Libraries as Boundary Spanning Organizations

Robert J. Sternberg, dean of the School of Arts and Sciences at Tufts University, argues that almost any serious problem at a global, national or local level requires problem-based, interdisciplinary thinking. Sternberg writes that students learn to think in terms of silos, but do not learn how to connect the silos of learning. Much the same can be said about the way that institutions work. Real solutions often require action that is interdisciplinary and multi-faceted.
Is this a role for libraries? Libraries already serve and have relationships with interdisciplinary audiences. Libraries deal with both profit and non-profit institutions. They work with organizations that focus on senior and those that work with children and teens. Library work supports economic development, job seekers, retirees, and local, state and federal government agencies. All of them have relationships with the public library. The public library that decides to embrace an entrepreneurial approach to address community challenges will find itself well-positioned to fill the role of a boundary- spanning organization. The resultant activity will move the library to center of community issues, rather than the periphery.