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After the 2013 preparatory workshops, an Assembly of Allies will be held from 18 to 22 September 2014, in Cape Town, under the patronage of UNESCO.

In order to achieve this, and in line with practical case studies and sharing of practical knowledge during the workshops, it is essential for publishers to discuss the evolution of bibliodiversity in their countries and publishing houses since 2007: How does bibliodiversity materialise itself on a daily basis for a Malian publisher, an Indian publisher, an Argentinian publisher? How does independent publishing empowers itself in the various countries? How does the publishing field in Madagascar, Peru or Afghanistan professionalise itself?

The Assembly of Allies, a unique intercultural and multilingual space in the field of publishing, is in itself a reflection of international independent publishing. For four days, publishers will discuss their background, for some their struggle, share their experiences and the risks they face. Communication digital tools offer the possibility for publishers to be in regular and quasi instant contact – but they cannot replace human exchanges, essential to trust and solidary relations characteristic of a network such as the Alliance’s.

The Assembly of Allies is moreover a decisive moment for the Alliance’s governance: directions for the coming years, and the ensuing programme of activities, will be decided upon there, collectively.

In the spirit of long term capacity building of its members, the Alliance therefore continues to work towards an international solidarity professional network – to promote the circulation and access to works and ideas.

As a unique meeting, the Assembly of Allies primarily serves publishers’ desire to federate around common wishes: to promote and strengthen bibliodiversity together.

We thank our valued partners: Jacana Media (South Africa), Modjaji Books (South Africa), Open Book Festival (South Africa), French Institute in South Africa, Alliance française du Cap (South Africa), National Library of South Africa, Goethe Institut (South Africa), Fondation Charles Léopold Mayer (Switzerland), Organisation internationale de la Francophonie, région Ile-de-France (France), Centre national du livre (France), Fondation de France (France), Direction du développement et de la Coopération (Switzerland), French Institute in Lebanon, French Institute in Tunisia, Cooperación Regional Francesa para los Países Andinos (Bolivia), Canarias Cultura “Canarias crea” (Spain), Copyright Agency Cultural Fund (Australia), Centro Estero per l’Internazionalizzazione (Italy), Centre Universitaire de Recherches sur l’Action Publique et le Politique (CURAPP) / Université de Picardie Jules Verne (France)… and the publishers themselves!

Contact: assises@alliance-editeurs.org

Preparatory and thematic workshop of the International Assembly of Independent Publishers

Although several debates and discussions on book donations were held, very few considered, complementary to the essential point of view of librarians’ professional collectives, the point of view of publishers and booksellers.
This workshop, facilitated in the context of the International Assembly of Independent Publishers, therefore has 3 main objectives:

• To question existing practices and the impact of the “donation chain” on the “book chain”, from the perspective of local librarians, publishers and booksellers;

• To question, promote and “complete”, if applicable, existing benchmark tools (amongst others, the Book Donation Charter developed by the Culture and Development Association, in partnership with several structures and institutions);

• To propose realistic and sustainable alternatives to “classic” book donations, enabling us, hopefully, to enrich and built on current practices, through the input of local professionals.

The Alliance wishes to express its gratitude to the Ile-de-France Region for its support and trust and BULAC (Languages and civilisation University Library) for hosting us.

Read more about this worshop and about the International Assembly.

Words and Money, initially published in 2010 by Verso publishers (United Kingdom) was translated and published in France by La Fabrique (L’argent et les mots). The book is now available in Arabic, co-published by three publishing houses: Al Intishar (Lebanon), Med Ali (Tunisia) and Atlas Publishing (Syria). This co publishing project bears the “Fair Trade book” logo.

Read the presentation of the book on the Verso books website.

The International Assembly of Independent Publishers is starting now, with the beginning of 2013! Gathering publishers from Africa, Latin America, Asia, Europe and North America, the Assembly will happen first, in 2013, with a series of preparatory and thematic workshops, and then in 2014 with an Assembly of Allies (general meeting) in Cape Town (South Africa).

A unique intercultural and multilingual event in favor of bibliodiversity, to follow on the Alliance website and facebook page!

For more information, contact the Alliance team.

From 24 to 28 November 2012, the publishers from the Spanish-language network will meet in Mexico, in the margins of the Guadalajara International Book Fair (FIL). During this meeting, the Spanish network coordinator, Juan Carlos SÁEZ, will discuss the decisions taken at the ICIP Meeting (International Committee of Independent Publishers) in October 2012. Thereafter, the publishers will present a report on the state of bibliodiversity in their country since 2007 (progresses, obstacles, how does digital publishing shape independent publishing, how publishers collectives operate, what are the Alliance’s priority areas for the years to come). The publishers will then work in small groups on specific themes (copublishing, digital publishing, public policies...), to develop a network action plan for the next two years and prepare the Alliance’s 3^rd International Meeting of the Independent Publishers.

Publishers will also participate to the Otra Mirada Forum, jointly organised by the FIL and the Librerías Cálamo.

Finally, on 28 November 2012, at 13h00, the Alliance will facilitate a roundtable in partnership with the FIL on “Changes in the book industry: the challenges of bibliodiversity”. We look forward to seeing you are the Fair (salón José Luis Martínez), to participate in this discussion!

*The meeting of the Spanish-language network marks the launch of preparatory meetings towards the Alliance’s 3^rd International Meeting (which will continue in 2013 in the various countries). The summary of these workshops will be drafted in 2014, during the Assembly of Allies.

The International Committee of Independent publishers will gather in Paris from 4^th to 6^th for the yearly meeting with the Alliance Board members. This year, some Alliance partners are invited on the first day, to think about the next International Assembly of independent publishing which will take place in 2013 and 2014. The meeting will be also the opportunity to make a report of the language networks activities since the last Committee meeting in June 2011, to talk about the Digital Lab, about governance issues…

The Alliance warmly thanks the Centre national du livre for welcoming the meeting on October 4^th and 5^th.

