The CFLA-FCAB was among eight Canadian organizations awarded environmental education funding by Environment and Climate Change Canada. With this foundational investment of $23,000 from the federal government, the CFLA-FCAB’s Climate Action Committee developed a robust suite of resources for libraries across Canada. These resources are designed not only to educate library professionals and information workers about the pivotal role libraries play in addressing the climate crisis, but also to empower the sector to advocate for and elevate the profile of libraries as leaders in climate action and environmental literacy.
The resources aim to:
- Equip library associations and professionals with the knowledge and tools needed to position libraries as proactive agents in climate action initiatives;
- Create scalable, adaptable educational content and tools for public, school, and academic libraries, ensuring that diverse communities can access and benefit from climate literacy efforts;
- Build capacity within the library sector, enabling CFLA-FCAB and its member associations to advocate effectively for libraries as central hubs for environmental education, community engagement, and climate action leadership.
Through these efforts, the CFLA-FCAB seeks to advance climate literacy across the country and strengthen the ability of Canadian libraries to respond to the climate crisis, fostering a culture of education, advocacy, and action within the communities they serve.
- Climate Action Brief for Libraries / Exposé sur la lutte contre les changements climatiques pour les bibliotheques: Prepared for Canadian libraries and library associations, this brief highlights the role of libraries in climate action and outline how the library sector can incorporate climate action into our work.
- National Survey Summary Report (French & English): This report summarizes the results of an exploratory survey conducted (in French and English) by the CFLA-FCAB Climate Action Committee (CAC) in Spring of 2024. The purpose of this survey was to solicit library workers’ guidance in order to determine how the CAC may best support climate action in the Canadian library community.
- Climate Action Guide (French & English): This guide is written to support any library practitioner (public, academic, or special) in creating lasting community relationships in the face of the climate crisis. It presents principles of sustained collaboration that will be useful in a broad variety of contexts and highly relevant to all climate action and climate mitigation efforts.
- Climate Café (French & English): This aim of a Climate Café program template is designed to support libraries in offering a safe, supportive, and inclusive space for community members to discuss feelings and thoughts around climate change.
