Programming Spotlight: This Lead Is Killing Us Exhibit

Dear Readers,

September's Programming Spotlight features the University of Florida's Health Science Center Library's hosting of the National Library of Medicine's traveling exhibit, "This Lead Is Killing : A History of Citizens Fight Lead Poisoning in Their Communities", courtesy of Courtney Pyche, MS, AHIP. If you have a program or event that you would like to share with your colleagues, please submit the information to:  [email protected]  

Q:  What motivated or inspired this project? 

A:  The UF Health Science Library has previously hosted exhibits from the National Library of Medicine. The goal of the exhibit is to highlight the power of citizen activism in support of public health and to raise awareness about the risk of lead in water. In this instance, our group, lead by Sarah Meyer and including Mary Edwards, Nina Stoyan-Rosenzweig, and myself, was inspired to apply for a grant from the Network of the National Library of Medicine Region 2 to supplement and increase interest in the exhibit. With the help of our library's grants team and with the commitment of our partner organization the Alachua County Library District, we received over $6,000 to do so.  The exhibit arrived on August 28 and leaves us on October 5, 2023. It also has an online component that can be viewed on the National Library of Medicine's website.

Q: What additional events or programs did you host related to the exhibit?

​A:  In addition to the traveling exhibit, we've planned a host of other activities. The first is a screening of the NOVA documentary "Poisoned Water", an hour long documentary about the Flint water crisis. After the screening, we hosted a demonstration of how to test your pipes for lead using a citizen science method from Crowd the Tap.  Our archivist, Nina, guided us in creating a complementary in-house exhibit where we've written labels and gathered artifacts to tell the story of lead poisoning and environmental justice in our community. That exhibit will likely stay up through next spring. We've also got two reading groups planned. The first is for adults where we'll read "What the Eyes Don't See" by Dr. Hanna-Attisha with the other club being geared for teenagers in partnership with the Alachua County Library District where we will read "Poisoned Water" by Candy J. Cooper. We are also in the planning stages for a speaker panel on lead poisoning, especially in relation to pediatrics. You can keep up with our events using our LibGuide.

Q: What advice would you give to someone who may want to implement a similar program at their library?
As a newcomer to health sciences librarianship, my first advice is to learn from your peers and join teams. It has been such a pleasure to learn from colleagues on how to plan, market, and evaluate these events. Utilizing a regional grant is also a great idea. It has given me experience with the grant process on a smaller, less intimidating level. Finally, I recommend looking at the resources that are available to you. Do you have a supervisor who has done this before? What exhibit might your community be interested to learn about? Are there existing exhibit or grants teams in your organization to support you? I've found this experience incredibly helpful, and I think its something worthwhile for all health science libraries to engage in.
​

---