Epigraph 2.0, or is it 3.0...

With this issue we begin the next stage in the evolution of the League’s news magazine, Epigraph. It began in 1994 as a means of letting our members know what the League was doing for epilepsy on the international stage. In 1999, the first formal print edition was published as Volume 1, and it presented news on major League and chapter events. By 2006, as a reflection of the growing role of the web in spreading news and information, our first online edition was issued (Volume 8). Still, it was organized into formal issues and much space was dedicated to the activities of the leadership. With time, and as the focus of the League, in part as a consequence of the Global Campaign Against Epilepsy (now Global Outreach), shifted to local activities, more and more articles appeared about initiatives that our chapters were leading to improve access to care and to improve the quality of life for people with epilepsy.

The world of sharing information continues to change, with a greater emphasis on quick access to focused stories that can be digested quickly. Journals release articles as soon as they are available, and only later are these articles assembled into editions and volumes. So, Epigraph continues to evolve. With this new edition we are adjusting our publication pattern to this predominant electronic publishing practice. Epigraph articles will now be sent out every few weeks, as soon as they are completed. We will continue to draw widely from activities in the international epilepsy community with topics that range from local initiatives that improve access to care, to recent scientific developments and to League efforts on a global scale to focus attention on the many unmet needs of people with epilepsy and their families.

With this note, it is also important to introduce our community to Nancy Volkers, who has recently joined us as our inaugural Communications Officer. Nancy comes to us with broad experience in working with medically and scientifically oriented organizations to help inform members and the general public about the latest developments and trends. Although she is new to the field of epilepsy, she has thrown herself in to an intensive self-education effort and has quickly developed an impressive insight into the disease and our organization. We are very pleased that she has joined us.

We hope that this new face for Epigraph makes it more accessible and user friendly, but please let us know what changes we should consider and about topics that might be of broader interest to our community. There are many great things that are happening in our communal efforts to improve the lives of people with epilepsy, but we need to hear from you so that the progress can be shared with our colleagues.

Edward Bertram
Director of Communications
Secretary General