Our local mission is to encourage reading and increase literacy levels in underserved areas where access to books is limited. Our global mission is to help support and build libraries in rural areas in Africa and to support institutions of higher learning in developing countries.
We believe that every child deserves equal and equitable opportunities for success. Literacy programs and access to books help children learn and grow. Wherever possible, we want to help that happen.
Local Initiatives:
Books4Free – This is a pilot project to help encourage the love of reading. Our pop-up libraries in Chicago offer thousands of books and supporting educational materials, all for free. We have a vast selection of books for all ages and reading levels.
Books4Schools – Books4Schools services communities in the Midwest and Northeast by giving books to schools. If there is a charter school opening up or a program that is in need of books, we work to fill their requests.
Books4Paper – Our goal is to recirculate as many books as possible and prolong the time that they are read and treasured. However, like everything else, books eventually wear out and fall apart. To prevent them from winding up in landfills, we recycle them so that their pulp can be reused to make even more books.
Global Initiatives:
Books4Africa – With the help of the African Library Project, we are supplying books for libraries in rural villages in Africa. We select the books to make sure that they are appropriate and are in excellent condition. The ALP ensures that the libraries have a designated space and a trained librarian. We are looking forward to continuing working with the ALP to build more libraries for communities in need.
Higher Education Resource Centers – We are working with universities in developing countries to establish higher-level resource centers. These resource centers are equipped with hundreds of books in a specific field, from introductory level to advanced concepts. Some of the educational material includes physics, child development, mathematics, psychology, and more.