<div dir="ltr"><p><span style="font-weight:400">The library industry is under
threat from a number of major crises simultaneously during these
uncertain times, particularly the loss of financial and voter support.
The COVID-19 crisis has decimated the fundamental municipal tax base
that funds school and public libraries. Even libraries that were doing
well before the crisis may be facing new challenges. Without community
support, libraries will continue to drastically lose funding in the
coming years. </span></p><div id="gmail-intro" class="gmail-intro">
<div class="gmail-content">
<p><span style="font-weight:400">Unfortunately, libraries have lost
nearly 20% of voter and political support for funding and revenue in the
last 10 years. A reasonable response to this loss would be to double
down on outreach to library users, but according to <a rel="noopener" href="https://www.oclc.org/research/awareness-to-funding-2018.html" target="_blank">research from OCLC</a>,
library use does not always translate to voter support. We also know
that while people like libraries as much as they have before, they are
less likely to vote for them. This means that we need a paradigm shift
in the way that we are doing our advocacy and marketing in our
communities. We need to learn from some of the largest and most
successful cause-related and fundraising organizations if we want
libraries to continue to thrive. That's why we built this conference
around experts who can help libraries build support for local funding.</span></p><div id="gmail-intro" class="gmail-intro"><div class="gmail-content">REGISTER - <a href="https://www.lafcon.org/register">https://www.lafcon.org/register</a></div><div class="gmail-content"><strong><br></strong></div><div class="gmail-content"><strong>Learn New Strategies and Tactics</strong>
<p><span style="font-weight:400">Join </span><a rel="noopener" href="http://www.lafcon.org/" target="_blank"><span style="font-weight:400">EveryLibrary online from September 14-16, 2020</span></a><span style="font-weight:400">
to meet some of the most advanced political strategists and tacticians
from within the library industry and beyond. Explore three days worth of
content on how to navigate the world of politics and build voter
support for library funding. </span></p>
<p><span style="font-weight:400">The unique virtual structure of the
conference will allow participants to attend all sessions, dig deep into
a particular track or mix-and-match a program that meets their needs.
Session speakers will be available live throughout the conference via
Slack for conversations and interactivity with attendees. </span><a rel="noopener" href="http://www.lafcon.org/tracks" target="_blank"><span style="font-weight:400">Conference topics</span></a><span style="font-weight:400"> will include: outreach, donor research, grants, legislation, coalition building, digital tactics, and marketing.</span></p>
<p><strong>Immediate Support for the Library Industry</strong><strong><br></strong><span style="font-weight:400">In
order to build a strong advocacy network, Everylibrary believes that we
need healthy library associations and support organizations. The
advocacy strategies learned at this conference will provide tools to
support the long-term health of libraries and associations, but
short-term financial help is needed too. We will donate 25% of every
registration to state library associations (or a national library
association if outside the United States) in order to help these
associations weather difficult financial times.</span></p>
<p><strong>Converse, Share, and Prepare for the Future</strong></p>
<p><span style="font-weight:400">Conversations and idea exchanges are
one of the most vital parts of any conference, and that should not
change even in a virtual setting. We will be using dedicated Slack
channels to allow our attendees and speakers to talk and share
throughout the conference. Those channels will remain active after the
conference to allow everyone to keep in touch. We want this conference
to provide a dedicated community of colleagues and advocates with the
tools to take action and make sure that all libraries come out of the
current crisis stronger and more prepared for the future. </span></p>
<p><span style="font-weight:400">REGISTER - <a href="https://www.lafcon.org/register">https://www.lafcon.org/register</a></span></p></div></div></div></div></div>