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Contact Information Canadian Urban Libraries Council 349 Main Street Bloomfield, ON K0K 1G0 Phone: 416-699-1938 Fax: 1-866-211-2999 E-mail: culc.ca |
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The Canadian Urban Libraries Council / Conseil des Bibliothèques Urbaines du Canada (CULC/CBUC) was formally incorporated in 2008. For more than 25 years CULC/CBUC has met, and worked under different names to better library service in Canada’s populated urban areas.
Mission
To facilitate advocacy, collaboration, and research that strengthens and promotes the value of Canada’s urban libraries as integral to a vibrant democracy, a strong economy, and thriving communities.
Focus Areas and Objectives
- Research: Create, analyze, and disseminate information that will further the mission of the organization.
- Capacity Building: Strengthen the capacity of urban libraries to anticipate and respond to the needs of the community.
- Knowledge Transfer and Exchange: Strengthen our ability to transfer knowledge, share information with CULC/CBUC, and to advance the urban agenda.
- Organizational Resiliency: Focus on capacity building initiatives in order to strengthen the resources required for the organization to meet its mandate.
CULC/CBUC is committed to the strengthening of vibrant urban communities through building the capacity of Canada’s urban libraries. Our members collectively serve more than 7.5 million active users who annually visit our 622 locations and virtual services. In 2018 we loaned over 200 million items, and had more than 550 million uses in person and online. CULC/CBUC member libraries expended over $110 million on collections including $11 million on digital resources. More than 12,000 library workers are employed by CULC/CBUC member libraries.
More than 77% of all Canadians are served by a CULC/CBUC member library. The activity in CULC/CBUC libraries comprises more than 80% of Canada’s public library activity.
Major Programs
Public Library Leaders
In the 21st Century, public libraries face unique issues that warrant focused thought, research, discussion, and visioning. The Public Library Leaders (PLLeaders) program, a partnership of the iSchool at the University of Toronto and the Canadian Urban Libraries Council / Conseil des Bibliothèques Urbaines du Canada (CULC/CBUC), is about the future of public libraries and the changing communities they serve.
One eRead Canada / Un livrel Canada
CULC/CBUC has created a Canada-wide digital reading program open to participation from all public libraries. The program is similar to a “one book, one city” program, on a national scale and in digital format.