During the month of April, Let’s Move in Libraries will host a series of conversations on community collaboration and community health.

Each conversation features 2-4 librarians sharing their experiences working collaboratively with others to promote community health. After the discussion you’re invited to stay in the room for a half-hour open conversation about that week’s topic. Each conversation takes place on a Thursday in April, 2023. Recordings will be shared on the Let’s Move in Libraries YouTube channel.

This event will also feature the launch of a Toolkit you can use to inject new energy into your health programs and partnerships. Access a preview of the Cultivating the Relationship-Driven Toolkit and share feedback on this work in progress.

Our goal in this event is to build momentum and knowledge around the critical topic of community collaboration.

Who should participate in this event? Those who…

  • Work in or with public libraries, or desire to do so
  • Are committed to working collaboratively with communities for service design and delivery
  • Seek both inspiration and information in a participatory learning environment
  • Are eager to work with peers to support innovation

We invite you to learn and network with colleagues doing great things through community partnerships! All are welcome to this online convening.

Schedule-at-Glance

  • April 6 – Event kick-off and conversation on “Institutionalizing collaboration, urban perspectives”
  • April 13 – Conversation on “Sparking change, Directors / Branch Manager perspectives”
  • April 20 – Conversation on “Institutionalizing collaboration, small and rural perspectives”
  • April 27 – Conversation on “Start where you are, early career perspectives” and event conclusion

Scroll down to learn more about the sessions and participating library workers! And go to the bottom of this page for images and text you can use to share this event with your colleagues and networks.

This event is part of HEAL (Healthy Eating and Active Living) at the Library, funded by the U.S. Institute of Museum & Library Services (# RE-246336-OLS-20)

CULTIVATING THE RELATIONSHIP-DRIVEN LIBRARY
Event kick-off and toolkit launch

Description: Join us for the event kick-off. We’ll set the stage by discussing the journey that brought us here, and share with you our new toolkit on how to cultivate community partnerships to transform community health. More information will be added here as we get closer to April!

Date & Time: Thursday, April 6, 2023 at 1 PM EST

INSTITUTIONALIZING COLLABORATION
Urban Perspectives

Description: What structures set libraries up for success? This session explores how urban libraries in Maryland, North Carolina, and Illinois have navigated long-term partnerships, including around annual health fairs, nature exploration, and food security. Given all the potential partners urban libraries could work with, how do we prioritize our time to achieve the biggest impacts? Dive in for an illuminating conversation!

Date & Time: Thursday, April 6, 2023 at 3 PM EST

Meet the Panelists:

SPARKING CHANGE

Directors / Branch Manager Perspectives

Description: Library leaders set the stage for successful community partnerships. Join directors and branch managers from Pennsylvania, Texas, and Massachusetts to learn how they set up successful community partnerships focused on bike lending, community gardens, cooking & exercise classes, and more. What are the attributes of library leaders who get themselves and their libraries at the table to support community health? Join us to discuss!

Date & Time: Thursday, April 13, 2023 at 1 pm EST

Meet the Panelists:

INSTITUTIONALIZING COLLABORATION
Small and Rural Perspectives

Description: How can rural and small town librarians leverage small town networks to advance community health? Join us for this conversation featuring librarians from North Carolina and Kentucky. We’ll talk about how these libraries formed especially strong bonds with Cooperative Extension agents and local United Way organizations to transform community health, and you’ll learn how you too can use your relationships to advance community health.

Date & Time: Thursday, April 20, 2023 at 1 PM ET

Meet the Panelists:

START WHERE YOU ARE

Early Career Perspectives

Description: Our conversation series concludes with the empowering message that anyone can be a community change agent! Library workers from Virginia, Delaware, and Texas will share with you how they hit the ground running in their libraries. Learn how you too can be a community leader and partner, no matter how long you’ve worked in libraries, or what your job title is.

Date & Session Time: Thursday, April 27 1 PM Eastern Time

Meet the Panelists:

WHERE DO WE GROW FROM HERE?
Concluding remarks and a call to action

Description: How can we continue to build a national community of public librarians committed to working collaboratively with their communities to transform cultures of health? We’ll wrap up the event by discussing this question with a national expert on community collaboration. We’ll also discuss where do we go from here: How can we continue to come together and support each other as we all seek to start and sustain impactful community relationships? Join in!

Date & Time: Thursday, April 27 at 3 PM ET

Meet the Panelists:

Sharing Guide

Help us share this event far and wide. All are welcome! Use the links and resources below to encourage your network to participate.

Promote Community Health with the Relationship-Driven Library – OCLC/WebJunction

We want to thank OCLC/WebJunction for sharing news of this event on their website. Share the link above or use the text of their press release on your webpage, blog, or newsletter.

Use the text below – or modify them as you see fit – to share this event on social media or over email

April is the perfect time to spring into motion! Let’s Move in Libraries presents a series of conversations throughout the month. Engage with librarians sharing their experiences working collaboratively with others to promote community health! 🏃💪🍎📚 https://go.uncg.edu/libraryevent

Spring is upon us! It’s a great time to get into motion with Let’s Move in Libraries! Join us throughout the month of April for participatory conversations about working collaboratively with others to promote community health! https://go.uncg.edu/libraryevent

Looking to work in or with public libraries to support community health? Join us for online conversations this April! Hear librarians sharing their experience working collaboratively with others to promote community health! 🏃💪🍎📚 https://go.uncg.edu/libraryevent

Don’t miss these opportunities to learn and network! During the month of April, Let’s Move in Libraries hosts a series of conversations, each featuring 2-4 librarians sharing their experiences working collaboratively with others! Join us! https://go.uncg.edu/libraryevent

Suggested Hashtags

#letsmovenlibraries #letsmove #libraries #publiclibraries #libraryprofessionals #professionaldevelopment #onlinesymposium #library #moveinlibraries #letsmoveinlibs #UNCG #UNCsystem

Images you can use

Feel free to use our logo, or any of the following images.

Square conference logo

Horizontal conference banner, version 1

Horizontal conference banner, version 2

MORE FROM LET’S MOVE IN LIBRARIES

MOVEMENT-BASED PROGRAMS IN PUBLIC LIBRARIES: BEST PRACTICES FROM THE U.S. AND CANADA

LET’S MOVE IN LIBRARIES