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Again this year, independent publishers will be in Frankfurt. To contact and meet them during the Fair, consult the document below!

Not to be missed, Thursday, 15 October, from 13h to 14h, Hall 3.1 (Weltempfang)
“Independent feminist publishing across borders – a dialogue between 4 feminist publishers from 3 continents” – a round table organised by the Alliance, in partnership with Litprom and the Fair – with Renate Klein (Spinifex Press, Australia), Susan Hawthorne (Spinifex Press, Australia), Colleen Higgs (Modjaji Books, South Africa) and Müge Gürsoy Sökmen (Metis Publishers, Turkey). Facilitated by Juan Carlos Sáez (JC Sáez Editor, Chile).

Preparations for the 5^th edition of the International Bibliodiversity Day are underway all around the world.
The B Day video is available, to be widely distributed around you! You will also find ready-to-use posters here, that you simply need to download and use! Activities and meetings are planned in Mexico, Argentina, Cameroon, Chile, Colombia, Venezuela, Peru, Brazil, Ivory Coast, Egypt, Italy…

Follow B Day activities on this blog and on Facebook. And find out what is happening in your country and/or city!

A celebration - the 21^st September 2015!
Celebrate bibliodiversity with us on the 21^st of September.
For the 5^th International Bibliodiversity Day: picnics, debates, readings, books appearing in unusual places... And coming soon, a video!
Write to us for more information, or to tell us about events going on in your country!

MICA and the Alliance’s Spanish-speaking publishers meeting (Argentina), 2-6 September 2015
In parallel with MICA (Argentina’s cultural industry trade show), 16 Argentinian publishers from Bolivia, Chilli, Colombia, Spain, the Canary Islands, Mexico, Peru and Uruguay will get together in Buenos Aires thanks to support from MICA, the Argentinian Book Chamber and Argentinian members of the Alliance. On the agenda: the implementation of the 80 recommendations promoting bibliodiversity in Latin America and Spain, the creation of a map of Latin America’s public policies...
The publishers will also participate in MICA events: copyright exchanges, co-publishing days, round-table discussions about the concentration of publishing and bibliodiversity...
The program for the Spanish-speaking publishers meeting will be available on the Alliance’s site soon. More information about MICA here!

The International Committee of Independent Publishers meeting - ICIP (Paris) 9-11 October 2015
The ICIP is made up of 6 representatives of the Alliance’s linguistic networks and will meet in Paris for 3 days: the governance of the Alliance, a report and implementation of the recommendations and project resulting from the International Assembly of Independent Publishers, meetings between Alliance partners, freedom of expression and publishing, copyright in Europe and the rest of the world... a busy program!
The CIEI program will be available on the Alliance site soon.

A new website!
A new design, new functions and an improved “Resource Center”: Discover the new Alliance website in November 2015!

The Alliance will be closed from the 10^th to 21^st August. We wish you a great August in the meantime!

17 publishers from West Africa will meet in Dakar for this workshop facilitated by the Digital Lab of the Alliance, and through the support of the International Organization of the Francophonie, in partnership with Wikimedia France, the Afrilivres association and the Senegalese publishers association.
The workshop will include 3 sessions: training on Wikipedia (facilitated by Georges Fodouop and Donatien Foffi, two volunteer members of Wikimedia); the promotion of publishers lists on social networks (facilitated by Nicolas Gary, director of publication of the ActuaLitté Website); the development of Websites for African publishing houses, based on the Web template developed by the Digital Lab of the Alliance (facilitated by Mouhammed Diop, Senegalese developer).

17 independent publishers members of the Alliance will attend the Paris Book Fair, from 20 to 23 March 2015. The Alliance and publishers will also take part in meetings and roundtables… Consult the list of participants and programme through the link below!

And in the margins of the Fair:
Partial meeting of the French-speaking network: 2015 perspectives and discussions on “Freedom of Speech, Freedom of Publishing”
24 March 2015, Centre national du livre (CNL), Paris/ for members of the Alliance only

Meeting with independent publishers or authors from the Maghreb, facilitated in partnership with the Arab and Hebraic World Sorbonne Association (SAMAH)
24 March 2015, 19h00, University of Sorbonne, amphi Guizot (17, de la Sorbonne St - 75005 Paris)

The socio-economic environment, historical approach and political context are only some of the factors to consider in appreciating, in all its complexity and diversity, the notion of an independent publisher. Independent publishers in Chile, France, Benin, Lebanon, or India work in specific contexts that have direct consequences on their activities. However, although the situation differs from one country to another, it is possible to agree on some criteria in order to define what is an independent publisher. Independent publishers develop their editorial policy freely, autonomously, and without external interference. They are not the mouthpieces for a political party, religion, institution, communication group, or company. The structure of capital and the shareholders identity also affect their independence: the takeover of publishing houses by big companies not linked to publishing and implementation of profit-driven policies often result in a loss of independence and a shift in publishing orientation. Independent publishers, as defined by the Alliance’s publishers, are originating publishers: through their often-innovative publishing choices, freedom of speech, publishing and financial risk-taking, they participate in discussions, distribution, and development of their readers’ critical thinking. In this regard, they are key players in bibliodiversity.

