Information Communities

Leadership

The leaders of an information community are knowledgeable about access services and employ several strategies to foster the community's growth and health. For example, leaders might collaborate with other organizations to start the information community or to strengthen it; they might work with diverse information providers; they might help people learn how to effectively exploit the resources of the information community through instruction; they might, by placing a high value on community relations, develop effective and innovative ways to communicate across geographical and other barriers; they might use the Internet as an organizing tool; and, if theirs is a formal organization, they might convene partners (before or after connecting on the Internet) and raise funds to support the information community's operations.

Impact

Information communities benefit individuals and groups. For example, constituencies benefit from increased access to information resources, people, and organizations, which leads to increased use of specific kinds of information. Dialogue and communication are increased; collaboration among information providers [Page 658]and constituents and among diverse organizations is increased. When libraries and librarians are involved in an information community, they report improvements in how they are perceived.

Types of Information Communities

Although information communities differ in their primary focus, many can share or relate to a specific geographical area. An example is the Community Resource Database (CRD) of Long Island, New York, which was started in 1989 by a consortium of public and private community agencies in Suffolk County using funds from a New York State grant. County government, private foundations, and the library gradually developed a small database focused on services to children and families into an extensive resource that includes information on a range of health and human services. The consortium that oversees the CRD comprises organizations from government, business, library, health, social service, and educational communities. A steering committee of members from all of these groups guides the database's development. In addition, a business user group offers perspectives on the use of database applications in the workplace. Because the CRD group has representation from the social services community, the expertise of that constituency is reflected in the richness of the database. In addition, by casting a wider net, the CRD received support from across Long Island such that Suffolk and Nassau Counties cooperate in an island-wide service. These county governments join private foundations and the United Way in extending their collaboration and providing substantial financial support to the database. Middle Country Public Library manages the database, which has over 8,000 entries organized using the AIRS Taxonomy of Human Services and is accessible via library computer terminals and on a subscription basis. Subscribers include county and city governments, local businesses, and hospitals, school districts, and not-for-profit groups. Although the different members make different uses of the information, they share a common need for the information.

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