WIPO’s Accessible Books Consortium (ABC) announced the winners of the 2025 International Excellence Awards for Accessible Publishing during the gala dinner of the World Blindness Summit in São Paulo, Brazil. DADO Editorial Sensorial of Colombia received the publisher award, while the APACE Project, co-funded by the European Union, was recognized in the initiative category.
The jury recognized DADO Editorial Sensorial for its work in developing a wide range of accessible reading formats in Colombia. In addition to braille, digital books, and audiobooks, DADO Editorial Sensorial has introduced tactile elements to its books.
Accepting the award, Oscar Díaz Moreno, Co-Founder and CEO of DADO Editorial Sensorial, said: “Accessibility has always been our foundation, not an afterthought. We want to show that literature can be experienced in multiple ways, allowing everyone to connect with stories in the format that resonates with them. This award inspires us to keep pushing the boundaries of inclusive publishing.”
By weaving creativity into accessibility and building a sustainable, inclusive publishing model, DADO Editorial Sensorial’s objective is to expand cultural participation for people with print disabilities in Colombia and beyond.
The Accelerating Publishing Accessibility through Collaboration in Europe Project (APACE), which was co-funded by the European Union under the Creative Europe program, won in the initiative category. The APACE Project was coordinated by the Fondazione LIA of Italy and brings together the respective Publishers’ Associations in Italy, Germany, and Bulgaria with three libraries for the blind: Dedicon in the Netherlands, Accessibility Library Celia in Finland, and the Lithuanian Audiosensory Library. This initiative has the objective of strengthening the capacity of the publishing industry in light of the European Accessibility Act, which came into force in June 2025.
The jury in particular praised APACE’s collaborative model of seven partners in both the publishing and library sectors, located across six countries. Through training, resources, and cross-border cooperation, the project aims to equip organizations to embed accessibility in their day-to-day practices.
Elisa Molinari, Coordinator of APACE and Project Manager at the Fondazione LIA, accepted the award on behalf of the seven project partners: “Accessibility succeeds when we work together. APACE has created a strong European network that helps publishers and libraries face the challenges of accessibility with confidence and purpose. This award celebrates our shared commitment to ensuring that every reader has equal access to books.”
Since 2015, the ABC International Excellence Awards have recognized outstanding leadership and achievement in accessible publishing. Winners are chosen by an expert jury composed of accessibility specialists, publishers, and organizations representing persons with print disabilities.
Background
According to a 2017 study published in The Lancet, approximately 253 million people are blind or visually impaired world-wide. Nearly 90% of these are resident in developing countries, where the World Blind Union (WBU) estimates that people who are blind have only a one in ten chance of going to school or getting a job. A lack of accessible books remains a very real barrier to getting an education and leading an independent, productive life.
About ABC
The Accessible Books Consortium (ABC) is a public-private partnership led by WIPO that, together with its many partners around the world, has had real impact over the past decade. Since its inception, the ABC Global Book Service catalogue has quadrupled in size to over one million titles thanks to the inclusion of the collections of participating authorized entities. ABC delivered a total of 225,000 accessible digital files from the ABC catalogue to persons with print disabilities through its authorized entities in 2024. In addition, through ABC’s training and technical assistance partners, more than 20,000 textbooks have been made accessible in over 40 low-income countries, improving access to education for thousands of young people. ABC was established in June 2014 to implement the goals of the Marrakesh Treaty.
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About WIPO
The World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) is the global forum for intellectual property policy, services, information and cooperation. A specialized agency of the United Nations, WIPO assists its 193 member states in developing a balanced international IP legal framework to meet society's evolving needs. It provides business services for obtaining IP rights in multiple countries and resolving disputes. It delivers capacity-building programs to help developing countries benefit from using IP. And it provides free access to unique knowledge banks of IP information.