Top Action Tips

for Academic Librarians

  • Strategize.

    Incorporate the SDGs into an academic library’s strategic thinking.

  • Advocate for SDGs.

    Identify, review, and re-use work of library associations addressing the SDGs, e.g. products and graphics produced by the American Library Association (ALA)’s SDG Task Force and the International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions (IFLA).

  • Support success.

    Identify and support campus researchers who are already helping make the world a better place—just, healthy, inclusive and sustainable.

  • Share strength.

    Help institutions identify, celebrate and champion relevant research strengths. Share information about areas of SDG strengths with other libraries (local, national, regional, global).

  • Guide patrons.

    LibGuides are already used as a content management system in thousands of academic libraries, bringing together resources on a particular topic. Many examples of up-to-date and excellent SDG LibGuides already exist, e.g., University of Michigan Library.

  • Curate SDG Collections.

    Recruit and support campus and community members to create bespoke, curated collections related to SDGs. For example:

    (1) collaborate with a teacher of adult, immigrant English language students to invite and support the adult language learners in creating collections to offer the community introductions to different cultural knowledge and assets;

    (2) invite people knowledgeable in areas of interest to the campus & community to create collections based on their area of expertise.

  • Refine metadata.

    Promote Knowledge Democracy including elevating the voices of historically unrepresented communities in data processes. Facilitate/support diverse contributions toward producing more inclusive data, and informing policymaking and programs for addressing pressing social issues in a more equitable manner.

  • Cultivate literacy.

    Create educational programming to advance literacy in all key SDG areas including information, data, media, and sustainability.

  • Walk the walk.

    Align with campus sustainability initiatives. These exist on pretty much every campus, often thanks to the great work of students and dedicated staff who help us all see the university as a kind of laboratory where sustainability-friendly practices are encouraged.

  • Opt for open.

    Set the default to open: support open access, open source, open data, etc. Consider science as a global public good, view open science services as essential research infrastructures, governed and owned by the community and funded collectively. Incentivize open science practices among researchers. Invest in capacity building and human capital. Review the UN’s Open Science site.

  • Convene.

    Facilitate open discussion of library’s SDG policies among stakeholders (e.g., collection specialists, students, researchers) and other library users regarding strengths and gaps in library holdings pertinent to individual and collective achievement in particular SDGs and sustainability progress broadly

  • Assess.

    Conduct user (and potential user) research to learn how library patrons go about seeking information on the SDGs.

  • Communicate.

    Share with potential users on campus and in the community the resources available to them regarding the SDGs. Encourage their exploration and use.