20 YEARS OF THE SLOVENIAN SECTION OF IBBY
The celebration is concentrated around the International Children's Book Day, on April 2nd 2012, with the exhibition on the Section and with the symposium on translating children's literature, both organized in collaboration with Pionirska - centre for the Children's and Youth Literature and Librarianship in the Ljubljana City Library. The celebration is in accord with this year ICBD message by the Mexican Section of IBBY with the title Once upon a time, there was a story that the whole world told ...
The Slovenian Section of IBBY was established in the Main Slovene Children's Library, The Pioneer Library, in 1992, shortly after the formation of the independent state of Slovenia. Ms Tanja Pogačar was among the initiators of establishing the Slovenian Section of IBBY and its president from 1992 to 2004.
Many of the founding members were involved in the former National Section of Yugoslavia. In 1966 the Yugoslavian Section of IBBY hosted the IBBY Congress in Ljubljana, under the title of 'The Birth of Children's Books'; at this congress April 2nd was proclaimed the International Children's Book Day (ICBD) and Ms Zorka Peršič from Slovenia was elected for the president of IBBY (1966-1970).
The Slovenian Section of IBBY has its site/address in the Ljubljana City Library and collaborates closely with the Pionirska - centre for the Children's and Youth Literature and Librarianship. It has 41 individual and 13 collective members, among them there are: Ljubljana City Library, Maribor Public Library, Murska Sobota Public Library, Slovene Reading Badge Society - ZPMS, Union of Associations of Slovene Librarians, Fine Artists' Association - Section of Illustrators, The journal The Child and a Book, Mla-
dinska knjiga Publishing House, Publishing Houses: Franc-Franc, Rokus-Klett, Miš, RED, etc. (www.ibby.si).
As one among 75 national sections of the International Board on Books for Young People (IBBY), the Slovenian Section of IBBY has the same mission: "to bring children and books together". It works on becoming the focal point for each institution or individual concerned with children's literature in Slovenia. It regularly informs the public about IBBY's activities and is closely involved with reading promotion. It also fosters international links with the International Youth Library (IJB), the Biennale of Bratislava (BIB) and Bookbird, as well as with IBBY National Sections worldwide.
In twenty years the Slovenian Section of IBBY has nominated nine authors, nine illustrators and ten translators of 27 Slovene children's books for the IBBY Honour List. For the Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award (ALMA) and for the Hans Christian Andersen Award it has nominated the Slovene illustrators Mar-lenka Stupica, Marija Lucija Stupica, Lilijana Praprotnik Zupančič (Lila Prap), Ančka Gošnik Godec, Alenka Sottler and the authors Svetlana Makarovič and Tone Pavček. It has nominated for the IBBY-Asahi Reading Promotion Award two programmes of the Slovene Reading Badge Society, the programme Roma people invited to the library etc.
It has sent several best Slovene children's books to different international exhibitions and collections, to the IBBY Documentation Centre of Books for Disabled Young People, etc.
The members of the Slovenian Section of IBBY regularly assist at the IBBY World Congresses every two years (often with paper presentations), international symposiums and professional seminars.
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A large proportion of IBBY Slovenia's activities are centred on the International children's book Day, on April 2nd: an exhibition and a symposium are co-organized at the MKL, Pionirska-centre for children's and Youth Literature and Librarianship, followed by an evening
ceremony at the Slovene Writers' Association. The Slovenian Section of IBBY was the international sponsor of IcBD 1997; Matjaž Schmidt illustrated the poster and Boris A. Novak wrote the message Childhood Is Poetry of Life. Poetry Is Childhood of the World.
OTROŠTVO JE POEZIJA ŽIVLJENJA. POEZIJA JE OTROŠTVO SVETA. CHILDHOOD IS POETRY OF LIFE. POETRY IS CHILDHOOD OF THE WORLD.
Mednarodni dan kn|lg za otroke - 2.april 1997	International Children's Book Day - April 2,1997
The poster illustrated by Matjaž Schmidt http://www.ibby.si/index.php/int-ibby/ibby-2-april/109-poslanica1997
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