The Library of the Great Lakes

A new kind of library gaining momentum

There’s a Great Lakes Restoration Initiative, a Museum of the Great Lakes, a Center for Great Lakes Literacy, and more. But until recently, there hasn’t been a Library for the Great Lakes. Now there is, and it’s beginning to gather speed. It’s not your conventional brick-and-mortar library. I talked to Inger Schultz, a co-founder of the library, to get the latest.

Inger’s nonprofit board service includes Great Lakes Performing Artists Associates and the Ann Arbor School for the Performing Arts where she co-founded its Youth String Orchestra. Inger also founded the Arts in the Arb featuring Shakespeare in the Arb at University of Michigan’s Nichols Arboretum. She worked with Arthur Miller in raising funds to construct the Arthur Miller Theater. As a chemical engineer she tested public water supplies and taught technical communications. On occasion, Inger can be found hunting for Petoskey stones along the Michigan shore.

Inquiries and comments about the Library are welcome at info@libraryofthegreatlakes.org.

Tell us about the origins of the Library of the Great Lakes idea and your long-range vision for it. How will the library serve the Great Lakes community?

In 2016 my friend, Deborah, came dashing through my front door brandishing a copy of Poets and Writers and a clipping from the New York Times, saying, “Did you see this (referring to the articles about the Rocky Mountain Land Library)? We should do this! But we should make it a land and water library, a Library of the Great Lakes.” And followed with, “and we need Jerry involved.”

The three co-founders, Deborah Burand, Jerry Dennis and I met in 2012 in Jerry’s writing workshop at the Bear River Writers’ Workshop. In 2016, when we agreed to found the library, everyone had busy lives but were drawn to the idea of a library based on a region, transcending borders, where one could find anything and everything about the Great Lakes region under one roof, a place where water connects us. Ideas abounded: a building, and a boat, a floating library going from port to port.

And most compelling, the need to begin work right away. There is an urgency to bring light on the treasures of the Great Lakes region; to let people know about its wealth of history and cultures, literature, science, discoveries, and its flora and fauna. And to share the region’s significance in the global economy, its resources, and its beauty and fragility. That urgency is felt even more keenly today.

By 2017, founding papers were drawn up and multi-state quiet listening tours begun.

The original vision for the Library of the Great Lakes was a physical, brick-and-mortar space where researchers, educators, and the public could come together to explore a comprehensive collection about the region. Over time, that vision evolved into what we now call a “library without walls.”

Local libraries across the Great Lakes region already do extraordinary work. Rather than duplicate their efforts, our goal is to collaborate with them and enhance public access. We want to help people engage with the Great Lakes by encouraging them to connect, understand, and cherish this unique region.

We have three major initiatives:

· A digital bookshelf available on our website, consisting of a curated list of Great Lakes books with a button to help find it in your local library,

· The Fresh Coast Bookshelf – a pilot program this year to get books into the hands of the public and support local libraries,

· Great Lakes, Great Read – a region-wide book club.

One of our long-term goals is to highlight collections from libraries and museums across the Great Lakes—similar in spirit to the Chicago Collections model. For example, a small library in Petoskey might showcase its local history, while a community in northern Minnesota might highlight its fishing heritage. These local stories are deeply connected to the Great Lakes, and we want to elevate them onto a broader platform.

At its core, our mission is to help tell the story of the Great Lakes—its people, land, water, science, history and cultures, through literature and art. The region includes diverse communities, including Indigenous nations and generations of immigrants, but we are all connected by the water. That shared connection is central to building a strong Great Lakes identity.

Are you surprised that a library like this didn’t already exist?

Yes, very much so.

The Great Lakes are globally significant—not only for their natural beauty and biodiversity, but because they contain 20% of the world’s fresh surface water, serving some forty million people. They are also economically vital. According to the Great Lakes Commission, the lakes serve as a basis for a $6 trillion (yes, that is trillion) regional economy.

Despite this importance, many people overlook the region. A library dedicated to highlighting its significance and encouraging stewardship is long overdue. We are working to meet that need.

Part of the reason it did not exist earlier is that “regional libraries” based on natural systems—rather than political boundaries—are new. One example is the Rocky Mountain Land Library, which focuses on connecting people to land. Similarly, we aim to connect people to both land and water across the Great Lakes region.

What is the idea behind Great Lakes, Great Read?

