Connection and belonging are essential for individual well-being and the health of our communities. But in recent years, loneliness, disconnection, and isolation have swept through the country. According to the US Surgeon General’s recent 

Healthy Places by Design is a nonprofit consulting organization dedicated to advancing community-led action and implementing proven, place-based strategies to improve health and wellbeing for all. By focusing on the built environment and social facto...

In recent years, society has focused more on neurodiversity – for example, you hear it mentioned in popular media and movies, as more diverse characters are represented in mainstream media. New research has led to an expanded understanding of neurodi...

At the Charles County Public Library (CCPL) in Maryland, staff started looking at the opioid crisis through a lens of understanding and empathy to serve their community. Karen Wilson, the Peer Outreach Coordinator at CCPL, shared that learning about ...

Crisis management and planning have become an increasing focus for the staff of libraries, archives, and museums. This illustrative example demonstrates how a remote Alaska library consortium balances connecting the community to information and resou...

As community hubs, libraries can play an important role in promoting public health and wellness initiatives, including food and cooking literacy programs. But eating well involves more than just quality ingredients and culinary chops—joy, creativity,...

Providing the space and resources for a community to find both accurate and timely information is core to public library work. One way that this can be accomplished includes engaging with subject matter experts and partners to offer programming and o...

On the shores of the Garden State, staff at the Atlantic City Free Public Library (ACFPL) started a program to provide harm reduction resources and support on a range of health-related needs, including opioid misuse. The project was led by Melissa Mc...

May is National Bike Month, and libraries across the country are helping their community members hop onto two wheels to celebrate. Cycling programs are just one of many ways that libraries are helping community members stay active. As local hubs, lib...

Library gardens offer a great way for community members to come together to learn, grow, and contribute towards a healthy, balanced environment. And creating a vibrant community green space or gardening program doesn’t have to be complicated. Across ...