Working with the United States State Department and the International Center of Syracuse, the Fayetteville Free Library (FFL) had the honor of hosting visitors from five libraries from the country of Belarus. The Belarus Libraries visited the FFL to learn about innovation and leadership through community engagement. The visit included tours of the FFL Fab Lab and makerspaces along with an hour of sharing strategies with FFL Executive Director, Sue Considine.
In 2011, the Fayetteville Free Library was the first public library in the country to add a makerspace (The Atlantic March 11, 2016). A makerspace is a public area designed to provide the community with the tools and equipment that is not readily available to individuals. Since 2011 countless libraries throughout the world have looked to the FFL for leadership and advice as they work to iterate and innovate in their own communities.
The FFL offers weekly innovation tours for individuals and organizations from diverse industries to share innovation and community engagement strategies. To schedule an innovation tour contact Sue Considine at sconsidine@fflib.org and visit the FFL website at www.fflib.org/make.