1. Transformative agreements, funders and the publishing ecosystem: a lack of focus on equity
Author: Robert Harington
During COVID-19 pandemic, institutions are suffering financially. Indeed, all participants of the research ecosystem are suffering. In this blog, Robert Harington argues that funders, be they national or private, should consider directly funding their field through funding societies and institutions, with a focus on equitable distribution of funds across scholarly communities. Such an approach would temper the impact of the new status quo — the inexorable rise of the transformative agreement, which systematically disadvantages scholars at less wealthy institutions.
The full entry can be read: Here.
2. How a torrent of COVID science changed research publishing — in seven charts
Author: Holly Else
Around 4% of the world’s research output was devoted to the coronavirus in 2020, according to one database. The year also saw a sharp increase in articles on all subjects being submitted to scientific journals — perhaps because many researchers had to stay at home and focus on writing up papers rather than conducting science. Scientists published well over 100,000 articles about the coronavirus pandemic in 2020. By one count, from the Dimensions database, they might even have passed 200,000 by early December.
The full entry can be read: Here.
3. The state of not-for-profit publishing today
Author: Laura Brown and Roger C. Schonfeld
The organisations that facilitate scholarly communication have been under tremendous pressure in 2020. For example, the enormous efforts to accelerate scientific communications also exposed weaknesses in preprint and journal editorial processes. Yet, in periods of disruption, commercial publishers have traditionally found opportunities to make capital investments that ultimately strengthen their relative position in the market — opportunities that are not necessarily available to their not-for-profit counterparts. Scholarly publishing is offering-up the beginnings of an analysis of the state of not-for-profit publishing. An enormous divergence is found between the STEM societies on the one hand and humanities-focused societies and university presses on the other.
The full entry can be read: Here.
4. Publishing in 2021: From diverse voices to digital transformation
Author: Copyright Clearance Center (CCC)
Amid profound disruption, the future of publishing came into focus in 2020. This blog highlights expectations and predictions from CCC’s thought leaders on the trends and technologies that will play a critical role in the continued transformation of publishing. Increasingly, publishers are actively working on initiatives that support Diversity, Equity and Inclusion. Publishers are proactive and deliberate when balancing their editorial board, peer-reviewers, and authorship so that their publications represent a variety of diverse voices. The COVID-19 pandemic quickly became a catalyst that advanced the speed of science and accelerated the digital transformation of scientific publishing.
The full entry can be read: Here.
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