Open Forum EURead: '25 years of getting Europe reading'

woensdag 11 juni 2025

Koninklijke Bibliotheek, Brussel

Op woensdag 11 juni organiseert EURead i.sm. Iedereen Leest een Open Forum ter gelegenheid van de 25ste verjaardag van het Europese leesbevorderingsnetwerk. Onder andere auteurs Bart Moeyaert en Sulaiman Adonnia zullen er een keynote verzorgen. Daarnaast krijg je ook een overzicht van interessante internationale leesbevorderingspraktijken. Iedereen is van harte welkom.

Op dit event wil EURead samen met beleidsmakers, onderzoekers, onderwijs-, bibliotheek- en cultuurprofessionals, mensen uit het leesbevorderingsveld en iedereen die geïnteresseerd is de essentiële rol onderzoeken die lezen kan spelen om bij te dragen aan een meer competitief, innovatief en voortvarend Europa. Het debat zal focussen op hoe Europa verschillen in geletterdheidsniveau kan wegwerken en kennis rond leesbevordering kan verbeteren en hoe het innovatie kan promoten in overeenstemming met de Sustainable Development Goals en de aanbevelingen uit het Draghi-rapport. Auteurs Bart Moeyaert en Sulaiman Adonnia zorgen voor een mooi start- en slotakkoord.

Het volledige programma is in het Engels. Het Open Forum is gratis, maar aanmelden is noodzakelijk.

Meld je aan

Programma (in English)

17.30 – 18.00 | Opening + 'Do you know what?' - Keynote speech by Bart Moeyaert, Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award Winner
18.00 – 18.25 | On the Benefits of Reading
Prominent speakers will discuss the importance of reading from a scientific perspective and how it shapes our lives and the future
- Prof. Maryanne Wolf, Director of the Center for Dyslexia, DiverseLearners, and Social Justice at the UCLA Graduate School of Education and Information Studies
- Diana Gerald MBE, CEO of BookTrust UK and co-chair of EURead
18.25 – 19.00 | How reading promotion influences, supports, and shapes environmental change in Europe and beyond
Reading promoters from five continents will showcase proven strategies for tackling socioeconomic disadvantages and supporting environmental change. Their presentations will spotlight innovative approaches to making reading accessible and relevant for all, regardless of background or circumstance.
19.00 – 19.40 | 25 Years of getting Europe reading: A Roadmap to a More Literate and Competitive Europe
Discussion: Bridging Gaps in Reading – Developing a European approach to strengthen literacy, background knowledge, and innovation in the context of fulfilling the SDGs and implementing the recommendations of the Draghi Report.
19.40 - 20.00 | A Special Address by Sulaiman Addonia
Closing remarks

Info on the speakers

Bart Moeyaert is one of Belgian’s most famous authors. He was barely nineteen when he made his debut in 1983. A master of the unsaid, his books are always received with great acclaim, and have been described by critics as poetic, cinematic and appealing to the senses. Moeyaert often deals with complex existential subjects, in an insightful and accessible way. His work has won many awards at home and abroad and has been translated into twenty-nine languages. He became four times Finalist for the prestigious Hans Christian Andersen Award: in 2002, 2012, 2020 and 2024, and is the Laureate of the Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award 2019.
(Source: flandersliterature.com)

Sulaiman Addonia is a British-Eritrean-Ethiopian writer. His first novel, The Consequences of Love, was translated into over 20 languages. His second novel, Silence is My Mother Tongue, was published by Indigo Press (2019) and Graywolf (2020). His third novel, The Seers, was published by Prototype (2024) and released in Belgium, the Netherlands, Germany, the U.S., and Canada. Addonia currently lives in Brussels, where he has launched a Creative Writing Academy for Refugees and Asylum Seekers and the Asmara-Addis Literary Festival (In Exile). In 2021, he was awarded Belgium’s Golden Afro Artistic Award for Literature. In 2022, he was elected as a Fellow of the Royal Society.