GDP and Libraries

This video is a recording of Bobby Kennedy giving a speech about GDP from 1968. He goes into detail about all of the misleading things that are taken into account in calculating GDP. He then goes on to share that those things that aren’t taken into account are what actually makes our country so great. He concludes that GDP encompasses many things that make up the U.S. economy but it cannot tell us what it is to be an American. I decided to take this idea and apply it to the realm of the library and how poorly we measure its success in terms of GDP.

GDP does not measure the ability to teach patrons to be life-long learners or cultivate a community spirit. GDP does not include our passion to build a better library that serves the community or the knowledge that can be found in the libraries’ collections. GDP does not gauge the delivery of service or the drive for change in technology. It does not measure our enthusiasm or fervor. It does not measure our understanding or experience. It does not measure our compassion or devotion. GDP can measure so much, but it does not measure the need for the library in our communities or tell us why it is still relevant in today’s society.