申論題

Libraries are one of the most enduring features of the academy, central to the values and the practice of scholarship. However, in a period of austerity, libraries are increasingly being asked to justify their existence. Perhaps the deepest, yet most intangible, contribution that libraries make is to provide a physical manifestation of the scholarly ethos that universities exist to instruct and preserve. There is a risk that this intrinsic value may not be recognized by future generations of researchers who work in an online world. In building the evidence as to libraries’ contribution to research, it is important to stress that the whole is greater than the sum of the parts and that the value of the library is as a crucial cornerstone and representation of the values of the academy and of scholarship.