A recent study conducted in collaboration between the Institute of Social Studies at the University of Tartu and the Baltic Engagement Centre for Combating Information Disorders (BECID) shows that libraries in Estonia have become far more than places for borrowing books. Increasingly, they serve as community hubs that help people navigate a rapidly changing digital environment shaped by e-government services, misinformation, artificial intelligence, and growing information complexity.
The study highlighted several significant challenges within today’s information ecosystem. Older adults increasingly require daily support in using digital services, while many people aged 30–50 tend to overestimate their information and digital literacy skills. Among younger people, researchers observed weakening information-search skills, lower levels of source criticism, and an increasing tendency to trust AI-generated answers too easily. In smaller communities, these issues are often intensified by a lack of both human and financial resources.
Libraries have responded creatively to these challenges by developing a range of innovative solutions. Intergenerational digital mentoring programmes, where young people support older adults in navigating digital environments, are becoming increasingly common. Libraries are also organising playful workshops focused on information search and critical thinking, while using AI tools to create educational materials and communicate more effectively with their communities. Cooperation with schools, youth centres, day-care centres, and IT students has become an important part of these efforts.
The study also revealed an important insight: people are often not attracted by the label “media literacy training,” yet they are eager to participate in workshops about illusions, memes, propaganda images, or myth-busting. In other words, people do want to learn and strengthen their skills — but they engage more willingly when the format is practical, creative, and relatable.
The findings confirm that information resilience is not built only in classrooms or through national strategies. It grows in local communities, libraries, and human relationships — in the everyday spaces where people meet, learn, and support one another.