From the Board of Directors
This update reports on the IPEd Board meeting of 20 April 2026, linking to our 5 strategic priorities.
1 Standards
Work continues apace in the committees that support our professional editing standards. The Accreditation Board is making good progress with the next exam, and the Standing Committee on Professional Development has a pipeline of events that are sure to entice, no matter your interests.
2 Membership
We are delighted to report that our latest student membership drive has had a great response. We have welcomed around 20 new members so far, and the drive continues until the end of April.
3 Support for the profession
In less happy news, we are very sorry to be bidding farewell to Nicole Mathers, who has been IPEd’s administrative powerhouse for the past 10 years. We thank Nicole for all her hard work supporting the organisation and its members in that time. She’ll be greatly missed.
If you need help from the staff team, here are the best people to contact:
- For general admin and all member enquiries, including accreditation renewals, please email Erin at members@iped-editors.org; for finance, contact Erin at finance@iped-editors.org.
- For events, email Jean at events@iped-editors.org.
- For all internal comms and the jobs board, email Karina at communication@iped-editors.org.
Thank you for your patience and understanding as everyone settles into their expanded roles.
4 Focus for the organisation
It’s budget season and we appreciate the efforts of budgeteers across the organisation in mapping out finances for the year ahead. We are aiming for a budget that is realistic and achievable.
As you know, one important shift in 2026–27 relates to our honoraria system for volunteers, and you might be wondering how these changes will work in practice. We will fill you in on the details soon so you can start planning your PD.
Meanwhile, the Board is also reviewing IPEd’s suite of policies to ensure they are fit for purpose and meet the needs of members, staff and volunteers – not to mention, the regulators! You can find current policies in MemNet.
5 Advocacy and education
CEO Karen Lee is finalising a submission to the Australian Government about its new national cultural policy. The submission highlights the quiet but indispensable role that editors play in Australia’s cultural life: “Professional editing is not an optional layer applied at the end of a creative process. It is part of the infrastructure that underpins how cultural work is made, shared and received.” Hear, hear!