Teresa Hackett oversees the delivery of a copyright service for libraries in over 35 developing and transition economy countries, creating specialised copyright resources in multiple languages, and providing technical assistance on legislative issues.
With over 25 years’ experience as a leader engaged in public interest copyright reforms at national and international levels, Teresa has been a frequent contributor at conferences and events around the world.
Her commitment and advocacy skills have helped to grow a network of knowledgeable copyright librarians, many of whom have achieved success in improving national laws. At international level, Teresa has helped to make EIFL a leading voice for global copyright law reform. At the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO), where EIFL has observer status, Teresa has participated in negotiations for copyright rules that promote access to knowledge for all, and has contributed to over 26 nations joining the landmark WIPO Marrakesh Treaty for persons with print disabilities. She served as Regional Coordinator for Africa on the Right to Research in International Copyright Law, a project of the Program on Information Justice and Intellectual Property (PIJIP) at American University Washington College of Law (2021-2023).
Prior to joining EIFL, Teresa held a number of policy, advocacy and technical positions. From 2000-2003, she was Director of the European Bureau of Library, Information and Documentation Associations; before that she provided support to the European Commission library research programme. Teresa has served on numerous professional committees including the Committee on Copyright and other Legal Matters of the International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions (IFLA) (2011-2015), World Blind Union (WBU) Marrakesh Strategic Advisory Group (2016-2017), Advisory Board of the project SCOIR (Secondary rights, Copyright, Open access, Institutional policies, and Rights retention) (2024-2025). She has also received a number of awards for her work on copyright including a Shuttleworth Foundation Flash Grant as an agent of social change (2015), an IFLA Medal for distinguished contribution to IFLA and international librarianship and her commitment to enabling equal access to information (2018), and in 2020, the work of the EIFL Copyright and Libraries Programme was recognized as a finalist for the ABC International Excellence Award for Accessible Publishing.
Teresa has an honours degree in German, History and Politics from University College Dublin, Ireland, a postgraduate Diploma in Library and Information Studies from the University of North London, UK, and a postgraduate Diploma in Legal Studies from Dublin Institute of Technology, Ireland.
More about the EIFL Copyright and Libraries Programme