AMU Faculty Member Delivers Talk on Emerging Role of Public Libraries

Aligarh : Dr. Muzamil Mushtaq, Assistant Professor in the Department of Library and Information Science, Aligarh Muslim University, presented an talk online on “Social Entrepreneurship and Community Building by Public Libraries”, in an International Conference organised by the Iran Public Libraries Foundation and the Scientific Association for the Promotion of Public Libraries of Iran held in Mashhad, Iran.

Dr Mushtaq delineated the role of libraries that have been continuously changing with respect to the needs and demands of the users in the modern society.

He opined that the role of public libraries in advancing and augmenting the small-scale business is the new landscape coming in the way to public libraries. “The public libraries have designed into innovation and business centres, innovation labs, maker spaces and library of things, peer learning and networking, one-to-one consultation and reference support, counselling and mentoring, offering self-paced courses including kitchen libraries which offer workshop and training programmes on cooking” Dr Mushtaq said.

He presented a three-tier model for re-designing the public libraries and talked about the strategizing of specific programmes for the local and small-scale business that can be offered to the local communities including the service models, partnerships with chamber of commerce, NGOs, business centers and outreach programs by the public libraries.