lianza.recollect.co.nz/nodes/view/116