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During the closing meeting of the International Assembly of Independent Publishers (Cape Town, South Africa, 18-21 September 2014), 400 independent publishers from 45 countries signed the International Declaration of Independent Publishers 2014.
Collectively drafted in three languages, on 20 September 2014, the Declaration 2014 is available in several languages (French, English, Spanish, Portuguese, Arabic, Farsi, Italian, etc.).

Do not hesitate to share the Declaration, to promote and strengthen bibliodiversity with us!

Tools and recommendations from the International Assembly of Independent Publishers (on digital publishing, public book policies, independent publishing houses’ economic models, youth literature, national and local languages publishing, solidarity publishing partnerships and “Fair Trade Book”, book donations) will be available before the end of 2014 by the Alliance.

On 21 September, celebrate the B Day, in Argentina, in Chile, in Colombia, in Peru, in South Africa (with the Open Book Festival), at home, here or elsewhere...

Follow the B Day here!
Contact the team of the Alliance to spread your activities!

The video of B Day is here!

Volunteers come from time to time to support the permanent team of the Alliance for the implementation of the action plan of the association: we thank them very much for their involvement and their commitment!

Céline ANFOSSI
Céline Anfossi is specialised in project management and consultancy. She has worked in the book sector, mainly in coaching professionals (International Alliance of independent publishers, Fill-Interregional Federation of Books and Reading). She explores these issues through different projects and audiences (women seeking employment, students) and is particularly interested in the topic of professional integration.

Djamilatou DIALLO

Born in Tahiti, of Franco-Guinean parents, Djamilatou continued her studies in Paris in Lettres et Histoire (MA dissertation on Ancient History: “Patrons of cities in Roman Africa from the third to the fifth century: an epigraphic study”).
In the long term, Jamilatou would like to specialise in the protection and enhancement of heritage by working with different cultural organisations here or elsewhere.
Following a five-month internship at the Alliance (development of the 2018 WomenList and the HotList presented at the Frankfurt Book Fair, and the study on the textbook market in French-speaking Africa), Djamilatou is now a volunteer of the Association.

62 independent publishers from 38 countries in Latin America, Africa, Asia and Europe are gathering in Cape Town (South Africa) from 18 to 21 September for a unique inter-linguistic and inter-cultural meeting on bibliodiversity! Booksellers, librarians, academics, authors and players in the digital arena are also associated with this event.
Held under the patronage of UNESCO, the Cape Town meeting closes the International Assembly of Independent Publishers, consisting of 7 preparatory workshops between 2012 and 2014.

Alternating between plenary meetings that are open to the public and thematic workshops, the publishers gathered at the Cape Town meeting will propose recommendations and concrete tools for bibliodiversity addressed to public authorities, institutions and professional collectives. To ensure continuity between the preparatory workshops and the Assembly’s closing meeting, thematic working groups have been actively preparing the Cape Town meetings for months.

Round tables and discussions organised in partnership with the Open Book Festival will also be held on 20 and 21 September to celebrate the International Bibliodiversity Day in Cape Town.

Finally, the International Committee of Independent Publishers (ICIP) is meeting on 22 September to take stock of these four days, and to work on implementing the new directions and projects of the Alliance in the years to come.

We are very much looking forward to welcoming you to Cape Town in a few weeks!
To participate in the Cape Town meeting and/or to receive the recommendations resulting from the International Assembly of Independent Publishers, write to the team of the Alliance: equipe@alliance-editeurs.org

The Cape Town meeting takes place in three languages (English, French and Spanish). The entire programme (presentations in plenary, choice of thematic workshops, round tables with the Open Book Festival) was put together collectively by the participants. Moreover, the publishers also helped raise the funds necessary to hold this meeting, which could not have been achieved without the cooperation of our local partners (Jacana Media, French Institute of South Africa, Alliance française, Open Book Festival, Modjaji Books, National Library of South Africa and Goethe Institut).

At the 80^th IFLA Congress (International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions), from 16 to 22 August 2014 in Lyon (France), the International Alliance of independent publishers will present a paper on “What new book donation practices can meet the needs of young African readers in libraries?”
This analysis on book donation practices and their impact both on the readers and book industry in French-speaking Africa, is written by Marie Michèle RAZAFINTSALAMA (éditions Jeunes malgaches, Madagascar) and the Alliance team. She is continuing the research and advocacy work begun a number of years ago by a group of publisher-members of the Alliance on book donation challenges for bibliodiversity. This paper is an extension to the workshop on book donations held in March 2013 in Paris (International Assembly of independent publishers).

