Dimensions,dynamics and determinants of information services for sustainable development: Exploring the implications for libraries and library professionals

Abstract

Background

The United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) provide a universal framework for addressing global economic, social, and environmental challenges. Recognizing the centrality of access to information in achieving these goals, the International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions (IFLA) has advocated for the critical roles of libraries and information services in the actualization of this developmental agenda.

Purpose

The paper theoretically x-ray how SDGs can be actualized through information services, and what this implies for library and information science professionals.

Methods

The paper adopted a conceptual research methodology based on the analysis of current literature and policy documents. In order synthesize knowledge on information services for sustainable development, the article focuses on secondary sources rather than primary sources.

Discussion

The paper explored how information services across various dimensions address sustainable development. The discussion highlights the multifaceted contributions of information services to sustainable development across social, economic, and environmental domains. It also examines the factors that determine to the extent to which information services can contribute to the realization of sustainable development.

Conclusion

The paper concluded that information services are vital to the actualization of SDGs across multiple dimensions and dynamics. However, the effectiveness of libraries and information professionals in advancing sustainable development through information services delivery depends on addressing critical determining factors.

Keywords

dimensions of sustainability information services libraries sustainable development sustainable development goals

Get full access to this article

View all access options for this article.

References

Adi Kelil

Girma

Hiruy

(2020) Access and use of agricultural information in Africa: conceptual review. Information and Knowledge Management 10(7): 1–5.

ALA (2024). Core values of librarianship. https://www.ala.org/advocacy/advocacy/intfreedom/corevalues

Anyim

(2021) The impact of libraries on sustainable economic development in Nigeria. Electronic Research Journal of Behavioural Sciences 4: 127–136.

Appleton

Woolley

(2023) The role of academic libraries in climate action. New Review of Academic Librarianship 29(2): 117–122.

Aregbesola

Owolabi

Adebisi

(2024) Going to the cities: the strategic roles of public libraries in promoting sustainable development goals. Public Library Quarterly 43(3): 367–384.

Barclay

(2017) Space and the social worth of public libraries. Public Library Quarterly 36(4): 267–273.

Barron

Cord

Cuesta

, et al. (2023) Social Sustainability and the Development Process: What is it, Why Does it Matter, and How Can it be Enhanced? Policy Research Working. Paper 10487: 1-84. World Bank Group. https://openknowledge.worldbank.org/server/api/core/bitstreams/dfae25f4-d07e-4830-bc42-d3bbbc0ae2e3/content

Benson

Akpom

Onyam

(2019) Provision of target-specific library services for the realization of sustainable development goals (SDGs) in developing countries. Information Impact: Journal of Information and Knowledge Management 10(1): 74–91. https://www.ajol.info/index.php/iijikm/article/view/188369

Benson

Obichere

Orisakwe

(2024) Collaborative and partnership options for promoting health information literacy in rural communities: exploring the challenges. Communicate: Journal of Library and Information Science 26(1): 315–326. https://www.cjolis.org/index.php/cjolis/article/view/98

10.

Chukwuji

Tsafe

Sule

, et al. (2018) Awareness, access and utilization of family planning information in Zamfara state, Nigeria. Library Philosophy and Practices (e-journal) 17717: 1–15. Available at: https://digitalcommons.unl.edu/libphilprac/1771/

11.

Click

Wiley

Houlihan

(2021) “We’re a little different:” business information literacy perspectives on the ACRL framework. Communications in Information Literacy 15(1): 24–56.

12.

de FineLicht

Folland

(2019) Defining “social sustainability”: towards a sustainable solution to the conceptual confusion. Etikk i praksis. Nordic Journal of Applied Ethics 13(2): 21–39.

13.

Devi

Gupta

Arahova

(2024) IFLA’s role in mobilizing libraries towards achieving the sustainable development goals: a review. IFLA Journal 50(3): 644–656.

14.

Dina

(2015) What is law librarianship? Law Librarianship in Academic Libraries, pp. 1–15.

15.

Ekere

Eze

Benson

, et al. (2019) Medical libraries and the provision of health information services in Nigeria: aligning with sustainable development goals (SDGs). Journal of Applied Information Science and Technology 12(2): 171–178. https://www.jaistonline.org/12vol2/20.pdf

16.

Elsawy

Youssef

(2023) Economic sustainability: meeting needs without compromising future generations. International Journal of Economics and Finance 15(10): 23–31.

17.

Engström

Rivano Eckerdal

(2019) Public libraries as promoters of social sustainability? In: Proceedings of CoLIS, the Tenth International Conference on Conceptions of Library and Information Science, Ljubljana, Slovenia, 16–19 June 2019. Information Research 24(4). paper colis 1914. https://InformationR.net/ir/24-4/colis/colis1914.html

18.

