Dear colleagues,
It is with great sadness that we have to inform you about the sudden death of Filippos Tsimpoglou,
the General Director of the National Library of Greece, who passed away yesterday in Athens.
During his career Filippos worked in several institutions, always committed to creating innovative
information services. From 1983 to 1999 he worked at the National Documentation Centre /
National Research Foundation, as the manager of European-funded programs. From 1999 to 2014 he
was the director of the Library of the University of Cyprus, while since 2014 he served as the general
director of the National Library of Greece. It was in that capacity that he undertook the challenging
project of the library’s relocation from the old Vallianeion building in central Athens to its new
facilities at the Stavros Niarchos Foundation Cultural Center. Once the relocation was completed, he
worked tirelessly to create a modern and more inclusive Greek National Library.
Filippos will be remembered as a friend and active member of the Association of Greek Librarians
(EEBEP). He collaborated with the association in organizing the first two conferences for Greek
public libraries, while he was also one of the three presidents of the 2019 IFLA conference organizing
committee, held here in Athens. He also served as the chairman of the Greek National Committee of
Libraries.
Filippos was able to transmit his vision and passion for library science to his colleagues and
collaborators. His personality and work will be remembered and deeply missed.
It is with deep sorrow that we say goodbye to our friend, partner, and fellow Filippos Tsimpoglou.
May his soul rest in peace.