Great Lakes, Great Read builds on the “One Book, One Community” concept, where people read a shared book and participate in discussions and events around it.

The idea came together through multiple influences, first suggested by an advisor as a potential program for the Library of the Great Lakes, and it aligned with similar efforts to the Michigan Great Read. At the same time, the Wisconsin Water Library had launched “Great Lakes Great Reads” during the pandemic to encourage shared reading experiences.

Our goal is to bring people together across the region through literature.

In 2024–25, we selected one adult book and one children’s book:

• The Best Part of Us by Sally Cole-Misch (adult fiction)

• The Water Walker by Joanne Robertson (children’s nonfiction)

For the current year, we have expanded the program:

• Adult: The Gales of November, the Untold Story of the Edmund Fitzgerald by John U. Bacon

• Middle grade: Saving Our Sturgeon, Protecting Wisconsin’s Ancient Fish by Rebecca Hogue Wojahn

• Children’s: Sport: The Ship Dog of the Great Lakes by Pamela Cameron

(A conversation with author Pamela Cameron will take place May 13 at 6 pm Central, 7 pm Eastern. Register here.)

Each author participates in webinars accessible to anyone, anywhere. Links to these can be found on our website at Library of the Great Lakes and Great Lakes, Great Read.

The program fosters shared experiences, discussion, and learning across a region connected by water. Books are selected by a committee of librarians and volunteers from both the U.S. and Canada, based on relevance, engagement, and alignment with our mission to connect, understand, and cherish the Great Lakes.

What is the Fresh Coast Bookshelf?

The Fresh Coast Bookshelf is designed to put physical books into the hands of readers while supporting local libraries.

Instead of distributing books informally, we created curated kits for libraries. Each kit includes:

• Twelve books about the Great Lakes (across genres and age groups)

• Posters

• Stickers

• Activity sheets

This allows libraries to easily create engaging displays without additional workload.

In our pilot year, we distributed kits to ten libraries (primarily in Michigan), selected from over one hundred applicants. Selection criteria included need, geographic diversity, and how the library planned to use the materials. Even libraries that do not receive kits can access the curated list, download materials, and build their own Great Lakes collections.

What is the state of Great Lakes reading and literature?

There is a panoply of wonderful literature about the Great Lakes. However, many people, even within the region, are unfamiliar with foundational works.

Our goal is to increase awareness and make Great Lakes literature more accessible and engaging. Programs like Great Lakes, Great Read and the Fresh Coast Bookshelf are key to that effort.

Writers like John U. Bacon help bring attention to the region’s history and economic significance. Others, such as Bonnie Jo Campbell and poet Keith Taylor, vividly capture the sense of place that defines the Great Lakes.

While publishing trends may be shifting away from literary fiction, strong writing continues to thrive. We hope to highlight both established and emerging voices, including young writers from the region.

What motivated you to get involved?

I have always loved the Great Lakes. I grew up sailing, swimming, and camping in the region, and I have always felt a deep connection to its landscapes.

The shared vision of the Library of the Great Lakes is growing and exciting to be a part of. We are creating a nexus of libraries, writers and the public to come together around the Great Lakes. It is great fun to meet and work with all of them.

It is truly a labor of love for all of us.

How can people support the Library or contribute?

There are several ways to support the Library of the Great Lakes:

• Funding: Donations and grants are essential. An endowment would help sustain staffing and expand programs. Either by contributing through our website, by mail or working on major gifts through our board, we welcome all levels of interest and support. Our contact information can be found here.

• Expertise: Educators, researchers and librarians can contribute ideas for articles, programming, activities, and community engagement.

• Book recommendations: We welcome suggestions for our curated lists and digital bookshelf.

• Outreach and collaboration: Partnerships help expand our reach and impact.

• Volunteers to work on programs like GLGR and Fresh Coast.

• Help host a Library of the Great Lakes program in your local community.

• As always, support your local library, local authors and literature, and reading in general. And share our love of the Great Lakes and how important they are to our Great Lakes community.

We are also exploring future initiatives, such as publishing accessible “white papers” that translate scientific research about the Great Lakes into language the public can understand. While we will continue some in-person events, our webinars allow us to reach a much broader audience. Looking ahead, we may also expand our scope to include writers who live in the region but write beyond Great Lakes topics.

For now, our focus remains on building a strong foundation of Great Lakes literacy.