European Union (2020) Social sustainability – concepts and benchmarks. https://www.europarl.europa.eu/RegData/etudes/ATAG/2020/648783/IPOL_ATA(2020)648783_EN.pdf

19.

Ezeabasili

Umeji

(2018) Inclusive library services: an imperative for academic libraries in Nigeria. NAU Journal of library and Information Science 3(1): 73–78. Available at: https://journals.unizik.edu.ng/lrj/article/view/54

20.

Idiegbeyan-Ose

Owolabi

Segun-Adeniran

, et al. (2018) Information provision by public library to agricultural extension agents in a developing country. Public Library Quarterly 38(1): 103–115.

21.

Igbinovia

Aiyebelehin

(2023) Libraries as facilitators of digital inclusion for sustainable development: the Nigerian experience. Folia Toruniensia 23: 53–73.

22.

Igbinovia

Odelami

(2019) Influence of information availability and use on economic integration of small scale business owners: the role of libraries. Library Philosophy and Practice (e-journal) paper 3569. Available at: https://digitalcommons.unl.edu/libphilprac/3569/

23.

Jeronen

(2023). Economic sustainability. In: Idowu

Schmidpeter

Capaldi

, et al. (eds) Encyclopedia of Sustainable Management. Springer Cham.

24.

Karki

El Asmar

Sasco

, et al. (2024) Public libraries to promote public health and wellbeing: a cross-sectional study of community-dwelling adults. BMC Public Health 24: 1226.

25.

Kaur

Bedi

(2024) The impact of market intelligence on business performance in SMEs: examining the mediating effect of innovativeness. Journal of Logistics, Informatics and Service Science 11(8): 230–250. https://www.aasmr.org/liss/Vol.11/No.8/Vol.11.No.8.14.pdf

26.

Khan

Nafees

Ur Rahman

, et al. (2021) Ecodesigning for ecological sustainability. In: Aftab

Hakeem

(eds) Frontiers in Plant-Soil Interaction. Academic Press.

27.

Kirimi

(2013) Assessment of Women Smallholder Sorghum Farmers Access to Agricultural Information in Mwingi Central District, Kitui County, Kenya. Dissertation for Award Degree of MSc at Nairobi University, p. 59.

28.

Kiseleva

Karmanov

Korotkov

, et al. (2018) Risk management in business: concept, types, evaluation criteria. Revista ESPACIOS 39(27): 1–18. Available at: https://www.revistaespacios.com/a18v39n27/a18v39n27p18.pdf

29.

Kolawole

DTO

Oladokun

(2024) Sustainable practices in Nigerian libraries: exploring the role of green libraries in promoting eco-friendly reading spaces. International Journal of Knowledge Content Development and Technology 15(3): 7–22. Available at: https://ijkcdt.net/xml/42075/42075.pdf

30.

Kornfeind

(2022) Advocacy and action: How libraries across the globe are addressing climate change . World Libraries 26(1): 1–14. Available at: https://worldlibraries.dom.edu/index.php/worldlib/article/view/594/683

31.

Stahl

Knotts

(2018) Emerging roles of health information professionals for library and information science curriculum development: a scoping review. Journal of the Medical Library Association: JMLA 106(4): 432–444.

32.

Mnubi-Mchombu

(2013) The role of libraries in supporting human rights. In: Namibia library symposium, Held at Safari Hotel & Conference Centre, Windhoek, Namibia, 7-9 October, 2013, pp. 313–322. https://repository.unam.edu.na/server/api/core/bitstreams/63460f1c-2f88-4f32-9a90-00b7882a0e27/content

33.

Moumtzoglou

(2019) The science of individuality and tailored M-health communication. In: Moumtzoglou

(ed) Mobile Health Applications for Quality Healthcare Delivery. IGI Global, pp. 213–234.

34.

Nafría

(2012) Information: a multidimensional reality. In: Currás

Lloret Romero

(eds) Systems Science and Collaborative Information Systems: Theories, Practices and New Research. IGI Global, pp. 37–70.

35.

Njoku

Chukwu

SAJ

Nwaohiri

, et al. (2022) Fostering literacy through extension services: academic libraries for sustainable development. Research Journal of Library and Information Science 6(1): 9–14.

36.

Nyukorong

(2017) Conducting market research: an aid to organisational decision making. European Scientific Journal 13(10): 1–17.

37.

Ogunmodede

Adio

Aboyade

, et al. (2023) The role of library and information services in achieving sustainable development: issues and challenges. International Journal of Library and Information Science Studies 9(2): 30–40.

