Funding: “Sustainable Libraries Initiative Awarded $175,000 for Operationalizing Community Resilience: Creating a Training and Partnership Model for Libraries”

From SLI:

The Sustainable Libraries Initiative (SLI) has been awarded a $175,000 grant from the Mellon Foundation’s Public Knowledge program to lead a 15-month project titled Operationalizing Community Resilience: Creating a Training and Partnership Model for Libraries. The grant will be administered by Educopia, SLI’s fiscal sponsor.

The Sustainable Libraries Initiative (founded in 2015 and now housed within the Suffolk Cooperative Library System) supports library leaders in co-creating libraries and communities that can thrive in the face of climate change. Through its online community of practice, professional development programs, and award-winning Sustainable Library Certification Program, SLI empowers those working in public, academic, and school libraries to advance environmental sustainability, social equity, and economic feasibility.

Operationalizing Community Resilience will pilot a training program designed to support public library staff in smaller and rural communities as they plan and implement locally relevant resilience activities in partnership with community-based organizations. The training will help participating libraries integrate the National Climate Action Strategy for Libraries (NCASL) into their daily operations, bridging national climate frameworks with the realities of local library work.

The pilot will train a total of 40 staff members drawn from 40 public libraries serving populations of 25,000 or fewer. Project outcomes will include:

• Up to 40 library-led initiatives addressing climate mitigation or adaptation
• Stronger partnerships between libraries and local organizations focused on climate preparedness
• A scalable, field-tested training model and curriculum, and stories from the field,  to help inspire more libraries to engage in similar work nationwide

Together, these outcomes position libraries as trusted, place-based knowledge institutions capable of anchoring climate adaptation efforts and supporting equitable access to public knowledge infrastructure.

Learn More, Read the Complete Release

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