A decentralized, community-led library for diasporic communities: The case of the Hong Kong BookShare in the UK

Since 2021, the arrival of hundreds of thousands of Hongkongers in the UK under the British National (Overseas) Visa Scheme has created a significant demand for Traditional Chinese books and reading materials. Conventional community libraries have struggled to meet these diasporic information needs, largely due to geographic dispersion. This article examines the Hong Kong Books Borrowing and Sharing Centre (HK BookShare), a decentralized, community-led library system operating on sharing economy principles. By January 2025, the platform had amassed over 1600 titles, serving users across 86 cities and towns. Drawing on interviews with the founder and users, digital walkthroughs, and descriptive statistics, this study explores how digital technologies and HK BookShare’s operational model address diasporic information needs while challenging traditional library frameworks. The findings highlight HK BookShare’s effectiveness in providing broad access, user-friendly services, and a diverse collection but also reveal key challenges related to volunteerism, social trust, and algorithmic design. This article argues that physical libraries and sharing economy models can be mutually reinforcing, rather than opposing, in meeting the diverse information needs of new immigrants. By contributing to the discourse on migrant information needs, community-managed libraries, and digital platforms, this study offers both academic insight and practical implications for future initiatives.