Mesa's Gateway Library Wins IFLA Public Library of the Year as 90th World Congress Closes in Busan
A library in Mesa, Arizona has taken the top honour at the world's largest gathering of library professionals, beating out finalists from Australia, China and another US city for a prize that spotlights the best new public library on the planet.
The Mesa Public Library's Gateway Branch won the 2026 IFLA/James Bennett Public Library of the Year Award, announced at the close of IFLA's 90th World Library and Information Congress in Busan, South Korea. IFLA — the International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions — is the global body that represents library and information professionals across more than 140 countries. Its annual congress wrapped on 13 August after four days of sessions, exhibitions and award ceremonies. IFLA President Leslie Weir presented the award to representatives of the Gateway Branch. Jakob Lærkes served as jury chair for this year's selection. (Publishing Perspectives)
The Gateway Library was designed by Richärd Kennedy Architects and takes its inspiration from market halls around the world — open, sheltered spaces where people gather, browse and exchange. The building opened as part of Mesa's effort to reframe its downtown civic footprint. The three other finalists were Library+ Caloundra on Australia's Sunshine Coast, the West Las Vegas Library in Nevada, and the Xiong'An Library in Hebei Province, China. (Publishing Perspectives)
A second major prize went to Istanbul. The Rami Library, in Türkiye, won the 2026 IFLA Green Library Grand Scale Project Award — the top honour in the large-project category of the Green Library Award, which recognises libraries that lead on environmental design and sustainability. The winning project transformed a 19th-century military barracks into a climate-resilient urban commons library, preserving the historic structure while retrofitting it for modern public use. The winners of the 11th Green Library Award were presented at the Busan congress on 13 August. (Publishing Perspectives; IFLA Instagram)
This year's Public Library of the Year Award also carries a behind-the-scenes shift. Starting in 2026, the Australia-based library supplier James Bennett became the prize's sponsor, replacing the US-based Baker & Taylor — a major wholesaler to libraries and schools that collapsed. The award now carries Bennett's name. (Publishing Perspectives)
IFLA also presented its PressReader International Marketing Award, which carries prize money of €3,500 for first place, €2,500 for second and €2,000 for third, intended to help winners attend the Busan congress. (IFLA)
The congress itself was IFLA's 90th, running from 10 to 13 August in Busan. (IALL) Looking ahead, CILIP — the UK's professional body for librarians and information managers — will host IFLA's anniversary during the 2027 World Library and Information Congress. (CILIP Facebook)
For a prize that turns a spotlight on the building a community reads in, this year's winners span a converted barracks, a market-hall-inspired branch in the Arizona desert, and a field of finalists stretching across three continents. The thread connecting them is the same one libraries have always traded in: a place, paid for and built, where a borrower takes a book home for nothing.