Solidarity publishing partnerships, collaborative spaces, resource centre, Intercultural and face-to-face meetings... discover the programme of the Alliance in 2015!

The world (of ideas) is wounded

After the attack this Wednesday, January 7^th 2015 against the French satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo, the 400 publishers of the International Alliance of Independent Publishers offer their most afflicted condolences with friends and family of the victims.

Today more than ever, solidarity is essential —we think about the journalists, cartoonists and publishers from all around the world who risk their lives for freedom of expression. We also hope that these attacks will not serve to feed more islamophobia and xenophobia in Europe.

We will continue with determination and conviction, as we have expressed it in the Declarations of Dakar (2003), Paris (2007), and Cape Town (2014), to work with journalists, authors and creators to struggle against any form of suppression of the word, and to foster fair speech.

9 January 2015, 400 independent publishers from 45 countries in the word,
members of the International Alliance of Independent Publishers

On 23 October this year, the “Terres solidaires” reading Committee selected the next two titles to be published in the collection.

As every year, the committee, composed of book professionals and mediators in Africa, held a continent-wide virtual meeting. After several hours of exchanges and discussions it is, once again, two great African literature novels that were selected: Léonora Miano’s La saison de l’ombre (initially published by Grasset publishers in 2013, 2013 Fémina prize winner) and Hubert Haddad’s Palestine (initially published by Zulma publishers in 2007, 2008 Cinq Continents prize winner). These two novels will be available in Africa in 2015 and 2016 respectively, at a price adapted to local readers’ purchasing power, through an African publisher collective that will copublish these books.

Click here for more information on the other 9 titles published in the “Terres solidaires” collection, as well as on the collection’s publishers and countries where books are distributed.

The Alliance wishes to thank and acknowledge the exceptional work of the reading committee members:
• Saïd AFOULOUS (journalist, Morocco)
• Layla CHAOUNI (Le Fennec publishing, Morocco)
• Élisabeth DALDOUL (elyzad publishing, Tunisia)
• Yasmin ISSAKA-COUBAGEAT (Graines de Pensées publishing, Togo)
• Ludovic KIBORA (journalist, Burkina-Faso)
• Rachid MOKHTARI (journalist, Algeria)
• Jean-Claude NABA (Sankofa & Gurli publishing, Burkina Faso)
• François NKEME (Ifrikiya publishing, Cameroun)
• Serge POUTH (journalist, Cameroun)
• Felwine SARR (teacher, researcher and bookseller, Senegal)

Since its creation, “Terres solidaires” collection is supported by the International Orgainsation of the Francophonie.

In partnership with the Tunis Book Fair and the Union of Tunisian Publishers, and thanks to the support of the Fondation de France and the French Institutes of Tunisia and Lebanon, the Alliance organised a day focusing on public book policies in the Arab world on Thursday 30 March 2017.

Publishers from Algeria, Lebanon, Morocco and Tunisia presented a panorama of book public policies in their respective countries: Chilean and French publishers spoke on what is being implemented in their countries – a dialogue and exchange between professionals and public authorities, between continents, between cultures.

This day was initiated in the context of the Bibliodiversity Observatory and the mapping of public book policies in Latin America and the Arab world, on-going at the Observatory.

Call for proposal – looking for an author

The Alliance aims to produce an unprecedented study about freedom of publishing, listening to independent publishers about the following questions:
• What are the different infringements of freedom of publishing that independent publishers confront in their countries?
• How do they face these threats in their daily professional life?
• How do the publishers resist, preserve, and defend their freedom of publishing? How do they circumvent censorship?
• Are publishers more vulnerable today than they used to be? Have there been some significant changes in recent years?
• From the point of view of the publishers, is there a limit to freedom of publishing (and freedom of expression)?
The study will be written in French. If you are interested in conducting this study, please send your proposal to the Alliance team before 13 March 2017.}

The sixth ordinary session of the Conference of Parties->https://en.unesco.org/creativity/convention/governing-bodies/conferences/6th-ordinary-session] to the Convention on the Protection and Promotion of the Diversity of Cultural Expressions (Paris, UNESCO 12 - 15 June 2017) has approved the Operational Guidelines on the Implementation of the Convention in the Digital Environment.

