The Bulgarian Encyclopedia Scientific Information Centre participated in a work meeting of the European national encyclopedias (held in Barcelona on February 4-5th, 2009) concerning a project to create a pan-European online encyclopedia, or “Europedia”. The encyclopedias of Spain, Norway, Italy, Sweden, Croatia and Bulgaria were presented at the meeting. Two consultants at the European Union, who support the inclusion of the Culture programme (2007-2013) in its Multi-annual cooperation initiative, were also present. The idea of creating a multi-lingual and multi-cultural virtual environment with pan-European encyclopedic content was presented in October 2008 at the International Book Fair in Frankfurt (with Bulgarian Encyclopedia Scientific Information Centre’s participation). The online edition will be a reference book on European affairs providing comprehensive and up-to-date information. Professional encyclopedic institutions from various countries are invited to participate. One of the conditions of participation is that the institution has proven itself professionally and has experience in online editions. This was achieved by Bulgarian Encyclopedia Scientific Information Centre with its inclusion in the creation of the Znam.bg educational portal. The invitation to participate in the “Europedia” project is an opportunity to present Bulgarian culture and writing to European countries, as well as a recognition for Bulgarian Academy of Sciences’ scientific and encyclopedic activities.
