I am thrilled to share with you the official launch of the FOPL Strategic Plan 2025–2029, a bold roadmap that sets our priorities and direction for the next several years. This plan reflects months of consultation with members, partners, and stakeholders, and is built around a shared vision of a thriving, innovative public library sector across Ontario.
You can view or download the full plan here:
https://fopl.ca/strategic-plan/
Priority Areas & What They Mean in Action
At its core, the plan rests on three strategic pillars:
- Advocacy & Influence — Shaping policy, strengthening our voice, and ensuring libraries are heard at all levels of government.
- Marketing Public Library Value & Impact — Telling the library story together through communications, data tools, and coordinated campaigns.
- Training & Development — Building capacity in boards, staff, and leadership; Deliver seminars, webinars, workshops, and trustee training tools in collaboration with partner organizations (such as OLA and OLS).
Some key actions include:
- Engaging with provincial leaders to influence investment in public libraries
- Mobilizing the library community around shared goals
- Supporting local libraries in municipal advocacy
- Offering information sessions, resources, and tools to boards and staff
We believe that by working together under a clear, unified strategy, FOPL and its members can make deeper and more sustained progress on behalf of public libraries.
Explore the Resources — Help Us Share the Story
As a member of FOPL, this strategic plan is not just ours—it’s yours. We’ve made a suite of supporting materials available on our website to help you engage your boards, staff, funders, and municipal leaders.
https://fopl.ca/marketing-materials/
What You Can Do Next
- Share the Strategic Plan and its summary with your board, municipal partners, and community stakeholders
- Use the marketing materials and graphics to amplify this work locally
- Reach out with feedback, questions, or ideas as we begin implementation together
Thank you for being part of our collective effort to strengthen and modernize Ontario’s public library ecosystem. This strategic plan is aspirational yet grounded in real, actionable steps. It is also designed to evolve — as opportunities, challenges, and contexts change, so too will FOPL’s approaches, always in conversation with our membership.
Thank you for your continued commitment to Ontario’s public libraries. I look forward to working closely with you as we bring this vision to life.
Kind Regards,
—
Dina Stevens, MLIS
Executive Director