To read the paper “What new book donation practices can meet the needs of young African readers in libraries?” (IFLA 2014), see here.

As every year on 21 September, exciting activities (book crossing, readings, meetings, etc.) will be held on the occasion of International Bibliodiversity Day (B Day).
This year, we plan to make a lot of noise –rallying new individuals, groups and organisations from all over the world.

Working together in a network, going in the same direction, and with more determination than ever before.

This year, let’s go further!
Are you coming along?

The 7^th workshop of the International Assembly of independent publishers will be held from 30 April to 2 May 2014 in Abu Dhabi, through a partnership with the Abu Dhabi International Book Fair, and the support of the International Organisation of the Francophonie and the Prince Claus Fund. It will convene 15 publishers and digital publishing experts from the Arab world and Argentina, with the common objective of:
• Helping publishers to overcome technical challenges encountered during the creation of ePub files in Arabic;
• Discussing digital distribution platforms used in the Arab world;
• Sharing experiences on online promotion and e-marketing;
• Drafting recommendations to facilitate traditional publishers’ transition towards digital publishing and secure a better diffusion for digital publications in the Arab world.

All proposals and recommendations from this workshop will be communicated to public and standardisation authorities, and will be available on the Alliance’s Digital Lab.

Following the workshop, 3 May, from 11:00 to 12:00, do not miss the public speech on “Words and money”, a book by André Schiffrin translated and co-published by the Arabic-language network of the Alliance. More information here!

For more information on this workshop and on the International Assembly of independent publishers: assises@alliance-editeurs.org
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Twelve publishers based in Africa, Haiti and Madagascar are collectively publishing Lilian THURAM’s “Mes étoiles noires”, initially published by Philippe Rey (2010). As from April 2014, you will find this publication in Algeria (Barzakh), Benin (Ruisseaux d’Afrique), Burkina Faso (Sankofa & Gurli), Cameroun (Presses universitaires d’Afrique), Côte d’Ivoire (EDILIS), Guiney Conakry (Ganndal), Haiti (Mémoire d’encrier), Madagascar (Jeunes malgaches), Morocco (Tarik), Mali (Jamana), Senegal (Éditions Papyrus Afrique), and in Togo (Graines de Pensées).

Lilian THURAM will visit Africa and Haiti to promote “Mes étoiles noires”:
• From 21 to 25 April 2014 in Guiney Conakry, during the event 72 heures du livre (through the support of the French Institute of Conakry)
• From 25 to 27 April 2014 in Benin (through the support of the Charles Leopold Mayer Foundation)
• From 5 to 9 May 2014 in Haiti (details to be confirmed)
• On 19 July 2014 in Senegal (details to be confirmed)

This solidarity co-publishing “Fair Trade book” project is coordinated and supported by the Alliance, and benefited from the support of the Lilian Thuram Foundation – Education against racism and its partners, CASDEN and MGEN.

For more information on this co-publishing project, click here.

Bibliodiversity is cultural diversity applied to the world of books. Echoing biodiversity, it refers to the critical diversity of products (books, scripts, eBooks, apps, and oral literature) made available to readers. Bibliodiversity is a complex, self-sustaining system of storytelling, writing, publishing, and other kinds of production of oral and written literature. The writers and producers are comparable to the inhabitants of an ecosystem. Bibliodiversity contributes to a thriving life of culture and a healthy eco-social system. While large publishers do contribute to publishing diversity through the quantitative importance of their production, it is not enough to guarantee bibliodiversity, which is not only measured by the number of titles available.
Independent publishers, even if they consider their publishing houses’ economic balance, are above all concerned with the content of published products. Independent publishers’ books bring a different outlook and voice, as opposed to the more standardised publications offered by major groups. Independent publishers’ books and other products and their preferred diffusion channels (independent booksellers, among others) are therefore essential to preserve and strengthen plurality and the diffusion of ideas. The word bibliodiversity was invented by Chilean publishers, during the creation of the “Editores independientes de Chile” collective in the late 1990s. The International Alliance of independent publishers significantly contributed to the diffusion and promotion of this notion in several languages, including through the Dakar Declaration (2003), Guadalajara Declaration (2005), Paris Declaration (2007), Cape Town Declaration (2014) and the Pamplona-Iruñea Declaration (2021). Since 2010, International Bibliodiversity Day is celebrated on 21 September.

