Information literacy for a multicultural society: Some public libreries' endeavours

Abstract

The public library, as an open-ended vehicle of knowledge, is an essential support for ongoing education, for the cultural development of the individual, and for social groups within a particular environment. In today’s information and knowledge society, public libraries are faced with new challenges: the emergence of the already much-commented ’digital divide’, which has its origins in previously existing and unresolved inequalities, cultural globalisation, the new multicultural society, etc. In their proactive role, public libraries can play a crucial part in the integration of minority groups in the host society through the promotion of cultural interchange and training programmes in information literacy. At the same time, they can serve as a forum for intercultural learning on the part of the host community. We examine these aspects and outline a number of interesting projects implemented in order to promote intercultural information literacy starting out from today’s public libraries, with particular stress on what the citizens need if they are to interact with information and knowledge in an effective fashion and in the context of the importance of respecting difference