Role of Public Libraries in Promoting Social Sustainability for the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDG)

An Exploratory Study

Abstract

Libraries are in an excellent position to promote and encourage sustainability research within their campuses. They often act as a central hub for many faculties, ensuring connections across a variety of academic disciplines. Libraries need peace. They originated in settled, peaceful societies; when peace is broken, libraries are threatened. In recent years we have unfortunately seen this demonstrated all too often. Librarians have long been associated with peace movements and organisations devoted to making peace. We also need to distinguish between “negative” and “positive” peace. Negative peace is the absence of war and direct physical violence. Positive peace refers to a situation where conditions conducive to lasting peace, such as social justice and harmony, are cultivated (Kriesberg, 2000). A further useful distinction is that between a static concept of peace as a state (a condition) and a dynamic concept of peace as a process, or processes. Here we think of the processes of cultivating peace (preventing the emergence of destructive conflicts), making peace (de-escalating and resolving conflicts), and keeping and restoring peace (after conflict has ended). All this leads to the realisation that peace-building is not simply about preventing and ending conflict, but about creating conditions that are conducive to peace. This has important implications for the role of librarians. Here we can distinguish seven roles for librarians: informing, promoting, educating, creating resources, empowering, healing and advocating.