See the article “Bibliodiversity” on Wikipedia.
The article also exists in French, Spanish and Portuguese.

The bibliodiversity, in pictures!

About the project:
‘Publishing & Book Culture in Africa’ is a new project headed by Caroline Davis, Associate Professor in Publishing, Department of Information Studies, Centre for Publishing, at University College London. With the support of a British Academy Mid-Career Fellowship – and in association with Beth le Roux, Associate Professor of Publishing Studies at the University of Pretoria in South Africa – the intention is to set up a virtual network bringing together publishing researchers/educators across Africa. The network will serve as a platform of linking researchers, as well as a way of accessing databases of information about publishing in Africa; and to provide information about ongoing and past projects and open-access publications and research resources, including those generated by current research projects. A responsive and mobile-friendly project website ’Publishing & Book Culture in Africa’ is shortly to be launched.

As part of a wide range of resources to be made available, Hans Zell was commissioned to create the Repository, and which is now freely accessible in a Pilot edition on the Hans Zell web pages for a limited period of time. The final version will be hosted on the Network’s website later in the year.

Read more here.

Access the Pilot edition here

Read the content here:

• Introduction
• Kenya: Muthoni Garland; †Marjorie Oludhe Macgoye; Ruth Makotsi
• Liberia: Elma Shaw
• Mozambique: Sandra Tamele
• Nigeria: Enajite Efemuaye; †Irene Fatayi-Williams; Azafi Omolabi-Ogosi; Mabel Segun
• South Africa: Michele Betty; Henrietta Dax; Dorothy Dyer; Vangile Gantsho; Eve Gray; Veronica Klipp; Elizabeth le Roux; Alison Lowry; Gill Moodie; Alice Wairimū Nderitū; Lorato Trok; Elitha van der Sandt
• Uganda: Nyana Kakoma; Crystal Rutangye; Hilda Twongyeirwe
• Zambia: Fay Gadsden
• Zimbabwe: Kathy Bond-Stewart; Trish Mbanga; Emma O’Beirne

Available in a pre-print version at: https://www.academia.edu/76616001/Women_in_African_Publishing_and_the_Book_Trade_A_Series_of_Profiles_Series_II

Pre-print version uploaded on Academia.edu April 2022
Final print/online version to appear in The African Book Publishing Record,
Volume 48, Issue 2, (June 2022) https://www.degruyter.com/view/j/abpr

Copyright © Hans Zell Publishing Consultants 2022

Read here the Serie I: Women in African Publishing and the Book Trade: A Series of Profiles, by Hans M. Zell, October 2020

The Independent Publishing Glossary is a collective project led by publishers from the Spanish-language network of the International Alliance of Independent Publishers.

It shows the meanings and definitions of words commonly used in publishing. It is an evolving project, which will be enriched over time in order to include new concepts and to take into account other proposal for definitions. The idea is not to freeze or petrify the concepts, but to open them up to enhance their multiple meanings.

Each term is signed by the person who worked on the definition. The glossary was edited by Germán Gacio Baquiola (Corredor Sur Editorial, Ecuador / Colectivo Editores independientes de Ecuador), Teresa Gottlieb, (Editorial Maitri, Chile), Paulo Slachevsky (Lom Ediciones, Chile) and Miguel Villafuerte, (Editorial Blanca, Ecuador).

To order this title digitally (in French), it’s here!
Sales price (digital copy – PDF version): 5 Euros
ISBN: 978-2-490855-27-8

Publication: February 2022

Presentation
The world of books and writing is not necessarily diverse. Like all places of power, whether real or symbolic, it does not escape the forms of exclusion and predation that can be observed elsewhere in society.
By deliberately favouring a plurality of approaches to the question of inclusion, this issue of the journal attempts to explore a multidimensional phenomenon. Thus, whether through feminism, indigenousness, the LGBTQ+ movement or by considering those excluded from the written word, the authors question the inclusive capacity of this sector.
Beyond the observations, they propose practical examples (collected in France, Quebec, Belgium, Spain, India...) to promote inclusion: the establishment of a gender editor within an editorial office, the creation of a native publishing house, the management of bookshops, publishing houses or feminist or gay journals, the reflection of librarians on the conditions of reception of minorities, etc.
Little by little, thanks to these many initiatives, often without wanting to polemicise or to whitewash issues, professionals are fighting discrimination daily and promoting the expression of real diversity.

