Environmental scan of equity, diversity, and inclusion practices in collection development

Abstract

Many academic libraries are exploring how to rectify the historical and ongoing exclusion of works by and about marginalized communities in library collections. Although some libraries have committed to changing their practices to reflect their values, few libraries publicly share Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion (EDI) policies specific to collection development. Moreover, existing policies fail to articulate goals and values specific to institutional context and collections. In spring 2023, Western Washington University Libraries formed a working group to conduct an environmental scan and explore how other libraries are operationalizing equity, diversity, and inclusion in their collection development practices. This paper summarizes the findings of that environmental scan and provides recommendations for libraries beginning this work. To successfully operationalize their values and initiate meaningful change, libraries should articulate institution-specific collection development objectives, embed them in existing collections procedures, and regularly assess progress.