As organisations that collect and maintain cultural artefacts, independent libraries make important contributions to cultural sustainability. Surfacing and elaborating on these contributions has the potential to establish their value to wider sustainable development agendas. However, sustainability policy and research across the gallery, library, archive and museum sectors tends to focus on environmental, social and economic concerns. The small number of studies that do consider cultural sustainability tend to focus on the role of galleries, libraries, archives and museums in heritage preservation, without consideration of their role in sustaining culture through the three other key areas of preserving and promoting cultural identity, cultural diversity and cultural vitality. In addition, previous studies do not consider the role of culture in enabling sustainability at an organisational level. Complementing previous research on the relationship between museums and cultural sustainability (conducted in Australia, Cyprus and Romania), this study seeks to expand understanding of the relationship between galleries, libraries, archives and museums and cultural sustainability in the context of the independent library sectors in the United Kingdom and the United States. Semi-structured interviews conducted with professionals from independent libraries in both countries employed a card-based game method to explore the key areas of cultural sustainability in which their organisations can contribute. Interviews also explored the challenges associated with achieving organisational sustainability, together with the organisational values that impact the sustainability of independent libraries. The research identifies a series of supportive and conflicting relationships between the contributions that independent libraries make to each of the four key areas of cultural sustainability, as well as the organisational values that can inhibit or assist organisational sustainability. Resulting in a framework to assist in the management of internal organisational sustainability and contributions to external cultural sustainability agendas in independent libraries, it provides a new perspective to support understanding of the relationship between galleries, libraries, archives and museums and cultural sustainability.

作为收集和维护文化文物的组织，独立图书馆为文化可持续发展做出了重要贡献。对这些贡献进行表述和阐述，有可能为更广泛的可持续发展议程树立其价值。但是，画廊，图书馆，档案馆和博物馆部门的可持续发展政策和研究往往集中在环境，社会和经济问题上。少数确实考虑到文化可持续性的研究往往侧重于画廊，图书馆，档案馆和博物馆在遗产保护中的作用，而没有考虑它们通过其他三个维护和促进文化特性，文化特征的关键领域在维持文化中的作用。多样性和文化活力。此外，以前的研究没有考虑文化在组织层面实现可持续性中的作用。作为对先前关于博物馆与文化可持续性之间关系的研究（在澳大利亚，塞浦路斯和罗马尼亚进行的研究）的补充，本研究旨在扩大对独立图书馆部门背景下美术馆，图书馆，档案馆和博物馆与文化可持续性之间关系的理解。英国和美国。与来自两国独立图书馆的专业人员进行的半结构化访谈采用了基于纸牌的博弈方法，以探索其组织可在其中做出贡献的文化可持续性的关键领域。访谈还探讨了与实现组织可持续性相关的挑战，以及影响独立图书馆可持续性的组织价值。该研究确定了独立图书馆对文化可持续性的四个关键领域的贡献与可以抑制或帮助组织可持续性的组织价值之间的一系列支持和冲突关系。形成了一个有助于管理内部组织可持续性和对独立图书馆中的外部文化可持续性议程做出贡献的框架，它提供了一个新的视角来支持对画廊，图书馆，档案馆和博物馆与文化可持续性之间关系的理解。该研究确定了独立图书馆对文化可持续性的四个关键领域的贡献与可以抑制或帮助组织可持续性的组织价值之间的一系列支持和冲突关系。形成了一个有助于管理内部组织可持续性和对独立图书馆中的外部文化可持续性议程做出贡献的框架，它提供了一个新的视角来支持对画廊，图书馆，档案馆和博物馆与文化可持续性之间关系的理解。该研究确定了独立图书馆对文化可持续性的四个关键领域的贡献与可以抑制或帮助组织可持续性的组织价值之间的一系列支持和冲突关系。形成了一个有助于管理内部组织可持续性和对独立图书馆中的外部文化可持续性议程做出贡献的框架，它提供了一个新的视角来支持对画廊，图书馆，档案馆和博物馆与文化可持续性之间关系的理解。