Another great Win-Win strategy....

LIBRARIES as ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT TOOL!

Sometimes there is grant money, etc. for libraries - especially if they partner with local economic developers. Your local librarians, in fact, might be on top of the grants scene from their own perspective. Also, wouldn't this be a nice way to help your local library to approach donors??

p.s. Even your small local libraries are often remarkable windows into the info people need to start a business...

Entrepreneur up! /NK

Libraries and Rural Development

If you think about key institutions involved in revitalizing rural America, you probably don’t put libraries at the top of your list. Yet, as a new Illinois Institute for Rural Affairs study notes, libraries and librarians are key assets in many rural communities. Public libraries serve as community centers, but they can also contribute to local economic development efforts. This is especially true when it comes to serving local entrepreneurs who can benefit greatly from marketing research and other materials available at local libraries. The study reviews several case studies of effective programs (for example, in Lancaster County, PA), and offers tips for how libraries can be better partners in support of local entrepreneurs and their companies.

Download the Winter 2008 Illinois Institute for Rural Affairs Rural Research Report, “Public Libraries and Community Economic Development: Partnering for Success,” by Christine Hamilton-Pennell.

Here's the link directly: http://www.iira.org/pubsnew/publications/IIRA_RRR_688.pdf