About the library
The history of the Library Center "Yekaterinburg" started on April 1, 1997 when Library of the City Mayor (the first name of our library) opened its doors for the visitors. It was a unique library project, which did not have analogues in Russia.
Creating a new model library was a serious and risky step. The experience of foreign countries, where libraries had long been centers for social activities, not just book depositories, was very attractive. So in Yekaterinburg a new role for the library has been found. The first mayor of the city clearly understood the social significance of such a library with a new role. It was Arcady Chernetskiy who decided to create it. Today it is clear that the experiment was a success.
Our Library is known as a cultural and resource community center not only in the city but also in the region. The system includes 4 libraries that work in community liaison office mode: citizens can meet authorities there and find all regulatory acts of the city and region. The number of events carried out by the library exceeds 1500 per year (meetings, exhibitions, contests, presentations, etc.).
The International Department of the Library, which originated from the American Information Center, opened in 1994, adds much to the bright image of the library. At the moment, this department includes The English Collection, Austrian library, Chinese culture and language space, Hungarian Corner, "Republic of Azerbaijan" permanent exhibition and the only one in the Urals UNESCO Information Corner. International Department regularly hosts meetings with native speakers, interactive educational presentations for school children and students, exhibitions and competitions on the culture and history of the countries represented in the department structure. Library Center "Yekaterinburg" is the only municipal library in the region, obtaining resources in 5 languages: English, German, Chinese, Hungarian and Azerbaijani. The collection contains artistic, scientific and popular editions, dictionaries and atlases, children's and reference books. Most of the literature can be taken home.
