The IPA’s Frankfurt Book Fair started on Tuesday 6 October, with our Executive Committee meeting ahead of the Fair’s opening ceremony.
The book fair proper for IPA started on Wednesday with a packed Copyright Committee gathering in Conclusio to discuss the latest developments around Copyright in different markets with AI, unsurprisingly, being a constant thread through the updates.
In parallel, the Asia Stage opened with IPA’s other pillar, Freedom to Publish, focusing on Asia and Latin America with a conversation between Philippine Publisher Atty. Dominador Buhain and Ana María Cabanellas, IPA’s first female President. The two discussed how the freedom to publish has evolved in the Philippines, Asia, Argentina and Latin America covering educational publishing, copyright and AI.
IPA’s Committee meetings continued with the Inclusive Publishing and Literacy Committee (IPLC) hearing about the new IPA report on the Freedom to Publish (a sneak peak ahead of its release the following day) and how its findings related to the work of the IPLC. Academic Freedom, gender equality and literacy were also keenly discussed.
Attention turned to the Sustainable Development Goals with the sixth Sustainability Summit in the afternoon. Under the title Beyond 2030: What Should Publishing Do Next?, the summit invited participants to think past the current SDG deadline and to take an active part in shaping the agenda that follows. Discussion covered what a post 2030 UN framework might contain and how publishers can work together on gender equality and climate change with Melissa Fleming, the UN under-secretary-general for global communications underlining the important role publishers can play. IPA President Gvantsa Jobava introduced a new gender equality pledge which will be opened to signatures at the fair and was presented in more detail by UN Women ECA’s Salome Benidze. The French Publishers Association presented its latest initiatives in the field of sustainability, notably with its Carbon Calculator. The meeting then closed with a rapid look at potential regulatory requirements around the SDGs, a new Greek SDG Book Club and the German ‘Initiative 18’ promoting an 18th SDG on Fair and Sustainable Media.
From meeting rooms to the Global Stage, where IPA held the ceremony for the inaugural Freedom of Expression Defenders Award, a new prize recognizing those who defend the freedom of expression, the freedom to publish and the freedom to read. The ceremony celebrated the five shortlisted nominees, four of whom were present, and the first ever winner, The Media Coalition. Read more in the official statement here. Fittingly the ceremony was followed by an Open meeting of the IPA’s Freedom to Publish Committee.
IPA’s day closed with a special celebration of IPA’s 130th Anniversary! After an emotional opening by IPA President, Gvantsa Jobava, whose term will finish at the end of 2026, IPA’s Committee Chairs shared their views on the future of IPA in the areas of copyright, freedom to publish, data and statistics, educational publishing, membership issues as well as the range of issues covered by the inclusive publishing and literacy committee. IPA Past President Michiel Kolman, and Rachel Martin, then delivered a presentation of IPA’s survey of EC members and launched a new infographic and survey for the full sector to share their views on where we will be in 2030. You can see the infographic and access the survey here. The celebration closed with a look at the future with Janneke de Vries from the German Publishers and Booksellers Association’s Youth Parliament, and John Steinmark presenting the Young Voices Network. Future Frankfurt Book Fair CEO closed the proceedings sharing his belief in the power of publishers.
On Thursday morning IPA will be on the Global Stage for The Freedom to Publish Globally. IPA will also attend the Rendez-Vous of the Federation of European Publishers, and UN Publications hosts two sessions on the Global Stage in the afternoon.