Since 2017, Book Bunk Trust has been working to transform three of Nairobi’s most iconic public libraries: McMillan Memorial Library and its branches in Kaloleni and Makadara. Though our focus has been on these sites, we quickly realised that to build truly connected, functional library spaces, we needed to understand the broader network they exist within. We launched the Library Ecosystems research project in 2020 to explore the forces shaping public libraries in Nairobi and beyond. We didn’t stop at standard metrics like foot traffic or circulation. We asked: What makes a library ecosystem thrive? What roles do users, librarians, communities, policymakers, and partners play in that thriving? And what conditions are necessary for libraries to remain relevant, resilient, and rooted? This project explores Kenya’s libraries not just as buildings or book collections, but as living ecosystems spaces shaped by infrastructure, people, policy, and community needs.