1. Greening your Library:
Save Money and the
Environment
April 18, 2012

2. KATHRYN MILLER, MLS, EDD

3. THANKS FOR ATTENDING
 Poll Question:
In what type of a library do you
currently work?

4. WORKSHOP GOALS
 Workshop Goals:
 Practical ideas for how to be green, teach
green and lead green.
 Introduce environmentally-friendly, money-
saving initiatives that fit your existing
building and services.
 Provide ideas for hands-on activities that will
help you raise green awareness
 Offer ideas on how to get your community
involved.

5. WHAT IS IT TO BE GREEN
 Green is about sustainability.
 Going green is making choices that protect,
preserve and replenish the Earth’s resources.

6. @ YOUR LIBRARY
 A primary role of the library is to connect people
with the information they need
 The library is well positioned to gain the attention
of the community and connect users with
information on sustainability, green choices and
environmental concerns.
 Think of your library as community wealth.

7. LIBRARIES AS AN ESSENTIAL LINK
 “Social equity is a core mission for libraries,
accomplished through the strategic location of
branches and mobile libraries and the delivery of
programs and technology for all. On the environmental
front, libraries naturally provide information, but they
also serve as local models and laboratories for green
practices.”
Landgraf, G. (2010). ULC report: Libraries are sustainability partners. American Libraries. Retrieved from
http://americanlibrariesmagazine.org/news/12072010/ulc-report-libraries-are-sustainability-partners.
 Libraries are the necessary link between companies
like doing the right thing and the public being able to
recognize and understand what the right thing is.

8. STANDARD FOR SUCCESS
 Triple bottom line
 Economic prosperity (Profit)
 Environmental stewardship (Planet)
 Social responsibility (People)

9. WHY THE LIBRARY?
 Libraries are a local business looking for growth
opportunities
 Unique connection with the people/community
 Ability to communicate with local businesses
 Libraries serve people who can directly affect
change
 Businesses
 Business people
 Families
 Teachers
 Authors
 Libraries are strong participants in sustainable
solutions

10. Library Roles in
“Going Green”
1. Doer
2. Publicizer
3. Catalyst

11. LIBRARY AS “DOER”—
THE PRACTICE OF BEING GREEN
 Information retrieval
 Information delivery
 Operational
Information retrieval
Aggregated databases
Books
Web-based atmosphere
Question: Is your library already green?

12. AS A PRACTICE—AGGREGATED DATABASES

14. AS A PRACTICE--BOOKS

15. AS A PRACTICE—BOOKS--EBRARY

16. AS A PRACTICE—BOOKS--NETLIBRARY

17. AS A PRACTICE—BOOKS--PDA

18. AS A PRACTICE—BOOKS—GOOGLE BOOKS

20. AS A PRACTICE—TEXTBOOKS—VITAL SOURCE

25. AS A PRACTICE—
INFORMATION DELIVERY--INTERLIBRARY LOAN
 Balance
 Benefit—sharing materials
 Cost—Packaging, Shipping, Paper use, Waste
 In search of a sustainable solution…

27. AS A PRACTICE—
INFORMATION DELIVERY—DOCUMENT DELIVERY
SERVICES

28. AS A PRACTICE—INFORMATION
DELIVERY—GOOGLE SCHOLAR

29. AS A PRACTICE—INFORMATION
DELIVERY—WEB BASED ATMOSPHERE
 OPAC
 Federated and discovery searches
 Webpages
 Blogs
 Text Messages
 “Ask a Librarian” Services
 Refworks
 LibGuides

31. AS A PRACTICE—INFORMATION
DELIVERY—ASK A LIBRARIAN

32. AS A PRACTICE
 RefWorks
RefWorks -- an online research management, writing and
collaboration tool -- is designed to help researchers easily
gather, manage, store and share all types of information, as
well as generate citations and bibliographies.
 LibGuides
A web 2.0 content management and library knowledge
sharing system. Libraries use it to create attractive
multimedia content, share knowledge and information,
and promote library resources to the community.
LibGuides is a sustainable solution for subject guides,
information portals, course guides, community guides,
research help, faculty/teacher support, etc.

