The Dawn Center's Information Library allows people to utilize information in order to support activities that aim towards solving gender issues or creating a gender-equal society. In order to serve individual and specialized needs, the library not only provides reading and lending services of reference materials, but also releases information on the Internet, publishes reference materials, and also provides information consulting, research consulting, and workshops on information use.
The library holds about 52,000 books and administrative materials, about 2,000 audiovisual materials, and around 1,500 different magazines. As a library that specializes in information concerning women, its size and quality make it one of Japan's best. The library's collection of information on women has been expanding each year, and much of it is exclusive to the Dawn Center. Having this extensive collection, the Dawn Center started providing lending service in collaboration with 146 public libraries in Osaka Prefecture in April of 2007.

(1) Cooperating in projects conducted by the Women's Center
The Women's Center has multiple functions such as studying and training, counseling, supporting citizens' movements, international exchange, and conducting research and surveys. Utilizing its information, the Information Library provides support for projects conducted by other departments.

(2) Collecting and providing diverse materials
Materials from women's groups are important for the fact that they express viewpoints made by women. About 30% of the library's magazine titles are newsletters published by these groups. This is a very helpful infor-mation source for women who are taking the first steps in social participation in their communities and also for women who are expanding their activities. In order to pass on the women's movement and activities to the next generation, it is also important to collect and preserve flyers and posters.

(3) Information support for administrative workers
About a third of the inquiries to the Information Library are from administrative workers, such as those who are involved in gender-equal policy making. Many of the inquiries are related to lecture planning and information about lecturers.

(4) Information literacy support for women's lifelong learning and activities
In order to promote women's participation in society in an information-based society, women need to acquire skills on utilizing information and, furthermore, spreading information. To support these needs, we hold lectures every year on information sources, how to find information, and how to organize information. The Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology entrusted its "Women's Career Development Support Project" to the Dawn Center from 2004 to 2006. For this project, we held "information specialist development seminars for women's career development support" and "information literacy programs," and also developed e-Learning programs.