The recording of #20 in IFLA’s Environment, Sustainability and Libraries Section’s webinar series is now available below via YouTube and the slides are available on SlideShare.

Event Date:  5 February 2026, 8am PT

This webinar aims to explore how libraries can innovate and adapt to new times through video games, with a particular focus on environmental education. While maintaining their traditional role as spaces for silent-reading and study, libraries must increasingly incorporate new practices to engage with their communities.  Presenting the most common video game consoles (such as Nintendo and major Nintendo Switch titles, the Legend of Zelda) and genres to provide a general context for library staff who may be less familiar with this medium. Also focusing on cozy games, which encourage calm, reflection, and non-violent game play and are particularly suitable for libraries committed to sustainability, as they have a strong potential to address themes related to nature and environment.   There are two main goals –   encourage libraries to acquire video game consoles and video games as lendable materials, providing a curated list of recommended titles for their collections. And secondly, it offers practical, ready-to-use activity ideas that libraries can directly adopt, connecting these video games with off-screen activities.

Speaker:

David Mercadal Cuesta holds a degree in Information and Documentation from the University of Zaragoza, where he just finished his PhD on data reuse for environmental planning and works as an interim lecturer at the same institution. He has professional experience in several libraries and archives, with a strong focus on environmental information units. He is a member of the Spanish Network of Environmental Information and Documentation Centres (RECIDA).

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