Yesterday, November 25 2015, I had the immense pleasure of participating in the second annual Library Day at Queen’s Park. Leaders from the Ontario Library Association, representing all library sectors in the province, and from the Federation of Ontario Public Libraries gathered to affirm the role of libraries as critical infrastructure, stimulating Ontario’s economic growth.
In cross-sectoral teams, we met with cabinet ministers, MPPs and senior advisors asking for their support. We asked that:
- Ontario’s libraries be considered as key stakeholders in the development of an Ontario Cultural Strategy.
- E-resource funding for public libraries, which will cease at the end of 2015, be renewed to allow all Ontarians continued access to digital resources through their public libraries.
- A program of coordinated provincial purchasing for all school boards be introduced in order to allow all school libraries in Ontario access to online resources for teachers and students.
Our day went extremely well, and our ideas, concerns and proposed solutions were very well received. Please have a look at this Storify of selected tweets from the day, on the hashtag #ONLibraries.
