The Coffs Harbour Education Campus (CHEC) that includes Southern Cross University, TAFE and the Senior College recently celebrated its Multicultural Week. For the first time this year the festival of activities included the Living Library.

The idea behind this innovative Library is that the catalogue of ‘books’ is actually people with a story to tell. This year’s ‘book catalogue’ was made up of staff and students from all three sectors of the CHEC. This meant that within the Living Library, there were a variety of experiences and life stories, which were, in part, representative of the entire campus community. Some of the 13 living book titles included  ‘Indigenous Young Person’, ‘Yogi and TAFE Teacher’, ‘Fat Person’, Person with a Hearing Impairment’, ‘Growing up in China’ ‘The Man from Iran’ and ‘Academic’.

Readers and ‘Books’ in the Living Library

The aims of the Living Library project worldwide, are to promote dialogue, reduce prejudice and encourage integration. The Living Library achieves these aims by bringing together people for a half hour conversation around a topic or idea which, can sometimes attract stereotyping or even prejudice.

Many of the living ‘books’ said how excited they were to be able to tell their story in a safe environment. Some also expressed a sense of personal risk associated with the telling of their story, but for both ‘book’ and ‘reader’, the experience has been overwhelmingly positive.

Reading the ‘Book’ entitled ‘Growing up in China’

The highly successful event attracted 60 readers and took place on a sunny winter’s day in CHEC’s Sacred Garden. Often used for prayer and meditation, the Garden naturally lent itself to the kind of conversational depth and understanding, which are important elements of a successful Living Library experience.

The Living Library event has clearly generated much interest and many suggestions for future ‘book’ titles, in addition to a more comprehensive publicity campaign for future events.

In the management of the Living Library event, the Office of Regional Engagement is grateful for the support and practical assistance of the SCU Fusion Committee, The CHEC Library staff, Chaplain Pam Stone and Equity Officer, Jo Mason.

For more info on the ideas behind the Living library concept, see www.living-library.org

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