UN launches children’s book club

The United Nations (UN) is this week launching a children’s book club with organisations including the International Publishers Association (IPA) and the International Board on Books for Young People (IBBY).

The International Federation of Librarian Associations (IFLA), European & International Booksellers Federation (EIBF) and Bologna Children’s Book Fair (BCBF) are also working on the project, which was created to promote the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals, adopted by world leaders in 2015 to fight poverty and inequality in areas such as health and education.

The Sustainable Development Goals Book Club will promote 3-5 books for children aged 5-12 every month. The books will be available in the six official UN languages (Arabic, Chinese, English, French, Russian and Spanish) and will encourage children to “discover new voices and concepts from around the world”.

The first selection of books will be announced on 2nd April at the Bologna Children’s Book Fair and promoted by all of the project partners. 

Alison Smale, Under-Secretary-General for Global Communications, United Nations: “I know first-hand the value of reading as a way to learn. I can hardly think of a better way to capture young hearts and minds than through books. We have created the SDG Book Club not only to inspire children to read and learn, but to empower them to play their part in making the world a better place.” 

José Borghino, secretary general of the IPA, said: “As the recent children’s climate strikes have shown, children are keen to learn about their world and how to improve it. The International Publishers Association is excited to be the founding partner of the SDG Book Club together with the UN and believe that by highlighting high-quality, creative children’s books we can inspire more of the next generation to take action and help us all to achieve the SDGs by 2030.”