Last week, Zanichelli was shortlisted for the ABC International Excellence Award. Yesterday, they won it.
The Accessible Books Consortium announced Zanichelli Editore S.p.A. as the winner of the 2026 ABC International Excellence Award for Accessible Publishing in the publisher category, at the Bologna Children's Book Fair Awards Ceremony on April 13, 2026.
Why Zanichelli won
The jury commended Zanichelli for embedding accessibility into its core publishing processes, ensuring that educational materials are "born accessible" and available to all learners from the outset. The jury highlighted their innovative use of AI in production processes, particularly in the generation of alternative descriptions for images.
Zanichelli's accessible publications reach thousands of students and teachers with disabilities, ensuring that students with print disabilities can obtain the same high-quality educational content as their peers, at the same time and without delay.
"Accessibility is not a recent trend, nor is it a niche project or a box to be ticked in order to fulfil legal obligations. It is a basic educational responsibility and the driving force behind our technical and editorial innovation."
— Irene Enriques, Director General, Zanichelli Editore S.p.A.
A shared commitment
We've been working with Zanichelli since October 2025 to bring AI-powered accessibility auditing and remediation to their web products. Seeing their broader commitment to accessibility recognized on this international stage is exactly the kind of outcome we're working toward: accessibility as a core value, not an afterthought.
Congratulations to Irene Enriques, Andrea Malfer Poma, Milena Risi, and the entire Zanichelli team.
Read the full announcement from ABC.