“Bibliodiversité” is co-published by Double ponctuation and the International Alliance of Independent Publishers.

See all the other issues of the journal here (“The alternatives. Ecology, social economy : the future of the book ?”, “Minority languages”, "Public book policies”, “Self-publishing”, “Publishing and commitment”, “Translation and Globalization”...)

Discover publishers’ backgrounds, get to know their work and their publications, and listen to the voice of independent publishers… by reading the exclusive publishers portraits in this section!

In partnership with the online magazine ActuaLitté, interviews with publishers member of the Alliance are regularly added here. Explore the interviews:
* Élodie Comtois (Écosociété publishers in Québec),
* Samar Haddad (Atlas Publishing in Syria),
* Marie Michèle Razafintsalama (Jeunes malgaches in Madagascar),
* Constanza Brunet (Marea Editorial in Argentina),
* Antoinette Koleva (KX Critique & Humanism in Bulgaria),
* Karine Joseph (Sirocco in Morocco),
* Colleen Higgs (Modjaji Books in South Africa),
* François Nkémé (Proximité in Cameroon),
* Aliou Sow (Ganndal, Guinea Conakry),
* Ritu Menon (Women Unlimited in India).
* Ivana Jinkings (Boitempo in Brazil),
* Sophie Bazin and Johary Ravaloson (Dodo vole in Madagascar),
* Dorota Hartwich (Format in Poland),
* Amanda Crocker (Between the Lines, Canada),
* Dieulermesson Petit Frère (LEGS Édition, Haiti),
* Corinne Fleury (Atelier des nomades, Mauritius),
* Abdulai Sila (Ku Si Mon, Guinea Bissau),
* Susan Hawthorne (Spinifex Press, Australia),
* Dan Bomboko (Elondja, Democratic Republic of Congo).

To order this title digitally, it’s here!
Sales price (digital copy – PDF version): 5 Euros
ISBN: 978-2-490855-11-7

Sales price (hardcopy): 15 Euros
Format: 14,5 X 21 cm; 236 pages
ISBN: 978-2-490855-10-0

Publication: February 2021

“Bibliodiversité” is co-published by Double ponctuation and the International Alliance of Independent Publishers.

See all the other issues of the journal here (“Minority languages”, "Public book policies”, “Self-publishing”, “Publishing and commitment”, “Translation and Globalization”...)

Presentation
At a time when environmental concerns are becoming more and more important and when traditional production patterns are increasingly being questioned, is there such a thing as an ecological, responsible and solidarity book?
At a time when a significant proportion of printed books end up unread and when the physical flow of books generates significant greenhouse gas emissions, printers, publishers, booksellers and distributors are questioning their practices and the impact they have.
They are proposing alternatives to the dominant system to respond to these challenges – and thus define the future of the book?

In just this past month, three prominent Iranian writers, translators, and members of the Association of Iranian Writers, Bektash Abtin, Kayvan Bazhan, and Reza Khandan Mahabadi, and journalist and sociology researcher, Khosrow Sadeghi Boroujeni, have been sentenced to prison on charges of “propaganda against the Islamic Republic of Iran, and gathering and collusion with the intent of acting against national security.”

These accusations, which have led to long prison sentences and the charges levied are false. Their objectives are to further oppress writers and the people of Iran.
At a time when the world is under crisis by the pandemic, Iran, and especially within its prisons has a very unstable environment, with the increasing spread of Coronavirus among inmates.

We as authors and scholars would like to ask you to let the voices of our fellow authors in prison be heard by the people of the world and to demand their immediate release.

