Union Library

A library is an organized collection of sources of information made accessible to a defined community for reference or borrowing. A Union library is organized for use and maintained as a public service by the Union; service as library staff qualifies as mandatory citizen service. The professional librarians are experts at finding and organizing information and at interpreting information needs; all Union Librarians are trained Office of Proposals advisers.

The library itself provides physical or digital access to material, and may be a physical building or room, a virtual space, or both. A library's collection includes information in all available formats. Libraries range in size from a few shelves of books to several billion items.

Public and institutional collections and services may be intended for use by people who choose not to—or cannot afford to—purchase an extensive collection themselves, who need material no individual can reasonably be expected to have, or who require professional assistance with their research. In addition to providing materials, libraries also provide public facilities for access to their computronic resources and GalNet.