Keeping the door open

As the new year dawned, the open access landscape was already in full discussion as cOAlition S requested feedback on their proposed framework for transformative journals. Here I explain our position on this framework and our aspirations for the future.

At Emerald we are committed to providing a leading service for open research, in a way that instils trust and confidence in our communities and global audiences. The new world of open publishing is truly exciting, and its elements of freedom, discovery and opportunity are reasons to celebrate. Therefore, protecting the integrity of open research is a major priority for us – and that means removing barriers, not creating obstacles.

We acknowledge everything cOAlition S is doing to accelerate openness – and appreciate them asking for feedback on their latest requirements regarding transformative journals . This is why we have shared our thoughts through a co-signed open letter from an HSS perspective, as well as providing some additional feedback on the specific Emerald context.

The temptation to push towards a specific direction for open is understandable, but as no two publishers, or subject communities are the same, this necessitates a flexibility to help foster the vital streams of OA innovation, content, models and workflows, which would not be enabled by restrictive criteria.  

As a publisher, our role is to facilitate in bringing research to life, offering our communities new, innovative, inclusive and flexible options for publishing their research, whatever the output and format it may be in. This is particularly important when it comes to creating opportunities for first-time, unfunded or early-career researchers.

Ultimately, telling the story of their impactful research is essential for our authors and openness plays a vital part in making it happen. We want to work with our communities to create a research landscape where the ‘door is open’ for different content, modern approaches and unexplored subjects.  This is essential if open publishing is to reach its true potential.

Shelley Allen

Head Of Open Research
Emerald Publishing