38.

Omeluzor

Molokwu

, Dika SI and Anene OE (2023) Factors Affecting the Development of E-Library in Universities in Nigeria. Information Impact: Journal of Information and Knowledge Management 13(2): 26–46. Available at: https://doi.org/10.4314/iijikm.v13i2.3

39.

Omona

(2020) The roles of library and information services in achieving sustainable development goals in Uganda. Library Philosophy and Practice (e-journal) 4018: 1–19. Available at: https://digitalcommons.unl.edu/libphilprac/4018

40.

Otuza

(2022) Rethinking business information as veritable catalyst for organizational competitive advantage. Information Impact: Journal of Information and Knowledge Management 12(2): 137–152.

41.

Pananggilaan Samo

Agcito

(2024) Library Support: Implications on Student Well-being. British Journal of Multidisciplinary and Advanced Studies 5(2): 1–17. Available at: https://doi.org/10.37745/bjmas.2022.0448

42.

Panda

Das

(2022) Role of public libraries in promoting social sustainability for the United Nations sustainable development goals (SDG): an exaloratory study. Library Waves: A Biannual Peer Reviewed Journal of Library and Information Science 8(2): 129–138.

43.

Pierce

Lovrich

Budd

(2016) Social capital, institutional performance, and sustainability in Italy’s regions: still evidence of enduring historical effects? The Social Science Journal 53(3): 271–281.

44.

Popoola

(2019) Involving libraries in improving health literacy to achieve sustainable development Goal-3 in developing economies: a literature review. Health Information and Libraries Journal 36: 111–120.

45.

Pylypenko

Dubiei

, et al. (2023) Social capital as a factor of innovative development. Journal of Open Innovation: Technology, Market, and Complexity 9(3): 100118.

46.

Raimi

Che

Mutiu

(2021) Agricultural information systems (AGRIS) as a catalyst for sustainable development goals (SDGs) in Africa: a critical literature review. In: Che

Strang

Vajjhala

(eds) Opportunities and Strategic Use of Agribusiness Information Systems. IGI Global, pp. 109–133.

47.

Robinson

LTK

(2016) Libraries, human rights and social justice: enabling access and promoting inclusion. Australian Academic and Research Libraries 47(1): 50–51.

48.

Samo

SJP

Agcito

(2024) Library support: implications on student well-being. British Journal of Multidisciplinary and Advanced Studies 5(2): 1–17.

49.

Sobalaje

Gariba

Adepoju

(2023) Role of libraries as sources for information by farmers in Ogbomoso Oyo state Nigeria. International Journal of Library and Information Science Studies 9(7): 11–25. https://eajournals.org/ijliss/wp-content/uploads/sites/68/2024/01/Role-of-Libraries.pdf

50.

Sulaiman

Laksmi

(2024) The social sustainability improvement strategy for supporting the green library concept at Taman Ismail Marzuki library. Library Management 45(3/4): 174–187.

51.

Tegegne

Yilma

Melaku

, et al. (2022) Health information seeking and its associated factors in Ethiopia: systematic review and meta-analysis. Informatics in Medicine Unlocked 31: 100980.

52.

Tuyo

Ali

Mohammed

(2018) Access to legal information in Africa: the role of libraries and librarians. Journal of Applied Information Science and Technology 11(2): 140–148. https://www.jaistonline.org/11vol2/16.pdf

53.

Ugbala

Owolabi

Adesina

, et al. (2020) Public library as a source of business information for small-scale business enterprises in Nigeria. Public Library Quarterly 40(5): 454–467.

54.

United Nations (2024a) The sustainable development agenda. https://www.un.org/sustainabledevelopment/development-agenda-retired/#:∼:text=TheSDGs%2Calsoknownas,prosperitywhileprotectingtheplanet

55.

United Nations (2024b) Food security and nutrition and sustainable agriculture. https://sdgs.un.org/topics/food-security-and-nutrition-and-sustainable-agriculture

56.

United Nations’ Department of Economic and Social Affairs (2022) Fostering effective multi-stakeholder partnerships and engagement to advance the sustainable development goals. https://sdgs.un.org/sites/default/files/2022-12/StakeholderandPartnershipsBrochure2022.pdf

57.

Vincent

(2012) The role of public libraries in social justice. Prometheus 30(3): 349–351.

58.

Younis

Chaudhary

(2017) Sustainable Development: Economic, Social, and Environmental Sustainability in Asian Economies. Munich Personal RePEc Archive (MPRA). Paper No. 100551. https://mpra.ub.uni-muenchen.de/100551/