Library futures and how to get there - Eli Neiburger

Anyone want to borrow a telescope? Or a theremin? (And what is a theremin?)

Strange as it seems, these items are available for patrons to borrow from the Ann Arbor public library at in the State of Michigan, USA.

I was fortunate to be given the opportunity to hear Eli speak at a seminar at the State Library this week. Eli’s responsibilities include technology planning, events, marketing and acquisitions and he has some ideas which seemed to me to be pretty radical, but the statistics he showed us suggest his ideas are working. His view is that libraries should be diversifying collections away from traditionally held materials and moving to items that cost more than an impulse purchase and which are not needed very often. Their collection includes telescopes, bespoke musical instruments (the theremin is only one), a skeleton, sewing machines, spinning wheels and microscopes.

Ann Arbor has also negotiated with local authors and musicians to licence works for the use of library patrons. They also use open-source library systems wherever possible and are about to stop using RFID, going back to a free barcode reading system (sorry, can’t remember the name of all the systems they use). The library is actively seeking to develop new experiences for their members by collaborating with local historians, providing a ‘maker-space’ and Summer Reading programs that use ideas such as real-life Angry Birds at the local gym!

When asked what his top three tips were for libraries wishing to adapt and change, his suggestions were

His belief is that libraries of the future will be what we make of the experience for customers, not what we buy.

Sue S

(I ran out of time to write this, sorry – I’m off to Hawaii. Aloha!)