OTTAWA – Canadian Library Month begins today, just one day after the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation. Although during this month we celebrate the services, resources, and opportunities that libraries can offer their communities, we also take the time to reflect on the ways that libraries have a significant role to play to advance reconciliation.
Library Month is an opportunity for libraries and library partners across Canada to raise awareness of the valuable benefits libraries play: promoting learning, connecting communities, supporting inclusion and literacy.
This October, Ottawa Public Library (OPL) will be highlighting its important role in countering misinformation and disinformation and to support information literacy skills. OPL’s theme this year is a call to action: “Read between the lines!”. Given the sheer volume of mis- and disinformation in a world characterized by “fake news” and information overload, libraries can help customers think critically, increase their awareness and raise their ability to seek, find, and interpret information.
All month, in various ways, OPL will be reaching out to remind the public of the abundance of high-quality resources available at the Library with a free OPL card. OPL is a trustworthy source of credible information, diverse informed perspectives and helpful expertise.
Active library card users and customers who engage in the conversation about information literacy and participate in Library Month activities both online (on OPL social media channels and website) and in-branch can win a limited-edition “thinking cap” emblazoned with the “Read between the lines!” message.
All new cardholders who sign up for a library card during Library Month will be rewarded with their choice of a locally-made OPL fanny pack or book bag and so will the person who referred them (while supplies last). Ottawa residents can obtain an OPL library card online or in person at any of OPL’s 33 branches.
Library Month is also a way of saying thanks to OPL customers and champions. Everyone in Ottawa is invited to visit any of the Library’s 33 branch locations or browse the OPL website for reading suggestions, events, news or to browse the catalogue to access OPL’s remarkable collections. There’s no better time to take a closer look and discover about this amazing FREE resource. Why not recommend the Library to a friend who may not have a library card and urge them to sign up — online or in person.
Special thanks to the Friends of Ottawa Public Library Association for their generous support to Library Month, and to OPL all year long!