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As we head into this autumnal period we are confronted with a new crisis: cost of living. With spiralling prices many Europeans are facing further risk of falling into poverty. Yet again, we see public libraries being safe havens to those who need it most - whether it is accessing information and resources or providing a warm space. It’s a reminder to us yet again of the need for future-facing strategic planning and the need to develop agile, and flexible teams to respond.

As always, we extend an open hand to all those who wish to collaborate and join forces, don’t hesitate to get in touch.

- The PL2030 Team

News

PL2030 at the Green Cities with Citizens event
On September 8, Ilona was part of the panel during the Green Cities with Citizens policy event, promoting the role of public libraries in citizen engagement. This event marked the end of the JRC-led BiodiverCities project. Find out more about this event and the BiodiverCities in this blog post!

Join us at the European Commission’s Public Participation and Deliberative Democracy Festival
We will be hosting a session at the European Commission's Public Participation and Deliberative Democracy all about the democracy gym developed by Aarhus Public Libraries! Check out the programme to see what will be happening during this festival and we hope to see you on Oct 20 at 13:30 CET!
Registration is required to attend in person, none if you watch the livestream.

Sibiu Central Library joins Lighthouse Libraries
The Astra Library in Sibiu joined the Lighthouse Libraries! We're excited to have them join the network and take part in all the work we do. Find all the Lighthouse Libraries on our website!

Project updates

"Opening the door of possibilities for public libraries" project funded!
We're glad to announce that our project application under the Erasmus+ Key Action 2 Cooperation Partnerships strand was funded! This Partnership for Cooperation brings PL2030, EBLIDA, and PiNA together to develop a training programme for libraries across Europe to learn about EU funding opportunities! We'll be leading on this project so watch this space for more information!

"Future of Europe for Public Libraries" project funded!
This project we're leading on aims to further the thematic work we do with the Lighthouse Libraries network and is funded by the Erasmus+ Key Action 2 Small-Scale Partnerships initiative. From digital to green transitions to democratic life, we want to build a common understanding between libraries in Europe and develop advocacy messaging for libraries to use. We'll be doing this project together with De Krook Library, Aarhus Public Libraries, and the Lisbon Library Network. Keep an eye out for updates!

European Citizen Science project kicks off
We’re proud to announce our participation in the Horizon Europe project "European Citizen Science"! Over the next four years we’ll be taking part in raising awareness of citizen science across Europe with the European Citizen Science Association leading on this project. Additionally we’ll be taking part in capacity building actions for libraries in this field. Watch this space for more information and calls for participation!

EU items for your attention

Digital Services Act package goes to Member States
The European Commission's Digital Services Act package is made up of the Digital Services Act and the Digital Markets Act. These were adopted by the European Parliament in July 2022 with the Digital Markets Act being approved by the Council of the EU. From then on, the Digital Services Act package will go to Member States to be enforced based on timelines set out in the package. Find out more about this legislative package.

DESI 2022 is out
The Digital Economy and Society Index is out for 2022. This index summarises indicators on Europe’s digital performance and tracks the progress of EU countries. Find out how the EU is doing for all things digital.

New Creative Europe initiative: Culture Moves Europe
The Culture Moves Europe action is becoming a permanent fixture in the Creative Europe programme! This €21 million mobility scheme for artists and cultural programmes will support their mobility abroad, co-production, co-creation, and presentation of their art to new audiences. Calls are set to come out this autumn 2022 so watch this space for more information!👀

Piqued our curiosity

Libraries as safe havens during the cost of living crisis
Public libraries have always offered warm safe spaces to members of their community and with the cost of living crisis, it is likely that more people will use libraries to navigate this period. As with COVID, libraries are finding ways to support their community during these challenging times. Libraries Connected is calling for support from central governments to meet these budget needs. Read the full press release here.

Small Libraries are Making a Big Impact
In just a week, the two African library innovators, Kaltuma Sama from Kenya and Peter Balaba from Uganda, shared knowledge and ideas during visits to three small rural libraries (in Codlea, Dumbrăvița and Pietrari) and two large county libraries (in Brașov and Târgoviște). They also took part in the Occupy Library 2022 conference in Bucharest, where they gave spark talks about services introduced by their libraries to address community needs. Both were impressed by how small libraries with limited resources in Romania are making a big impact in their communities.
Read on about their experience in this EIFL blog post!

Our read of the month

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