Read the operational guidelines in English here.

Read the text of the Convention.
Read the Operational Guidelines of the Convention here.

The International Alliance of independent publishers demands that Turkish authorities immediately release publishers, authors and journalists currently detained. It is necessary to guarantee freedom of speech and publishing in Turkey. The Alliance joins the Turkish Publishers Association’s condemnation of the summary closure of publishing houses and media as a clear human rights violation, and urges the Turkish authorities to rescind those summary closures.

Read issue 4 of the journal Bibliodiversity.

Organised by Afrilivres Association, through the support of its partners and the support of OMEL (Malian book publishers organisation), the first edition of the African Languages Book Fair will convene professionals, academics, institutions, NGOs, and the general public for 3 days of discussions, sharing, exhibition, and sale of books in African languages. An unprecedented and unique event, not to be missed!

Extract from the Communiqué by the Alliance for a call for freedom of speech and publishing in Bangladesh, 10 November 2015:

For several months, authors, bloggers, publishers and booksellers have been the victims of violent and deadly attacks in Bangladesh.

The International Alliance of independent publishers, representing 400 independent publishers from 45 countries in the world, condemns these murderous attacks and assault on freedom of speech and publishing. The Alliance also reaffirms the essential role needing to be played by public authorities, in Bangladesh and throughout the world to enable the emancipation of its citizens, and to guarantee a public space conducive to dialogue and peace. Plurality and diversity of ideas constitute the foundation of democracy. It is urgent that the Bangladeshi government protects and supports actors in the book industry, thus safeguarding the foundations necessary for their work and freedom of speech.

Publishing in Persian language presents a comprehensive and current overview of publishing in Persian language, in Iran, Afghanistan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, but also in the diaspora in Europe and the United States.
Articles, penned by Ali Amiri, Beytolah Biniaz, Masoud Hosseinipour, Farid Moradi, Laetitia Nanquette and Dilshad Rakhimov, enable an understanding of editorial markets through historical, economic, political and cultural perspectives.
This study sheds light on the work and publishing list of several independent publishers in Persian language, and thus enabling professional and intercultural exchanges.
Publishing in Persian language is available in Persian and English, and openly accessible on the Website of the International Alliance of Independent Publishers, in PDF, ePub and MOBI formats.

Summary of the study:
• Introduction, Beytolah Biniaz
• History of publishing in Iran, Farid Moradi
• Panorama of independent publishing in Iran, Farid Moradi
• Structure of the book market in Iran, Farid Moradi
• Cultural exchanges and translations between Iran and France, Germany, the United Kingdom and the United States, Laetitia Nanquette
• Persian language publishers in Europe, Farid Moradi
• Publishing in Afghanistan, Ali Amiri
• Panorama of publishing in Tajikistan, Dilshad Rakhimov
• Publishing in Persian language in Uzbekistan, Farid Moradi and Masoud Hosseinipour

Publishing in Persian language, “État des lieux de l’édition” collection (Reports on the publishing world), International Alliance of independent publishers, 2015.
ISBN: 978-2-9519747-7-7 (Persian version)
ISBN: 978-2-9519747-8-4 (English version)

Publishing in Persian language was made possible through the support of the Prince Claus Fund. We thank all contributors, publishers, and professionals who participated to this collective endeavour –and particularly Sonbol Bahmanyar for the coordination of the study.

Indigenous publishing is integral to national identity and development: cultural, social, and economic. Such publishing reflects a people’s history and experience, belief systems, and their concomitant expressions through language, writing, and art. In turn, a people’s interaction with other cultures is informed by their published work. Publishing preserves, enhances, and develops a society’s culture and its interaction with others. In Africa, indigenous publishers continue to seek autonomy to pursue these aims: free from the constraints of the colonial past, the strictures of economic structural adjustment policies, the continuing dominance of multinational publishers (particularly in textbooks), regressive language policies, and lack of recognition by African governments of the economic and cultural importance of publishing. African publishers seek to work collectively, to harness the digital age, and to take their place in the international marketplace on equal terms, Africa’s own voice.

This article, by Walter Bgoya and Mary Jay, was originally published in Research in African Literatures, vol. 44, no. 2, Summer 2013, 17-34, published by Indiana University Press.