The Mountain Plains Library Association (MPLA) is a non-profit organization based in the western United States that promotes the development of librarians and libraries by providing educational and networking opportunities to members.

The MPLA region can be characterized as sparsely peopled, with densely populated urban areas widely separated from one another, often divided by vast areas of prairie grassland or mountain ranges.

Librarians serving the area share challenges related to the geographical realities of the region [3] Founded at a meeting in Estes Park, Colorado, by librarians from Colorado, Kansas, Nebraska, the Dakotas and Wyoming, the Mountain Plains Library Association was designed to facilitate regional American Library Association meetings.

In addition to its board and its officers, MPLA activities are carried out by committees and an executive secretary.

The association has sponsored publications focusing on inter-library cooperation, literacy and the humanities, librarianship and technology in the Mountain Plains region [5] Awards are presented at each annual conference: The MPLA meets annually in joint conferences with member states on a rotational basis.