Eurolib turns 30

What is Eurolib? It may sound like it, but it is not an EU agency like Europol or Eurojust. Eurolib is the co-operation network of the libraries of the EU institutions and agencies. It was established in 1988 upon the initiative of the Secretary General of the European Parliament, as a follow-up to the 'Plan of Action for Libraries in the EC' in 1987. The Council Library is proud to be among the founding members.

Through inter-library collaboration, Eurolib supports initiatives such as open access, copyright and preservation. The  member libraries cooperate to pool investment resources in technology, acquisitions and services. The group also promotes the contribution of our libraries to the institutions we serve. Last but not least, it is a forum to share experience and best practices through regular meetings.

We celebrated Eurolib’s 30th anniversary at our autumn meeting, hosted by the library of the Directorate-General for Translation at the European Commission. Addresses were made by members who had been present at the very first meeting in 1988.

We also marked the launch of the Eurolib repository at the 'Historical archives of the European Union'. Minutes of meetings and many other documents are now available for consultation and research online via the European University Institute website.