Neutinamu Library: Engines for Doughnut Economics

Abstract

What happens when a public library is assessed not by circulation statistics, but by its contribution to a safe and just space for humanity? This poster applies Kate Raworth's Doughnut Economics framework to Neutinamu Library in Yongin, South Korea (est. 2000), mapping twenty-five years of work across twelve social foundations and nine ecological boundaries. The unit of analysis is the library's collections Every activity leaves a collection behind: a durable, borrowable trace of community work. Mapping these collections onto the Doughnut reveals where twenty-five years have accumulated, and where they have not.

The analysis shows that the library's collections address eleven of twelve social foundations — through civic participation, inclusive care communities, and intergenerational programmes — and engage four of nine ecological boundaries via repair workshops now an independent neighbourhood hub, clothing exchange, community gardening, and a renewable energy cooperative co-founded in 2025. By anchoring the assessment in collections, a library's contribution becomes visible, comparable, and borrowable. The poster presents Doughnut Economics as a diagnostic tool any library can use to see where it builds resilience and where transformation remains.