WLTC Team Spotlight: Lake Geneva Expands Resources, Reduces Waste with Community Read

Written by Dawn Tevis

Wisconsin Libraries Transforming Communities (WLTC) program provides a pathway by which public library and community teams develop and establish sustainable partnerships. These partnerships highlight the vital role libraries play within a community and the importance of community engagement. This series of 7 weekly articles is the result of the creative relationships and initiatives created by the WLTC 2020-21 cohort, libraries, and community organizations. The results of their work include a deeper level of understanding of and responsiveness to each partner’s needs and resources. Together, the groups are shaping one another’s evolution and helping to ensure Wisconsin libraries continue to serve at the forefront of equity and innovation within local communities.

Lake Geneva Expands Resources, Reduces Waste with Community Read

• Emily Kornak: Director, Lake Geneva Public Library
• Jill Rodriguez: Member; Rotary Club of Lake Geneva, City of Lake Geneva Avian Committee, Lakeshores Library System Board of Trustees
• Kristen Anderson: WLTC Coach, WRLS Library System

Community members responded to Team Lake Geneva’s information-gathering initiatives, inspired by WLTC training, with resounding resolve, urging the team to design programming that addresses issues of environmental responsibility and ecological awareness. Conservation, water quality, and sustainability topped the list of concerns presented by survey and conversation respondents.

The town’s identity as a tourist destination can seemingly function at odds with resident values. Lake Geneva Public Library and community organizations, however, strive to balance the needs and expectations of both groups, addressing deeply rooted concerns, while making their municipality as welcoming as possible to visitors. In this case, those needs and expectations converged.

“It was interesting to see this topic rise locally and cross all kinds of demographic groups, as well as our resident, business, and visitor groups,” said Emily Kornak, Director of the Lake Geneva Public Library.  “Just knowing libraries are doing work like this is both inspiring and motivating, and we will keep pushing to see what we can do and how we can expand our presence and serve as a deeper resources in our community." 

Team Lake Geneva created a community read project based on the book Rethinking the Bins: Your Guide to Smart Recycling and Less Household Waste by Julia Goldstein. They purchased 75 signed copies to distribute to interested community members and in only a couple of weeks filed requests for most of them. The team also scheduled a Zoom presentation by the author with time for Q&A. A local city council member attended and followed up by scheduling a tour of the community’s waste management provider. The team also displayed the pages of picture books Outside In and We Are Water Protectors on stands along outdoor paths for families to enjoy during walks in Library Park.

Kornak credits WLTC organizers’ ability to adapt and shift to virtual trainings and meetings during a pandemic for her team’s focus and success. “I think this particular cohort, with its pandemic experiences and challenges, will be an especially resilient and adaptable one,” Kornak said. “I think we’ve all seen new aspects of how libraries are important and gathered some new ideas of how we can support our communities, and Wisconsin librarianship will definitely be stronger for this work.”

See more posts on the WI Libraries for Everyone page.