Follow on an hourly basis the activities held on B Day 2012 on the B Day Facebook page, on the eldiab blog and on the Facebook page of the Alliance.

• In Colombia: the Association of Colombian Independent Publishers (REIC) facilitate a “liberation” of a approximately 6, 000 books in several areas of Bogotá and other Colombian cities, as well as a sticker and bookmark distribution campaign;
• In Madagascar: publisher Marie Michèle RAZAFINSTALAMA (Jeunes malgaches publishers) “frees” some books, as she did in 2011. This year, the operation will target the minibus taxi stations of Antananarivo;
• In Italy: the Federation of Italian Independent Publishers, Fidare, has adapted the B Day logo in Italian and promotes B Day on several websites, here, here, here and here;
• In Peru: a poster campaign is launched, click here!
• In Cameroun: publisher Serge D. KOUAM (Presses universitaires d’Afrique) engages with the media and civil society (see Press Release below) and speaks live on local Cameroonian TV programme “CRTV m’accompagne” and “Panoramique”;
• In the French language space: Sanou MBAYE, François NKEME, Wilfried N’SONDE, Véronique TADJO participate in this day’s events and speak about bibliodiversity (see readings below);
• In Argentina: meetings and discussions, if you have not received your invitation yet, click here!
• In Algeria: publishers from the Arabic language network, in the context of the Algiers International Book Fair, organise a contest entitled “from the best reader”. The winner will be invited to the Tunis Book Fair. An initiative carried out in partnership with Algiers SILA and Algiers National Library (see posters of the Arabic language network of the Alliance);
• In Australia also!
• At international level, a video of the B Day is circulating, and we encourage you to diffuse it widely!
• In Mexico, Mali… B Day is also celebrated… And in your home country?

After Paris in 2007, and Rio de Janeiro in 2009, the publishers from Brasil, Angola and Guinea-Bissau are gathering in Lisbon. The event will be the opportunity to assess the network activities since 2009; to define a roadmap for the next years; to remind the stakes for independent publishing and bibliodiversity in the Portuguese-speaking area; to think about digital publishing and to share some experiences in this field… Beyond the internal meetings, the publishers will take also this opportunity to meet some Portuguese publishers and to consider fair partnerships between different continents (copublishing projects, copyrights transfer, etc.).

The Alliance thanks the French Institute of Portugal (IFP), the Portuguese association of publishers and bookshops (ANEL), and the bookshop Ferin for their warming welcome and their availability.

On September 21 will be celebrated the International Day of Bibliodiversity. Since 2010, each year, some actions are organized in Latin America, Africa, Europe, Asia, to promote independent publishing and bibliodiversity: bookcrossing, meetings, book picnics, posters.

You are more than welcome to participate to the events this year in Colombia, Peru, Argentina, Algeria, Italia... and in many other countries!

Here the video B Day 2012!

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

This issue is dedicated to Andre Schiffrin, member of the Scientific Committee of the journal Bibliodiversity.

Follow this link to listen to the “Danse des mots” programme of April 18 2013, focusing on book donations. Yvan AMAR interviews Raphaël THIERRY, following the publication of the article in Africultures, April 8 2013 “Giving is not receiving. Thoughts on book donations in Africa”.

Container full of books inundating the market, books produced in another cultural setting given away free to readers or public libraries, the setup of local branches by publishing groups from abroad aiming to achieve monopoly conditions… Drawing on some examples of practices with damaging consequences to the publishing market in developing countries, Étienne Galliand (founder of the International Alliance of Independent Publishers) presents an overview of the predation to which emerging markets are subjected directly or indirectly. An edifying panorama.

As a complement to this article, you can consult the Guidelines for Fair Publishing Partnerships (in French).

While many African languages exist, publishing in local languages is almost inexistent because of the inherited dominance of colonial languages. However, some publishing houses publish in local languages and by doing so reach an often isolated readership. To preserve texts, promote authors, and widely circulate ideas, some publishers wished to meet to facilitate a flow of translations from one African language to another, to develop bilingual or trilingual co-publishing projects – representatives of Africa’s linguistic diversity.

How can we implement these projects? How can new technologies enable them? From an inventory of publishing practices in national and local languages, carried out by participants especially for this workshop, publishers will propose collective editorial projects that could be implemented in the years to come with the support of the Alliance, amongst others. The creation of an African language book fair will also be at the heart of discussions: this fair could represent the next meeting opportunity for public authorities and lead to measures that promote learning and publishing in national languages.
Through sharing experiences amongst eight African publishers and input from various participants, the workshop’s issues include:
* raising public authorities’ awareness on the development of learning in national languages;
* drafting practical proposals addressed to organisations working for the advancement of local languages;
* formulating recommendations addressed to book professionals and advocating for the creation of a local languages book fair and the development of African language publishing projects.
This workshop is supported by the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC).

From 2009 to 2015, the Alliance developed, on request of publisher members, a modest diffusion and distribution activity in France of youth literature published in Africa (“Lectures d’Afrique(s)”) . This fund addresses a double issue: make literary production published in Africa accessible and visible in the Northern market Northern market and, more modestly, participate in a rebalancing of commercial flow between South and North.
The youth sector, expanding in many regions in the world, is strategic in countries where publishing is emergent – it is indeed through youth literature that tomorrow’s readerships are formed. While catering to their local readership, publishers in Africa also wish to be known internationally. Their participation at book fairs in the North, for instance the Youth Book and Press Fair in Seine-Saint-Denis, reveals the presence of a readership on the Northern markets.