Mission
The official aims of the European Writers’ Council (EWC) – Fédération des associations européennes d’écrivains (FAEE) AISBL and mission are to represent the professional interests of the creators of literature, poetry, fiction and non-fiction, young adult and children’s literature, drama, screenplay, core texts for audiovisual works and translation of all forms of literary works, while contributing to the debate on the role of authors, culture and cultural policy in Europe and the world; to facilitate trans-European cultural & literary co-operation, and to advocate for the literatures of Europe, cultural and linguistic diversity, and also to promote the writers’ contribution to culture, including in the lesser known languages.
Our mission comprises three main objectives/domains within the European context:
- Authors’ Rights, including Copyright
- Culture Policy
- Cultural Exchange
The European Writers’ Council (EWC) – Fédération des associations européennes d’écrivains (FAEE) AISBL represents 160,000 professional writers and translators in the book and text sector in all genres from all over Europe.
The European Writers’ Council is the federation of 46 national organisations of professional writers and translators in 30 countries including the EU, as well as Belarus, Iceland, Montenegro, Norway, Switzerland and United Kingdom, altogether writing in 31 languages.
The EWC’s member associations represent 160,000 individual authors in the book and text sector in all genres.
The EWC defends the professional interests of its members in economic, legal and political contexts, their right to remuneration and compensation for their works, their relevance in cultural and social policy, freedom of expression, freedom of association, and the importance of lesser spoken and written languages.
The EWC champions the diversity of literature while raising awareness for both the role of authors in society and the need to have their social, moral and economic rights respected in the digital age. For a wider access to culture, including the production of special formats for the visually impaired persons of the world.
The EWC remains determined to raise and publicly present the commitment of professional writers and translators to shaping the profile of Europe through individual creativity within the diversity of expressions in the rich variety of living European languages.
The EWC was part of the consortium implementing the European Union Prize for Literature in collaboration with the European Commission from 2009 to 2021.
Historical Background
The EWC was founded as the European Writers’ Congress in 1977 (Berlin). Its first statutes were adopted in 1985, and modified in 2003. EWC began a new era on September 21 2006, with its official constitution as an International Non-Profit Association under Belgian law/AISBL (Association internationale sans but lucratif). Since 2010 its official name is European Writers’ Council.
It is recognised by the European Union, UNESCO, and WIPO.
Presidents of the European Writers’ Council
Since 2019: Nina George
Writers’ Union of Germany
2017-2019: Gunnar Ardelius
Swedish Writers’ Union
2016-2017: Malin Koch
Swedish Writers’ Union
2015-2016: Nick Yapp
Writers’ Guild of Great Britain
2009-2015: Pirjo Hiidenmaa
Association of Finnish Non-fiction Writers
2007-2009: John-Erik Forslund
Swedish Writers Union
2005-2007: Trond Andreassen
Norwegian Non-fiction Writers and Translators Association
