We acknowledge the people of the Wiradyuri/Wiradjuri, Ngunnawal, Biripi/Bripi/Birrbay and Gundungurra Nations, who are the traditional custodians and knowledge keepers of the lands where Charles Sturt University campuses are located. We offer respect to their Elders past, present and emerging and extend that respect to all First Nations people.
Great Book Swaps are held all over Australia throughout the year, and here at the Library we love to get involved!
Charles Sturt Library will be holding our Great Book Swap to celebrate Indigenous Literacy Day, September 3rd 2025, and raise money for the Indigenous Literacy Foundation (ILF). Indigenous Literacy Day is an annual celebration of First Nations peoples’ stories, cultures and languages. Literacy provides a fundamental step of building context, comprehension and understanding, whether it is written, visual or auditory. For kids who miss that foundational step in their literacy journey, it has a lifelong impact.
In remote Communities across Australia there is often no infrastructure such as libraries or bookstores. Access to reading material is extremely limited and this impacts the achievements of First Nations children.
The ILF does incredible work supporting First Nations kids’ literacy in remote Communities, including programs such as:
- Community publishing: Publishing books created by Community, many in First languages. To date, they have published books reflecting over 36 First Nations languages!
- Book supply: Providing new, culturally relevant books to remote Communities; with over half of these books featuring First Nations authors and illustrators.
- Book buzz: Developing a love of reading in children under five through story time sessions in remote communities.
Want to be involved in our Great Book Swap? You can donate any good-quality fiction or non-fiction books at your local campus library. We’ll then ask staff and students to ‘swap’ a book for a gold coin donation to the ILF.
This year the ILF aims to gift 30,000 books to children in remote Communities. Charles Sturt University Library hope to contribute $1,500 towards that goal. If you are in a position to do so, please consider donating. You can donate with a gold coin on the day, or use the QR code below to donate to the Charles Sturt Library event.
Keep an eye out for more information on the upcoming Great Book Swap events on your campus. Thank you to all the staff and students who have so generously made each of our past Great Book Swaps so memorable – let’s do it again this year!