Fondazione LIA – Libri Italiani Accessibili is the winner of the 2020 edition of the ABC International Excellence Award for accessible publishing, in the “Initiative” category, dedicated to projects that have distinguished themselves for their work. It is the most prestigious award in the publishing sector dedicated to initiatives that are distinguished by their work in the field of accessibility.

In a note published by the ABC Consortium, Hugo Setzer, President of IPA – International Publishers Association and member of the jury, explained the reason for this choice: “Fondazione LIA has introduced an innovative approach to accessible publishing, which we would encourage others to emulate. The Foundation has played a very important role in bringing together publishers and the visually impaired community to create an environment where issues of accessibility matter”.

“We are very proud of this recognition of esteem for the work done in recent years, in Italy and abroad. This award is a further stimulus that pushes us to continue our commitment to create an accessible publishing ecosystem where all readers can have the same reading opportunities “said Mario Barbuto, President of Fondazione LIA and the Italian Union of the Blind and Partially Sighted.

A great achievment also according to Ricardo Franco Levi, President of the Italian Publishers Association: “In this difficult period for the book industry, this news gives us great satisfaction. Special thanks to the Italian publishers who worked alongside LIA. Without their precious collaboration all this would not have been possible”.

The jury of the prize was composed of accessibility experts and representatives of organizations serving people who are visually impaired, authors, publishers and standards bodies. Candidates have been chosen based on the leadership role and the results obtained in the common goal of improving the accessibility of e-books and digital publications, to facilitate their use and access for people with visual impairment, with dyslexia, or others disabilities that make reading books difficult.

The award is promoted by the Accessible Books Consortium, an international organization representing people who are blind, visually impaired or otherwise print-disabled, authors, publishers, collective management organizations, libraries and other authorized entities, as well as standards bodies.

THE SHORTLISTS

For the ’Initatives’ category:

  • Fondazione LIA – Italia (winner);
  • EIFL – Electronic Information for Libraries – Lithuania;
  • Kalimat Foundation for Children Empowerment – United Arab Emirates.

For the ‘Publishers’ category:

  • Ediciones Godot – Argentina;
  • House of Anansi Press – Canada;
  • Macmillan Learning – Stati Uniti (winner).