Libraries Help Bring Together the People of Medellin, Colombia
Libraries are typically seen as places of learning and knowledge. But in Medellin, Colombia, a city once fractured by violence, the library has become a powerful symbol for community building.
In the early 2000s, government officials, community leaders, and residents came together to build a new future for their city. Their plan included using technology to increase the transparency of government, develop a competitive business environment, and improve education. Public libraries became part of that equation, offering access to computer equipment and training, educational programs, book collections, and a host of cultural offerings.
The Fundación Empresas Públicas de Medellín (EPM Foundation), which is responsible for managing the Network of Public Libraries (NPL) that serves Medellin and the metropolitan area, is the recipient of the 2009 Access to Learning Award. The EPM Foundation is being recognized for its innovative use of technology in public libraries to promote community development and empower citizens with the skills and tools they need to improve their communities, and their lives.
Broad Community Access and Extensive Programs Narrow the Digital Divide
Among the NPL’s 34 libraries are five library parks, known as “hearts of knowledge.” Located in some of Medellin’s most marginalized communities, these library parks have become cultural centers, providing broad, community access to information and educational resources.
While the libraries are free and open to everyone, they make a special effort to reach out to traditionally underserved groups—low-income individuals, housewives, and the elderly. They have also helped open a new world to Medellin’s young people. Since many of the libraries are within walking distance of schools, about 70 percent of patrons are students who see the libraries as after-school destinations where they can do homework, check their e-mail, and socialize with friends.
Juan Camilo Vivares Lizcano, a ninth-grader living in Santo Domingo, has experienced first-hand the dramatic changes the library has made in his community. “There were very few resources for children, for teenagers,” said Juan Camilo. “Now, with the computers and the books, they have found something to do. The violence has gone down a lot.”
Juan Camilo goes to the library to research his favorite subject—motorcycles—and to do his homework. Before the library was built, he had to pay for access to computers and the Internet, but now those services are free. “The libraries they've built in all the neighborhoods must help a lot of people, children and everybody, to get ahead, to learn and to improve their way of life,” Juan Camilo said.
The network’s libraries offer a range of training programs, including how to use the computer and access information online, and English for the Internet. In addition to the technology training programs, special courses cater to students, children, and entrepreneurs.
Hugo Patiño, a 50-year-old cook who came to Medellin after violence displaced him from his home in northern Colombia, is one of the many people whose lives have been transformed by the city’s libraries. Hugo hoped to find a minimum wage job at a local restaurant, but the staff at the library recommended he take a computer and industry course to help him learn new skills.
Hugo had never worked on a computer before. But after learning how to use the computer to create cost estimates, keep books, and market a business online, he is now inspired to open his own restaurant. “At this moment of my life, it has changed 100 percent,” said Hugo. “I am very thankful to the library because through it I saw the light, the clarity, and the opportunities.”
NPL’s expanded services have helped boost the number of library visitors from 90,000 per month to more than 500,000. The network has also helped narrow the digital divide in Medellin and the metropolitan area, reducing the individual-to-computer ratio from 140 to 1 in 2005, to 47 to 1 in 2008. Through a Web portal and online catalogue that attracts 150,000 visits per month, the network has brought access to information to every corner of the city, allowing even the smallest community-based library to have the same information as the main public library.
Libraries: A Place to Connect and Learn
NPL has shifted people’s perceptions of libraries from traditional “bookshelves” to dynamic centers—places that offer tools for personal development and economic improvement, places that create a sense of local community and provide a connection to the global community.
By bringing citizens together in a communal setting, libraries are encouraging unity and learning. Historian and library coordinator Gabriel Jaime Vanegas said, “We believe that you can learn better if you’re part of a community.” Now, according to Gabriel, the young people of his district have a place where they can interact with the rest of the world, and that place is their library.
Watch the 2009 Access to Learning Award Slideshow