A European Documentation Centre (EDC) is a body designated by the

European Commission The European Commission (EC) is the primary Executive (government), executive arm of the European Union (EU). It operates as a cabinet government, with a number of European Commissioner, members of the Commission (directorial system, informall ...

to collect and disseminate publications of the

European Union The European Union (EU) is a supranational union, supranational political union, political and economic union of Member state of the European Union, member states that are Geography of the European Union, located primarily in Europe. The u ...

for the purposes of research and education. There are 400 such centers in all member states of the EU.European Documentation Centers at the European Union
europa.eu
retrieved 28-May-2012 The mandate of an EDC is to receive all official EU publications, documents, contracts and electronic databases then make them available to researchers, educators, students, and interested members of the general public. The centers are also

legal deposit Legal deposit is a legal requirement that a person or group submit copies of their publications to a repository, usually a library. The number of copies required varies from country to country. Typically, the national library is the primary reposit ...

ories of

Acquis communautaire The Community acquis or ''acquis communautaire'' (; ), sometimes called the EU acquis, and often shortened to acquis, is the accumulated legislation, legal acts and court decisions that constitute the body of European Union law that came into ...

(EU law).EuroVoc: Community acquis
retrieved 28-May-2012 Although primarily academic in nature, anyone can visit an EDC to consult official EU publications.

History and organisation

European Documentation Centres were founded in 1963 by the European Commission. They are predominantly located at

universities A university () is an educational institution, institution of tertiary education and research which awards academic degrees in several Discipline (academia), academic disciplines. ''University'' is derived from the Latin phrase , which roughly ...

, university libraries, affiliated academic institutions, and non-university research

institutes An institute is an organizational body created for a certain purpose. They are often research organisations ( research institutes) created to do research on specific topics, or can also be a professional body. In some countries, institutes ...

, both public and private. EU policy is that at least one EDC should be located in each region of a European Union member state. Candidate states and other countries can also have a designated EDC, supported jointly with local university libraries and the European Commission.Chulalongkorn University Bangkok
European Documentation Centre
EDC at Baptist University Hong Kong

EDCs are distinct from European Information Centers (EIC), which are geared more to the general public and consumer affairs. The official purpose of the centres is: *Assist

Universities A university () is an educational institution, institution of tertiary education and research which awards academic degrees in several Discipline (academia), academic disciplines. ''University'' is derived from the Latin phrase , which roughly ...

and

Institute An institute is an organizational body created for a certain purpose. They are often research organisations (research institutes) created to do research on specific topics, or can also be a professional body. In some countries, institutes ca ...

s in education and research *Contribute to the transparency of European decision-making *Promote active debate on European policy and European integration *Assist interested members of the public to learn about EU policies in more depth.

Function

The European Documentation Centres collect documents and publications that they receive from the various official institutions of the European Union. They also provide training and advice on the organisation and use of electronic information generated by EU institutions. EDCs also provide direct support to the academic staff and employees at universities and institutions in their research and teaching on European integration process. Official EU Publications:European Union Official Publications and Documentation
europa.eu
retrieved 28-May-2012 ** Proceedings of the

** ''

Official Journal of the European Union The ''Official Journal of the European Union'' (the ''OJEU'') is the official gazette of record for the European Union (EU). It is published every working day in all of the official languages of the member states of the EU. Only legal acts p ...

'' ** European Union Contracts ** Rulings of the European Court ** Statistical publications of the Publishing Department (OPOCE) ** Legislative Observatory of European Parliaments ** Other official documents Official EU Databases: * CORDIS: The EU Research Information Service * Curia: EU Jurisprudence *

EUR-Lex EUR-Lex is the official online database of European Union law and other public documents of the European Union (EU), published in 24 official Languages of the European Union, languages of the EU. The Official Journal of the European Union, Offici ...

: EU legislation * PreLex: Inter-institutional procedures *

Eurostat Eurostat ("European Statistical Office"; also DG ESTAT) is a department of the European Commission ( Directorate-General), located in the Kirchberg quarter of Luxembourg City, Luxembourg. Eurostat's main responsibilities are to provide statist ...

: European statistics * SCADplus
Scadplus
EU Legislation * Tenders Electronic Daily: EU contracts and procurement

References

External links

EU Information Centres and Networks

Curia

Eurostat

PreLex

TED

{{authority control Publications of the European Union establishments * Law libraries Libraries established in 1963 1963 in Europe European Union law

History and organisation

Function

See also

References

External links