If you will follow me outside, we will be heading to our children's library next

1. Good morning everyone and welcome to the Metropolitan Information Collective. My name is Tasia and I will be your tour guide today.

2. The Metropolitan Information Collective is a collaboration between public and private organization to create a public, community centered information and cultural space that serves the citizens of New york City. 

3. The MIC campus  occupies approximately fifty acres of formerly industrial space in what used to be the Brooklyn Navy yard.  It is considered the second largest park space within Brooklyn and contains over 25 separate public architectural spaces dedicated to information access, cultural creation, and civic collaboration.

4. To your left you will see two quotes that encompass our foundational philosophy. We are dedicated to the belief that in a healthy democracy all citizens have the inherent right to information access and lifelong learning.  We also believe that through equal access to knowledge, culture and collaborative resources, every individual will improve not only themselves, but the society as a whole.

5. To your left, in front of our agrotecture center, you will notice one of our information kiosks. The information kiosks act as gateways between the larger campus and the surrounding city.

6. Each kiosk acts as both an information center about the campus and a pickup and exchange location for all media that is available through the Collective. You will notice the small touchscreen interfaces throughout the kiosks and integrated within the general spaces on campus. Each interface allows access to our information distribution systems including the traditional media checkouts such as books, movies and music and our integrated digital distribution services. Users can access our distribution system from home through our website or from these onsite terminals. Physical media will then be available for pickup at one of the kiosks within the hour.

7. The Kiosks are located on the periphery of the campus and are easily accessible through public transportation. Users may choose which kiosk their media will be available in.

8. The Kiosks also serve as wireless internet hubs for the surrounding neighborhoods. Any community member with an I.C. identifier (similar to a library card number) can log on to the network regardless of whether they are on campus or not.

9. Our next stop on the tour is the agrotecture library building behind me. It is a collaboration with the Brooklyn Botanical Gardens and won several design awards after its completion three years ago.

10. The agrotecture building is an excellent example where information distribution and information creation meet. It serves as a traditional agriculture and botanical library with expected media such as books and digital archives. It also serves as a combination of community garden and educational lab for anyone interested in the science and culture of horticulture. The building itself is one of the most popular on the campus, not only because of the content available but also because it is a wonderful space to simply sit, browse the collectives resources and literally smell the roses. This is especially true in the colder months of the year.

11. As we continue through the building I would like to point out another example of our information terminals. As you can see we try to integrate them into the spaces so that they are easy to find but also feel as if they are part of the surrounding space.

12. This particular example is based off a coffee table design with retractable trays. All of the collective's resources are available through these terminals as is the world wide web. Many of the terminals are designed to sustain inclement weather and are placed throughout the various external environments of campus.

13. Individuals with personal digital devices can, of course, access all of the digital infrastructure through our wireless networks. Individuals who do not own a device such as an e-reader may check one out with their I.C. identification. The length of the checkout varies on individual need lasting anywhere from one hour to a maximum of two weeks.

14. Anyone using a digital device can acquire digital media either through our website or by exploring the stacks and simply scanning the physical media that they wish to check out.

15. If you will follow me outside, we will be heading to our children's library next

16. One of our major goals here is to empower and facilitate those wanting to contribute to their society at a local level. In order to do this we have created a system that integrates our online social network with the space and resources for individuals to easily spend their time helping and teaching others. Amy to the right there is one of the thousands who contribute their time and individualized skills to teach and help others.

17. I would like to introduce everyone to Farah. Farah is a 3rd year student at Columbia studying education. As you can see from the volunteer section of our web site, Farah was our top volunteer for March earning over 200 volunteer credit hours.

18. Individuals who are interested in volunteering using our system simply need to create a profile on our social network that communicates the skill sets they wish to contribute, their availability  and their contact information. They coordinate their own schedule and may reserve any resources necessary from our campus free of charge. In Farah's case she had five high school students who were interested in math tutoring so she met with the group at various times in one hour intervals. Each hour, because there were five students, earned her five volunteer credit hours. These volunteer credit hours are recorded and voluntarily displayed on our website. They are a real source of pride for individuals and have actually become prestigious enough for individuals to include on college applications and job resumes.  We hold special events on a monthly and yearly basis to honor those who have given their service.

19. Individuals and groups of individuals may volunteer any of their skill sets. This volunteer system, in coordination with our full time staff of information professionals, creates an incredibly rewarding experience for everyone involved.

20. We will now head underground towards our arts and cultural building. All major building are connected via underground spaces that allow the campus to function more effectively during colder months. The spaces are designed for use by both patrons and administrative staff where necessary.

21. Our arts and cultural building is structured similarly to our agrotecture building. It is intended to facilitate information access that then is put into practice. The concentration of musical, visual, and performance art talent in New York has made this one of the premier cultural centers of world. Through our volunteer program, unique collaborations between artists have flourished.i

22. As we head outside again don't hesitate to take notice of the various sculptures throughout the grounds. The sculpture to our immediate left was done by HDR architects as part of a competition to create modular, natural feeling spaces that our patrons could utilize. The "Flutterby" actually contains two information terminals that individuals can use to access our network. The sculptures rotate on a seasonal basis with new pieces being installed roughly every three months.

23. As we continue, on my right is one of the many cafe options on campus. In coordination with local restaurants the various cafes serve a large variety of food and drinks.

24. We've come to the end of our tour. I wanted to thank everyone for their interest and to encourage all of you to explore the grounds. If you do not already have one, please don't hesitate to sign up for your Metropolitan Information Collective I.D.Card. If you have any additional questions as you explore please do not hesitate to ask one of our information professionals stationed in the kiosks or wandering the campus.