Sustainability in Library Collection Development: Introducing a Green Audit Template

Jessie Major 

Citation: 

McCord, D., Cassady, S., Roman, P., Cato, J., & Mantz, E. (2025). Sustainability in Library Collection Development: Introducing a Green Audit Template. Canadian Journal of Academic Librarianship / Revue Canadienne De Bibliothéconomie Universitaire, 11, 1–18. https://doi.org/10.33137/cjal-rcbu.v11.43852   

Summary:

This project presents an original 'Green Audit' template to determine how environmentally sustainable an academic publisher is. Publishers are judged based on environmental practices, current impact, and future commitments. A case study of 16 international publishers examines the availability of information, geographic differences, commitments and compliance, materials, transportation, and infrastructure. The results of such a Green Audit can help LIS professionals develop collections which meet sustainability goals and lower their institution's carbon footprint. 

Evaluation:

I was immediately intrigued by the idea of a 'Green Audit' for evaluating a publisher or collection's overall sustainability. I think libraries are often thought of as inherently 'green' or ecologically sustainable because providing access to resources like books cuts down on the overall material over-consumption of goods. While this may be true to some level, just being a 'more sustainable' option than individuals all buying their books does not guarantee that our overall collection is truly sustainable. I also have not come across many discussions of sustainability as it pertains to library collection development, even though environmental practices are becoming more important in other fields. I think the article overall provides an insightful, customizable evaluation technique to consider when planning collection development.