Public Libraries

Call for Submissions

We’re building a new platform to share real-life examples of how to improve access to technology and the internet – and the skills to use them – for young people in America. The goal is to help communities find approaches that fit their needs to then adapt for themselves. Do you have a story of how a community has tackled the digital divide among young people in America? Share it now.

A tablet screen depicts a sample page from “The Kids Are Online” website. Below the tablet reads, “This is a fictional story used for representational purposes only.” On the screen reads the headline, “Maine-based Nonprofit Builds Computer Labs & Donates Thousands of Computers.” An illustration besides the headline depicts a parent and child sitting on a couch looking at a laptop computer together. The lower portion of the screen has a box that defines the “Problem,” “Provide computers to low-income families and combat digital illiteracy with coding classes.” It also defines the “Solution,” "Collect and refurbish computers to donate to underserved communities in the U.S., and provide digital literacy classes to young people.”

Beyond Connectivity: How California Libraries Can Leverage Bandwidth to Advance Community Goals

With a focus on California Public libraries, this report suggests how library broadband can be used to address statewide goals.

The Grand Opportunity: Creating Community, Equity and Innovation with Houston Public Libraries

This report details how city agencies, businesses and other stakeholders can more effectively use libraries to strengthen opportunity, equity and innovative problem-solving across Houston.

Libraries 2018 Year in Review

Libraries play an important role in areas that are priorities for communities, like civic engagement, workforce development, education and democratic discourse. 

Future of Libraries: 2017 in Review and 2018 Preview

This year the Aspen Institute Dialogue on Public Libraries convened and facilitated a successful series of dialogues and other conversations across the country to advance the work that public libraries are doing to address community challenges and to transform for the digital age.

The Role of Libraries in Advancing Community Goals

Follow-up research using the results from a nationwide survey in the Spring of 2016 to examine the evolving role of public libraries in advancing community goals.

Future of Libraries: 2016 in Review and 2017 Preview

The Aspen Institute Dialogue on Public Libraries launched a series of initiatives in 2016 that are creating new opportunities and resources for transforming public libraries. Exciting new projects will continue in 2017.

Re-envisioning Winter Park Library

The Dialogue on Public Libraries in collaboration with the Winter Park Public Library released a report designed to spark new thinking and action to transform libraries for the 21st Century.

Libraries are Bridging the Digital Divide in Cities

Public libraries offer more than just books — for many Americans, they are the sole provider of digital access.