Trend Cards

A set of cards based on the trends identified by the Center for the Future of Libraries is available for you to use as you and your colleagues think about the future. Each card includes information about the trend and considerations for why it might matter for libraries. The cards can be used in many ways, including as conversation starters with colleagues and members of the community, as mapping tools to illustrate how trends fit together or how they fit into your community, or as starting material for innovation exercises. As the Center identifies new trends, supplement card packs will be made available.

Trend Cards

Deck 1 (June 2017) - Available for purchase from the ALA Store or as a free downloadable pdf
Deck 1 includes an instruction card and 27 trend cards. The pdf is designed for two-sided printing (flip on long edge), with four cards per two-sided page (7 pages of paper total). Color printing is recommended. After printing, simply cut the cards in half vertically and then in half horizontally.

Trend Card Activities

From Futuring to Innovation
This worksheet focuses on trends as a tool for innovation. With the trend cards or using the trend entries from the website, groups select 1 -3 trends and then consider how those trends affect their community and how they align with library values. Groups then imagine a creative solution that brings together the selected trends and library values in the form of a new service, space, partnership, or program.

A Story About the Future
This worksheet focuses on creating scenarios for possible futures. With the trend cards or using the trend entries from the website, groups focus on a time in the future and imagine how specific trends have reshaped other sectors (education, government, tourism, transportation, sports and play, hobbies and recreation) and how libraries have responded to changes in the environment.