In this section, we share examples of best practices in the delivery of community information.
Benefits
of Community Networks ll Best
Practice Thumbnail Sketches ll Profiles
How
Community Organizations Benefit from Community Information
CNs we have studied during the course
of our research serve as powerful examples of what can happen when a community
pools together its resources to better inform the public. We invite you
to explore the stories we have collected below that demonstrate the many
ways in which
electronic CI benefits community organizations.
(Read
more....)
| Best Practice Thumbnail Sketches |
|
| Access
Issues/Digital Divide
Providing information access to underserved populations |
Agency/Local
Government Content
Online features that inform citizens and encourage civic participation |
| Public
Library-Community Network Initiatives
Public libraries that have taken the lead in building and hosting their local community network |
Community
Information Databases
Searchable and browsable collections of local resources, such as clubs, agencies, and businesses |
| Community
Information Services
Libraries' specialized local information services |
Digitized
Collections
Electronic exhibits of community photgraphs, local maps, and historic documents |
| Evaluation
Community information systems' evaluation methods |
Geographic
Information Systems (GIS)
Electronic community mapping |
| Interactive
CI or CN Features
Includes e-government and online reference |
Partnerships
Collaborative efforts to enhance community NonProfit Organizations ll Library Consortia ll Government Agencies ll Public-Private |
| Specialized
Content
Locally-created materials regarding economic development, social services, education, etc. |
Training
Computer and Internet skills building |
CascadeLink
The Multnomah County Library (MCPL) serves
as a point of convergence for government agencies, non-profit organizations,
and educational institutions in the city of Portland. In fact, while the
library stands at the physical center of the city, CascadeLink, the library
supported Community Network, might well be considered its virtual center.
CascadeLink is a regional community network that serves Clackamas, Multnomah
and Washington counties in Oregon and Clark County in Washington (Portland’s
neighbor across the Columbia River). It offers community information organized
by subject, covering such topics as Neighborhoods, Jobs, Arts & Entertainment,
and Elections, among others. The Multnomah County Library's integrated
approach is business as usual for the community’s library. (Read
more...)
NorthStarNet
NorthStarNet (NSN) community network,
a partnership between NSLS and Suburban Library Systems (SLS), is designed
to help bring Chicago's suburban communities together in virtual space
even though they are dispersed in physical space. By linking together 124
communities, NorthStarNet makes life in Chicago's suburbs more cohesive.
(Read
more....)
Three
Rivers Free-Net
"Free to the People"
is something of a mantra for the librarians at the Carnegie Library of
Pittsburgh (CLP). This phrase, originally spoken by Andrew Carnegie, the
library's founder, is the first thing you see as you approach the stone
facade of CLP's main branch. The ideals of community, public service, and
access that the words imply are ones that all public librarians strive
to achieve. Therefore, it is hardly surprising that the Three Rivers Free-Net
(TRFN), an electronic community network funded by the CLP, housed at the
main library, and run by librarians would take these words to heart. (Read
more....)
Community
Resource Database of Long Island
According to George
Elliot there is a synergy between private and public: "There is no private
life which has not been determined by a wider public life." However, in
actual practice, the worlds of the private and the public are oftentimes
decidedly more separate, especially where the private and public sectors
are concerned. This is what makes the Community Resource Database of Long
Island (or CRD) so unusual. (Read
more....)
Queens
Public Library
Nearly one in ten Americans is foreign
born! The U.S. Census Bureau says that between 1990 and 1998, the growth
in the foreign-born population was nearly four times that of the native
population. What do these figures mean for community information providers?
The Queens Borough Public Library in New York has some terrific answers.
(Read
more....)