This past June, we celebrated a meaningful milestone: members of the Global Network for Early Years Bookgifting met in person for the first time in seven years! We were fortunate to gather in Brussels to mark EURead’s 25th anniversary in a joyful reunion of its members, joined by participants from the Global Network for Early Years Bookgifting and the Researchers Network. We are deeply grateful to EURead for offering us the opportunity and space to connect in person.

During this special occasion, members shared successful projects from Flanders, Croatia, and Poland, along with impactful practices from Malaysia and Tanzania, just to mention a few highlights from several inspiring contributions over those wonderful days. A key takeaway emerged clearly: bookgifting works in every context, and the benefits of reading extend to every baby and their family—regardless of geography or socio-economic status.

The evening of 11 June featured the Open Forum: 25 Years of Getting Europe Reading, where members of the Global Network for Early Years Bookgifting from Belgium, Japan, the Netherlands, and Peru presented the impact of their programmes on children’s development and well-being.

Unlike our regular virtual meetings, these in-person sessions were not recorded. Many invaluable contributions also took place during panel discussions. We extend our heartfelt thanks to all the members who joined us and enriched this shared space, helping to grow our network and strengthen our shared commitment to ensuring every child has access to books, stories, and the fundamental right to learn and grow.

Below, you’ll find a chronological list of the panel discussions and presentations, along with links to download them in PDF format for reference when available.

Tuesday afternoon

• Els Michielsen (Boekstart Flanders) PDF LINK
• Ivana Alpeza (Born to Read, Croatia) PDF LINK
• Edison Ricket (Reading Seeds, Sarawak, Malaysia) PDF LINK
• Katarzyna Humeniuk (Polish Book Institute) and Maria Deskur (Universal Reading Foundation, Poland) “Promotion of Reading in the Medical Community – The Power of Institutional Cooperation.” PDF LINK

Wednesday morning

• Ahn Chan Soo, Book Culture Foundation, Korea (on their 2018 International Bookstart conference) PDF LINK
• Dorette Louw (Book Dash, S Africa) – Early-years Bookgifting in Africa: the context PDF LINK

Wednesday Open Forum PDF LINK

• Marijke Bos, Stichting Lezen, Boekstart Netherlands
• Izumi Satou, Bookstart Japan
• Lucia Guerrero, Leer en Familia, Peru

Thursday morning

Partnerships – South Africa, Ireland, Norway 

• Dorette Louw (Book Dash, S Africa) – Partnering with community organisations: processes and practice PDF LINK
• Vibeke Røgler (Foreningen !les, Norway) – Working with libraries and health centres, and the Ministry of Education PDF LINK
• Aoife McDonnell (Childrens Books Ireland) – Developing Reads and Rhymes Together with Children’s Health Ireland PDF LINK

Campaigns and Advocacy – Japan, Poland, Scotland   

• Katarzyna Humeniuk (Polish Book Institute) – Annual social media and media campaign on Bookstart and the benefits of reading PDF LINK
• Catriona Wallace (Scottish Book Trust) – Advocacy and alignment: positioning early years bookgifting as essential, in the face of library cuts PDF LINK
• Izumi Satou (Bookstart Japan) – Together through Books: A Campaign to Celebrate the Moments We Share PDF LINK

Book Selection and Commissioning – Korea, Sarawak, Austria 

• Ahn Chan Soo (Bookstart Korea) – Book selection and commissioning PDF LINK
• Edison Ricket (State Library Sarawak) – Reflecting the rich diversity of our communities PDF LINK
• Laura Pellizzari (Bookstart Austria) – The fascination of early seeing in Bookstart PDF LINK

Panel Discussion

Training practitioners – Italy, Switzerland, Poland, Greece, Netherlands

(Moderator Marijke Bos) 

• Barbara Jakob (Bookstart Switzerland) – Training for early childhood reading animators 
• Stefania Manetti (Nati per Leggere, Italy) – Training health professionals, librarians, educators and teachers 
• Gabriela Dul (Polish Book Institute) – Training midwives 
• Evanthia Sakellari (Diavazantos Megalono, Greece) – Training health professionals 

Multilingualism and diversity – Spain, Peru, Finland

(Moderator Emmi Jäkkö) 

• Ana Molina (Mestiza, Spain) -Cultural diversity and multilingualism: challenges for reading promotion 
• Lucía Guerrero (Leer en Familia/PUCP, Peru) – Reading across Cultures and Languages: Embracing Diversity in Early Childhood