33. HTTP://ARGOSY.CAMPUSGUIDES.COM/SUSTAINABILITYCONF

34. AS A PRACTICE--OPERATIONAL
 Consider
 How is the item packaged?
 Consider an item’s useful life
 How will the item eventually be disposed of?
 Purchasing Power
 Look for Green Seal products
 GS-8 standard
 Look for Energy Star ratings for office equipment

35. AS A PRACTICE--OPERATIONAL

36. AS A PRACTICE--OPERATIONAL

37. AS A PRACTICE—OPERATIONAL
 Indoor Updates
 Natural Stone (not synthetics)
 Glass (not plastic)
 Sustainable wood (eucalyptus)
 Lighting
 Use Compact Fluorescent Light (CFL) bulbs
 Motion-activated sensors
 Vampire power
 Paint
 Use nontoxic, low VOC (volatile organic compound).
 Light color paint reflects the sun’s heat

38. AS A PRACTICE--OPERATIONAL
 Transportation
 How do people get to your library?
 Walk
 Sidewalks
 Bus or Train
 Schedules (Personalized?)
 Shelter
 Bike
 Route maps
 Bike Rack
 Carpool
 Employees
 Patrons

40. AS A PRACTICE--OPERATIONAL
 Outdoor updates
 Landscape with native plants
 Climate-appropriate species will reduce water needs
 Do you need a lawn? Consider rocks, bark and other
ground cover.

42. IDEAS FROM AROUND THE COUNTRY
Do you have an “green” operational example
you can share?

43. AS A PRACTICE--SERVICES
 MARC Records
 590 field—local definition and use
 Information is searchable and included in the public view
 590 #a Printed on recycled paper
 590 #a Printed on tree-free paper

44. AS A PRACTICE--SERVICES
 Weeding
 Collection development policy
 When and How the weeding should be done
 What should be done with the materials that are discarded
 Texas State Library and Archives Commission
 Recycle
 Book cart
 Resell. Friends book sales or a company
Superseded
Ugly
Elsewhere
Misleading
Trivial
Irrelevant

45. AS A PRACTICE--SERVICES

46. LIBRARY AS “PUBLICIZER”—
TEACHING GREEN
 Information literacy
 Programming
 Curriculum integration

47. AS A TEACHER--INFORMATION LITERACY
 The ability to Recognize that there is an
information need,
 The ability to Locate information to answer that
question,
 The ability to Evaluate the answer found.

48. AS A TEACHER--ENVIRONMENTAL
LITERACY
 Environmental literacy
A new role for the library is to educate users in
environmental literacy. Environmental literacy is a part of
information literacy—it is the ability to recognize that one’s
choices impact the environment; to identify the most
sustainable solution for the situation; and to be able to act
in the most environmentally friendly way on that solution.
Public libraries have the opportunity to educate their
community in environmental literacy by example, through
education and by providing access to information about
going green.

49. AS A TEACHER—TRAINING VEHICLES
 Teaching vehicles available @ a library
1. Websites
2. Public forum space
3. Formal courses
4. Make the commitment and the educational
opportunities will fall into place

50. AS A TEACHER—ADULT WORKSHOPS
 What a library can educate
 Educate users on labeling
http://www.greenerchoices.org/eco-labels/labelIndex.cfm
 Plan and plant a library butterfly garden
http://www.TheButterflySite. Com
 How to read digitally

51. HOW TO READ DIGITALLY

52. AS A TEACHER—TEEN WORKSHOPS
 Recycled book art
 Book paper flowers
 Graphic art
 Book treasure boxes

53. AS A TEACHER—CHILDREN’S WORKSHOPS
 Guest Reader
 Invite local business/community/teachers leaders to
read green books
 Craft projects
 Discarded CDs can be turned into art or sun catchers
 Environmental drawings
http://www.abrakadoodle.com/project_cds.htm

54. AS A TEACHER—FAMILY WORKSHOPS
Chicago Public Library

55. AS A TEACHER—SUMMER READING

56. AS A TEACHER—CURRICULUM
INTEGRATION
 University of North Carolina Greensboro
 Path: Lighting the way from research to writing (Ten
module asynchronous research tutorial)
 Recycling theme

57. Williams, B.F. (2011). Embedding your green message through asynchronous learning.
Electronic Green Journal. 1, 32. Retrieved from http://escholarship.org/uc/item/4vt250k7.

