The IPA Innovation in Publishing Award seeks to strengthen and unite the publishing industry to move forward together and seize new opportunities for publishing practices and environments, adapting to new circumstances and challenges. Specifically, the award recognizes groups or individuals whose work implements innovative publishing practices that can be replicated by others and benefit the industry.
The IPA Innovation in Publishing Award, alongside the IPA Champion Award, will be awarded at the 34th International Publishers Congress, taking place in Guadalajara, Mexico from 3-6 December 2024.
The 2024 IPA Innovation in Publishing Award shortlist nominees are:
- Publishing 2030 Accelerator
Co-founders: Jörg Engelstädter (Canon) and Rachel Martin (Elsevier)
Co-chairs: Michiel Kolman (Elsevier) and Richard Charkin (Mensch) - Renew the Book
Groep Algemene Uitgevers – Dutch Publishers Association - Reading Rationales
MVB GmbH - AEJ Academia Editorial Júnior
Sindicato Nacional dos Editores de Livros
On the announcement of the shortlist, Secretary General José Borghino said: “We received some excellent nominations for this 2nd IPA Innovation in Publishing Prize covering lots of different aspects of publishing and showing just how much innovation is taking place in our sector.”
Read more on the work of each of the shortlisted nominees below:
Publishing 2030 Accelerator
Co-founders: Jorg Engelstädter and Rachel Martin
Co-chairs: Michiel Kolman and Richard Charkin
The Publishing 2030 Accelerator, introduced at the time of COP 26, is probably the best organized and structured commitment program in climate change offered yet to international publishers.
This ambitious project harnesses cross-community expertise, collaboration and accountability to generate a tangible output (notably, the publication of three informative papers). The initiative addresses how to achieve sustainable development and growth in publishing and provides direction for further national and international collaboration. It contributes to our sustainability as a global industry by presenting data, evidence, prototypes and the preliminary development of production standards.
Established with the support of the International Publishers Association, it has the same limitation that many other orchestrated programs have: If signatories do not actually take the program’s steps and authentically fulfill their commitments to do that, then it becomes a kind of credentialling checkbox.
But with its initial intent in place and its information and tools being made available openly, it is the most lucid ‘first step’ publishing-industry coordination effort mounted to date.
This kind of collaborative effort between publishers — with substantial contributions from a printer — is especially useful as the industry continues to address the impact of climate and technology on the way we work and publish in various print and digital formats.
Renew the Book
Groep Algemene Uitgevers – Dutch Publishers Association
This program has maintained its presence in the publishing-related start-ups arena for years. While we’re no longer in the start-up crowded era of a decade ago in book publishing (when digital-services start-ups seemed to be on every corner), this program in the Netherlands offers a home to the entrepreneurs who still like to work in the start-up model of creating something outside the book-publishing industry and trying to sell into the business.
As a competition for start-ups in the book trade, it is well supported, well integrated and overtly stimulates innovation in the industry. It offers a means of identifying and recruiting new talent, succession planning and helping publishing be seen as an energetic community for innovators. It highlights well-executed digital transformation and marketing projects.
This is an example of how to encourage startups and inject new energy into the industry. More extensive mentoring might help it become a program that guides winning start-ups to know what publishing actually needs.
While this project has a Pan-European angle, the goal of the program could be adopted in other territories. The intent and persistence of this particular program is appreciated as a model.
Reading Rationales
MVB GmbH
Reading Rationales (Lesemotive) is a project that provides guidance and creates lasting enjoyment in buying books. By bundling unconscious motives that lead to purchasing a book, this neuroscientific basis makes emotional access to books from the customer’s perspective systematically available to the entire book industry. Developing a new classification standard and system for booksellers brings innovation to publishing in marketing.
The jury recognised its technical innovation and investment in a business model for publishers and booksellers, as it offers publishers and retailers the opportunity to comprehensively optimise their products, processes and presentation structures.
AEJ Academia Editorial Júnior
Sindicato Nacional dos Editores de Livros
Bringing young talent into the industry is a challenge in most publishing markets, and this one from the Sindicato Nacional dos Editores de Livros has many things going for it. Its ability to contribute to a more equitable entry-level platform to build a more diverse job market in publishing is admirable.
While there are similar programs in other countries, this project is recognised for achieving diversity and inclusiveness in the industry and continuing to refine its training model. This includes linking training in publishing processes with experience at an international book fair. The association’s focus on marginalized populations and commitment to inclusive publishing, as well as the generation of skilled employment in the industry, are inspiring, and also key to sustainability.
With good publishing partnerships in the industry — and, we hope, a willingness to make opportunities genuinely available to all qualified who are interested — the program could offer guidance for other countries’ publishing employment outreach efforts.
About IPA
The International Publishers Association (IPA) is the world’s largest federation of publishers associations with 101 members in 81 countries. Established in 1896, the IPA is an industry body with a human rights mandate. The IPA’s mission is to promote and protect publishing and to raise awareness of publishing as a force for economic, cultural and social development. Working in cooperation with the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) and numerous international NGOs, the IPA champions the interests of book and journal publishing at national and supranational level. Internationally, the IPA actively opposes censorship and promotes copyright, freedom to publish (including through the IPA Prix Voltaire), and literacy.
More information: www.internationalpublishers.org
About the IPA Innovation in Publishing Award
IPA Innovation in Publishing Award
Celebrates groups or individuals that implement innovative practices in publishing that can be replicated by others to the benefit of the whole industry.
Eligibility
Independent publishers, publishing houses, Publishers Associations, or groups/individuals working within these institutions, that have led and implemented an original, innovative idea that may benefit the publishing industry are eligible. Eligibility is not affected if the publishing party collaborated with a third party from outside the publishing industry.
The purpose of these initiatives may involve, but is not limited to, protecting copyright, upholding freedom to publish, executing successful digital transformations, achieving diversity and inclusiveness in the industry, and driving education, reading or literacy. The initiative must exhibit a degree of innovation.
IPA Champion Award
Celebrates individuals who have, during their career, gone above and beyond the norm to help the IPA achieve its goals on behalf of the publishing industry.
Eligibility
Any publisher who is a current or former employee of an IPA member, or a current or former employee of the IPA is eligible for this award, which may be granted posthumously. The recipient may still be active in the publishing industry, within IPA and/or within a Publishers Association when being nominated for the award.
Past or current IPA Presidents are NOT eligible. Current or immediate past members of the IPA Executive Committee, or Chairs of any IPA Committees and previous awardees are NOT eligible for the award.