For five months, together with the persons working in the University Library, I conducted a participatory process of gathering materials for the library’s new strategy. Almost half of the BUW team participated – and the whole team consists of 240 persons. Most of all, we worked in three stages of workshop meetings, which were open to all those willing to participate.

The facilitating team were: Agata Urbanik and Justyna Dubanik (Facilitation Support) and Aleksandra Gołdys and Wojciech Wilk from the Office for Innovation in the Academic Space of the University of Warsaw.

What are the effects of our work?

• we created a map of needs of the different groups that use BUW and work in the library,
• we gathered ideas for specific changes and improvements – after verification, some of them have already been implemented and some will be implemented gradually in the future,
• we formulated recommendations of visions and goals in four strategic areas of BUW,
• thanks to working together, persons from different branches of the library got to know each other better and broke the ice. They saw how much they had in common and that their differences were no obstacle for creating something together,
• we opened space for common reflection and dialogue about where BUW was headed and what was happening there.

At this moment, the strategy is being worked on by an editorial group that meets regularly and consists of representatives of the management and employees.