By 1996, EBLIDA was working with the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) on the improvement of treaties on copyright in the digital era.
In 2000, the EBLIDA group of experts on copyright, together with the Council of Europe (COE), edited the Guidelines on Library Legislation and Policy in Europe – which was described in 2016 as “the best European paper on this topic in recent times.”[1] By the mid-1990s, the association had also taken on a communication role by promoting European programmes among its members and ensuring information reached them via a quarterly magazine and a discussion list.
[8] With the golden age of European Programmes over and the rising challenges brought by technological advances looming closer, the new millennium represents a turning point for EBLIDA: it had to focus further on accessibility of information, and in particular, in the digital world.
[3] EBLIDA’s efforts on this matter were further strengthened in 2008, when it partnered with Ligue des Bibliothèques Européennes de Recherche (LIBER) to create a Joint Expert Group on Digitisation and Online Access.
[1] Additionally, EBLIDA invested further in its work on communication and transmitting information, evident in initiatives such as the Right to e-Read Day, which took place in 2014, or Library Advocacy 4 EU!
Despite remaining true to its role as an advocate for libraries, its action lines have adapted to the new realities: EBLIDA has shifted from looking at copyright from a legal perspective to an economic one[10] and has broadened its action to invest further in the United Nations Agenda 2030 for Sustainable Development, e-lending, democracy, and equity.
Regarding library legislation and information law, EBLIDA has reached a milestone with the approval by the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe of the Recommendation CM/REC(2023)3 of the Committee of Ministers to Member States on Library Legislation and Policy in Europe, in April 2023.
The Recommendation includes new sections such as democratic participation, the 2030 Agenda on sustainable development, and digital transformation and artificial intelligence.
The Executive Committee is EBLIDA’s second highest body and consists of a minimum of 4 and maximum of 10 elected full members, plus the President.
[22] EBLIDA also provides access to a series of position papers and statements on the issues that have affected libraries in Europe since the organisation's birth.