CBCP Symposium: People in Publishing: Diversity, Leadership and Publishing’s Futures, 29 June 2026
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Date: Monday 29th June 2026
Time: 10.00am – 5.00pm
Venue: Henley Business School, University of Reading (Whiteknights Campus)
To book tickets to attend the symposium in person or online, click here.
(Please note: For standard delegates, we will charge £10 to cover a sandwich lunch, and morning & afternoon refreshments. Students & independent researchers can attend free of charge. Online attendance is also free of charge)
Schedule
10:00 – 10:05: Welcome
10:05 – 10:35: Opening Address: “Building Diversity in the Media Industries”
Joanna Abeyie MBE – Former Director of Creative Diversity BBC, Founder BlueMoon Consultancy
10:35 – 11:30: Panel: “Bridging the Gap: Academia and Industry in Dialogue on EDI in the Publishing Industry”
Moderator: TBC
Panel:
- Melissa Carr – Lecturer in International Human Resources Management & EDI Director at World of Work Institute
- Vaseem Khan – Crime Fiction author
- Emma Shercliff – Laxfield Literary agency
- Aarti Kumari – The Emma Press
11:30 –11:45: Comfort break
11:45 – 1:00: Research Papers: “Geo-politics and Global Structures”
Chair: TBC
Panel:
- George Cooper & Christopher Adams (UCL) – “Exporting Exclusion: The Impact of the US Political Climate on the UK Publishing Industry”
- Hyei Jin Kim (University of Reading) – “Who Governs the Flow of Books?: The Legacy of the Traditional Market Agreement“
- Karishma Koshal (University of Exeter) – “The Foundations of the Anglophone Trade Publishing Industry in India”
- Frances Weightman (Leeds Centre for New Chinese Writing) – “Becoming a Reluctant Gatekeeper: A Case Study of the Leeds Centre for New Chinese Writing”
1:00 – 1:45: Networking lunch
1:45 – 3:15: Lightning Talks & Research Papers Parallel Session
| Stream 1: “Commercial Approaches to Diversifying Publishing” | Stream 2: “Networks & Institutional Power” |
| Bronwen Price (CEO Seren Books) – “Inclusive Commissioning: Dethroning the Gatekeepers” | Liciane Correa (Pontifical Catholic University of Rio de Janiero) – “The Past and Present of Freelancer Work in Book Proofreading in Brazil” |
| Nicola Daly (University of Waikato) – “Indigenous publishing in Aotearoa New Zealand: A Case Study” | Amanda Allen (Eastern Michigan University) – “Visible Invisibility: Women’s Professional Autonomy and U.S. Children’s Publishing, 1919–1973″ |
| Swara Shukla (Independent Researcher) – “Inclusion and Diversity in Collaborative Publishing Models: A Case Study of the Zubaan-Penguin Joint List in India“ | Chrissy Taylor (University of Waikato) – “Gender and Sexual Identity in Aotearoa New Zealand: Library Acquisition Policies in Relation to LGBTQIA+ Communities in New Zealand” |
| Agata Mrva-Montoya (University of Sydney) – “Accessibility Champions as Diversity Leaders: Driving Publishing’s Inclusive Future” | Maria Belen Riveiro (University of Buenos Aires/University of Newcastle) – “Rethinking Bibliodiversity: the Universal Put into Question” |
| Megan Farr (Bath Spa University) – “Culturally Responsive Publishing Models” | Kanupriya Dhingra (BML Mujal University) – “Beyond the Publisher: How Bookstores, Bazaars, and Libraries Shape Independent Publishing in Delhi “ |
3:15 – 3:30: Coffee/tea break
3:30 – 4:30: Roundtable: “Digital Platforms and AI in the Future of Publishing”
Moderator: TBC
Discussants:
- Basak Bak – Lecturer in Law, Copyright and AI
- Simon Rowberry – Associate Professor of Publishing, UCL, Academic Director of Education for the Department of Information Studies
- Julie Cohen – Author, PhD Candidate, University of Reading
4:30 – 5:00: Keynote: “Inclusive Talent Pipelines”
Professor Katy Shaw – Director of the UKRI/AHRC Creative Communities Programme; Professor of Publishing & Writing Northumbria University
5:00: Wrap up followed by an informal CBCP social/drinks (5 – 6pm)