• Daryoush Ashouri, Author, Translator and the Co-founder of the Association of Iranian Writers
• Ervand Abrahamian, Author and Professor Emeritus, City University of New York
• Azar Nafisi, Author
• Faraj Sarkohi, Writer, Journalist, Literature Critic; A Member of German Pen; The Recipient of Kurt-Tucholsky-prize; World Association of Newspapers’ Golden Pen of Freedom Award and World Press Freedom
• Hero by International Press Institute
• Akram Pedramnia, Author, Translator; A Member of Pen Canada; the Recipient of James Joyce Foundation Scholar
• Moniro Ravanipour, Author
• Mohsen Yalfani, Author and Translator
• Nasim Khaksar, Author and Critic
• Reza Allamehzadeh, Moviemaker and Writer
• Morad Farhadpour, Author, Translator and Critical Theorist
• Akbar Masoumbaigi, Author, Translator and a Member of the Association of Iranian Writers
• Babak Ahmadi, Author, Translator and Philosophy Researcher
• Peyman Vahabzadeh, Author and Professor, University of Victoria
• Sohrab Behdad, Denison University, USA
• Farshin Kazeminia, Pierre and Marie Curie University (Paris 6)
• Amir Kianpour, PhD Candidate, University of Paris 8 Vincennes-Saint-Denis
• Mehran Mostafavi, Sacly University (Paris), Professor
• Iman Ganji, PhD in Art Philosophy and Philosophy Researcher, Free University of Berlin
• Mehrdad Darvishpour, Senior Lecturer and Associate Professor, Sociologist, Mälardalen University
• Farhad Nomani, Professor Emeritus of Economics, The American University of Paris
• Soheil Asefi, Journalist and PhD student in History, The Graduate Center, The City University of New York (CUNY)
• Saeed Hariri, Moderator, Toronto Book Club
• Azadeh Parsapour, Translator, Editor and Publisher
• Arash Kia, Faculty of Institute for Healthcare Delivery Science, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York

Women in African Publishing and the Book Trade: A Series of Profiles, by Hans M. Zell, October 2020

Read here the content:

• Ghana: Deborah Ahenkorah; Ama Dadson; Akoss Offori-Mensah
• Kenya: Serah Mwangi; Janet Njoroge; Lily Nyariki; †Asenath Bole Odaga
• Namibia: Jane Katjavivi
• Nigeria: Bibi Bakare-Yusuf; †Flora Nwapa; Anwuli Ojogwu; Oluronke Orimalade; Lola Shoneyin
• Rwanda: Louise Umutoni
• South Africa: Colleen Higgs; Bridget Impey; Thabiso Mahlape; Monica Seeber; Annari van der Merwe; Zukiswa Wanner
• Tanzania: Elieshi Lema
• Uganda: Goretti Kyomuhendo
• Zimbabwe: Jane Morris; Irene Staunton

This pre-print version uploaded on Academia.edu on 12 October 2020
Final print/online version to appear in The African Book Publishing Record,Volume 47, Issue 1, (March 2021) - https://www.degruyter.com/view/j/abpr

Copyright © Hans Zell Publishing Consultants 2020

Read here the IPA (International Publishers Association) support, and here the manifesto published by the Brazilian actors, to defend the book in Brazil.

Analysis of data collected in 10 countries from independent publishers and public actors, by Andrés E. Fernández Vergara (University of Chile)

This article, written in Spanish, offers a regional analysis of public policies for the development of books and reading in Spanish-speaking Latin America, from the point of view of 53 actors in the book world from 10 different countries. It takes into account the similarities and differences that exist from one country to another in the region: on the one hand, there are complex networks of institutions and book promotion mechanisms; on the other hand, there is no national policy or strategic objective. The actors interviewed highlight the difficulties they encounter in their sector today: market concentration, piracy, lack of support for indigenous languages, etc. These are all dangers that threaten bibliodiversity in the region.

Contents:

• Methodology
• Censorship and content control
• Laws, public policies and regulatory mechanisms for books and reading
• Institutions and organisations working in the fields of books and reading
• Direct support and assistance for books and reading
• Copyright Legislation
• Organisation of the profession
• Conclusion

This analysis is to be found in a special issue of the Bibliodiversity Journal on “Public book policies” available in paper and digital versions (in French).

See also the analysis on “Public book policies in sub-Saharan Africa and Madagascar” by Luc Pinhas, published in September 2019.

To complement these analyses, see the mapping of public policies and in-country support mechanisms here: publicbookpolicies.alliance-editeurs.org

Data collection in the 11 countries of sub-Saharan Africa and Madagascar as well as in Latin America, cross-sectional data analyses and online mapping were supported by the Fondation de France and the SDC Switzerland.