Last week, I travelled to NC State’s gorgeous Hunt Library to attend the 2026 NC Live Conference, themed “Libraries and Democracy.” I look forward to NC Live’s conferences every year and this one might have been my favorite so far! After a full day, I came away hopeful because despite all the challenges currently facing our institutions and our polarized information landscape, librarians are absolutely not cowed. Instead, they are stepping up: creating new networks of support, hosting innovative civic programming, and collaborating on new instructional approaches to meet the moment.

The speakers at the sessions I attended offered interesting insights and practical takeaways for academic libraries:

• What We’re Getting Wrong About our Gen Z Students & Digital Media Literacy Instruction: This session, given by a Gen Z teaching librarian, tackled instructional biases, noting that digital literacy is contextually bounded (e.g., students evaluate text critically but trust their favorite podcaster). She noted that effective instruction depends on emotional engagement pathways and storytelling.
• Libraries as Democratic Spaces: A Community-Centered Model for Civic Programming: NC A&T showcased their Text in Community initiative, using shared books, zine-making, and documentaries to spark civic dialogue. Their core message argued that while access to information is necessary, not sufficient by itself. Democracy requires active reflection, and that’s the space libraries can fill.
• Academic Libraries and Their Roles in Democratic Practice discussed how everyday choices in academic library instruction and description shape representation. Utilizing tools like the Homosaurus (for queer controlled vocabularies) and launching library “AI studios” are powerful ways academic libraries can act as civic hubs.

Before the afternoon sessions kicked off, I went on the mini-tour of Hunt Library. I loved the interactive elements that let patrons see exactly how Hunt Library’s famous bookBot retrieval system works, and the gaming and e-sports lab is a really cool way to engage the campus community across generations. I was also struck by their commitment to UX design and accessibility, featuring over 100 different types of seating options to accommodate every comfort level and work style.

I left Raleigh feeling incredibly inspired by our library community’s resilience and can’t wait to bring some of these civic engagement ideas back to ZSR!