58. AS A TEACHER—CURRICULUM
INTEGRATION (ACADEMIC)
 Current Academic Library survey
“This survey is specifically interested in exploring the level of engagement
of academic libraries and library and information studies (LIS) schools in
the emerging focus of teaching sustainability across the curriculum. The
purpose of the study is to provide a snapshot of library services and
practices in support of institutional curricular and research needs
including open access, retaining author rights, building sustainability-
related collections and research guides, incorporating sustainability
content into instruction and teaching, collaborating on sustainability
projects, as well as reporting and seeking funding for sustainability
efforts.”
https://academictrial.qualtrics.com/SE/?SID=SV_8Ds9A1yindrZLlG

59. IDEAS FROM AROUND THE COUNTRY
Do you have an “green” teaching
example/program you can share?

60. LIBRARY AS “CATALYST”—
LEADING GREEN
 Providing Access to information about being
green
 Special Collections
 Economic development
 Awards

61. AS A LEADER--ACCESS TO INFORMATION
 Purchasing materials that help inspire green
ideas
 Connecting users with green information through
websites, blogs, posters and displays
 Offering community space for groups discussing
green initiatives.

62. AS A LEADER—ACCESS TO INFORMATION

63. AS A LEADER—ACCESS TO INFORMATION
 Information resources to help companies develop
team interest and commitment
 EPA Databases and Software
 Client Energy Savings Calculator (Dell)
 Paper Calculator
 Fuel Consumption Calculator
 Business Carbon Calculator
 Business and Organization Carbon Calculator
 Household Emissions Calculator
 Carbon Footprint Calculator
 Is Your Home Energy Efficient?
 Go Recycle Game

64. AS A LEADER—SPECIAL COLLECTIONS
 Libraries can serve as an information repository
for information on sustainable materials.
University of Minnesota Forestry Library
University of Maryland Digital Commons—
Environmental Films
Pace University—Environmental Law Review

65. AS A LEADER—ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT
 “Libraries often function as catalysts for
economic development, the report found, because
their reputation as safe community assets make
them desirable neighbors. But their programs
also aid local economies, by providing valuable
information to entrepreneurs, supporting
education and early literacy, and helping job-
seekers to improve their skills and find
employment.”
Landgraf, G. (2010). ULC report: Libraries are sustainability partners. American Libraries.
Retrieved from http://americanlibrariesmagazine.org/news/12072010/ulc-report-libraries-are-
sustainability-partners.

66. Communicate
your green
initiatives with
local government,
media and
businesses.

67. AS A LEADER—ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT
In 2012, The Little Rock Sustainability Summit featured methods on how to help
conserve energy within businesses. The keynote speaker was L'Oreal's Pam Alabaster
who discussed the company’s green initiative, a project that has saved the company
millions. A panel discussion was also held with heads from companies such as AT&T,
Wal-Mart and University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences.

***

The annual Sustainability in Business: Vision, Practice and Education
conference at Argosy University in Eagan, MN draws together various members of
academia, business, government, and nonprofit organizations and to discuss the
interconnection between the economy, society and the natural environment. The
annual event has included representatives of organizations such as IBM, Wal-Mart,
Coca-Cola, Cargill, Lockheed Martin, Sustainability Consortium, and Schmidt
Printing.

68. AS A LEADER—AWARDS
 Santa Monica Public Library
 Green Prize for Sustainable Literature
 School and Community Assistance for Recycling
and Composting Education (SCARCE)
 Earth Flag Certification

70. IDEAS FROM AROUND THE COUNTRY
Do you have an example of how your library
has partnered with a business?

71. AS A LEADER—ACTION PLAN
 A first step in becoming green is to develop an
action plan that can serve as a road map for the
directions and choices your library makes.
 Template
 Description of the project
 Project goals
 Become a community leader in environmental education
 Establish environmentally friendly practices in library
facilities.
 Increase community awareness of environmentally friendly
practices through library programming
 Timeline
 Include tasks, persons responsible and status

72. AS A LEADER
 Business Plan Template @
http://web.sba.gov/busplantemplate/BizPlanStart.cfm

74. TODAY’S WORKSHOP
1. Demonstrated that libraries can be green
“Doers”, “Publicizers” and “Catalysts”.
2. Outlined practical ideas for how to be green,
teach green and lead green.
3. Introduced environmentally-friendly, money-
saving initiatives that fit your existing
building and services.
4. Provided ideas for hands-on activities that
will help you raise green awareness.
5. Offered ideas on how to get your community
involved.

75. Greening your Library:
Save Money and the
Environment
kjmiller@argosy.edu