In May, we reflected on what “trust” means to APTrust, how we build and sustain it through transparency, accountability, and community stewardship. But we are not alone in navigating a broader trust crisis. Across the knowledge and research ecosystem, confidence in long-standing institutions is declining.

A recent Gallup poll found that only 42% of U.S. adults say they have “a great deal” or “quite a lot” of confidence in higher education, a sharp drop from previous decades. Though it has picked up recently, it remains a troubling sign for the broader research enterprise. As the Scholarly Kitchen article Trust and Integrity: A Research Imperative underscores, trust is not a luxury; it’s foundational. When trust falters, so does the legitimacy of the scholarship, stewardship, and public service these institutions provide.

The 2025 Edelman Trust Barometer paints a similarly urgent picture, describing a “crisis of grievance” and showing that younger generations are increasingly skeptical of traditional authorities. They place more trust in themselves, their peers, and online communities than in established institutions. For libraries, archives, museums, and galleries (GLAM institutions), this shift is both a challenge and a call to action: we must evolve how we earn and sustain trust in a changing cultural landscape.

Rebuilding Trust, Together

To meet this moment, collecting institutions must be proactive, transparent, and community-driven. Here are a few practical strategies:

1. Cultivate Peer-Led Trust

Rather than asking younger users to “trust us because we’re experts,” institutions can meet them on their terms. This means:

Empowering ambassadors: Support student workers, early-career professionals, and community volunteers as visible advocates and peer educators within your institutions.
Elevating user voices: Highlight user stories and testimonials, particularly from younger and historically underrepresented audiences, in programming and communications.

2. Be Transparent and Accountable

In an environment where skepticism is high, transparency is not optional.

Open your processes: Share how collections are built, how preservation happens, and how decisions are made, through blogs, short videos, or open events.
Acknowledge gaps and histories: Be honest about limitations and past shortcomings. Trust grows when institutions are candid about what they’re doing to improve.

3. Leverage Digital and Social Networks

If trust is moving online, institutions must be there too, with authenticity and purpose.

Create content with value: Use social media to share not just events or exhibits, but meaningful insights about collections, preservation practices, and the people behind them.
Foster dialogue: Don’t just broadcast: engage. Host online Q&As, respond to comments, and welcome discussion.

4. Center Community Collaboration

Collaborative stewardship is a powerful signal of trustworthiness.

Invite co-curation: Collaborate with students, local historians, or activists in creating exhibits or collecting initiatives.
Decentralize authority: Include community members on advisory boards and decision-making bodies, and ensure their input has real weight.

5. Model Ethical Integrity

As the Scholarly Kitchen article emphasizes, trust requires integrity in action.

Safeguard knowledge responsibly: Institutions like APTrust can play a role here, ensuring long-term, ethical stewardship of scholarly content.
Resist disinformation: Libraries and archives can help equip users to navigate the information landscape critically and confidently.

The crisis of trust is real, but so is the opportunity. Libraries and collecting institutions remain among the most trusted public institutions in many communities. We have a vital role to play in modeling openness, acting with integrity, and bridging generations through shared knowledge and stories. Let’s continue the work of building trust, not just in institutions, but in each other.

Thoughts