LOUISE SCHAPER

Louise Schaper: 'I'm coming out of the closet as a 'glass half empty person'  as opposed to half full. She said its the same as a defensive pessimist - those who want to know what's  going to happen  next and how to best prepare for it, => those who achieve the most. She said 'I'm a defensive pessimist someone who always looks at the horizon and is taking steps to be prepared'. Schaper quotes:
' Bill McKibben 'eaarth' we're  living in a world where the balance has already tipped  and libraries can play a role." The are how ever 3 problems hindering us in this role. The 3 problems:
Problem 1 - Global Warming and Climate Change.
Problem 2 - Human condition, short sightedness and aversion to change.
Problem 3 - Library budgets and the lack of $$
Schaper asked 'what % of budgets are spent on heating, cooling, lighting, etc..  in the USA it's a lot $175 per sq foot per year' NZ power is set to go up in price by about 9% next year.
Reduce energy use = save money for training staff, etc.
Do libraries have a role in solving global warming - yes absolutely, going green is
not 'mission drift' Schaper: argues that by going green you free up more $$
to spend on direct customer service, providing your local body doesn't require the
savings to be  given back. So going green makes finacial sense!
I like the way she said "Mission strengthening" Join the green bandwagon tweeps!
Save money. Save the world.
She then talked about how to reduce climate impact in your library in 3 steps -
 people, purpose, process three steps to reduce climate impact of your library.
Green-washing: misleading people about environmental practices here's a link to info about
'Green Washing' http://bit.ly/118su
She then went through a process of 'how to align green actions with values'
Thinking green: do you contract your cleaners to work at night?
Have PCs on 24/7? Use plastic library cards?
Make your recycling bins attractive and part of your building design, rather than ugly
plastic bins stuck in a corner
Schaper: asks' do you have kermit the frog here on sesame street?'
then plays an audio clip of a frog call #soundslikeagirlscream
People: find green champions in ur library & unleash them, energise them to help you suceed.
idea - offer a library card that customers can purchase with the fee going towards funding
greening the library. Put green in writing with policy, startegic plan, goals and objectives,
values, measurement systems
Proess: practices products services. Transform cleaning, practise green cleaning, LED lighting,
 lighten IT energy use,
 'I don't think we should be serving junk food at libraries or bottled water, use real
dishes/cups and install a tap'and use  e-mail newletter or RSS feeds for constant contact
Library book return dropoff by ATMs - partner with banks. Community garden @ library
Libraries serve as symbols of the attitudes and values of their creators....
Sustainable libraries website http://trunc.it/ctz1u