Call for Volunteers – DEIA Community of Practice – Coalition for Diversity and Inclusion in Scholarly Communications

“C4DISC is seeking volunteers to help manage a new Community of Practice, a virtual space for peer learning around DEIA in scholarly communications – for those with a dedicated DEIA role or with a DEIA remit as part of their role, whether in a paid or volunteer capacity. 

Working group members will be responsible for chairing virtual discussions every other month that will combine time for open discussion with topical breakout discussions based on suggestions from participants ahead of the meetings. Volunteer leaders will solicit topics from participants, plan and facilitate the virtual discussions, as well as help promote engagement on the Community’s Listserv. We estimate the time commitment as approximately 2 hours per month….”

Guest Post – Advancing Accessibility in Scholarly Publishing: Fostering Empathy – The Scholarly Kitchen

“This three-part series aims to discuss the topic of advancing accessibility within scholarly communication with the focus on digital accessibility. The contributors, members of the SSP Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Accessibility Committee, draw attention to the challenges related to addressing accessibility in publishing and communication workflows. They provide examples of exclusion resulting from lack of accessibility of digital content, list key points for getting buy-in from key stakeholders to implement and grow accessibility programs, and offer recommendations for inclusive practices.

“The “Advancing Accessibility in Scholarly Publishing” blog series consists of three parts:

Part 1: Fostering Empathy
Part 2: Building Support
Part 3: Recommendations for Digital Accessibility Best Practices…”

Guest Post – Advancing Accessibility in Scholarly Publishing: Fostering Empathy – The Scholarly Kitchen

“This three-part series aims to discuss the topic of advancing accessibility within scholarly communication with the focus on digital accessibility. The contributors, members of the SSP Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Accessibility Committee, draw attention to the challenges related to addressing accessibility in publishing and communication workflows. They provide examples of exclusion resulting from lack of accessibility of digital content, list key points for getting buy-in from key stakeholders to implement and grow accessibility programs, and offer recommendations for inclusive practices.

“The “Advancing Accessibility in Scholarly Publishing” blog series consists of three parts:

Part 1: Fostering Empathy
Part 2: Building Support
Part 3: Recommendations for Digital Accessibility Best Practices…”

Guest Post – Advancing Accessibility in Scholarly Publishing: Fostering Empathy – The Scholarly Kitchen

“This three-part series aims to discuss the topic of advancing accessibility within scholarly communication with the focus on digital accessibility. The contributors, members of the SSP Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Accessibility Committee, draw attention to the challenges related to addressing accessibility in publishing and communication workflows. They provide examples of exclusion resulting from lack of accessibility of digital content, list key points for getting buy-in from key stakeholders to implement and grow accessibility programs, and offer recommendations for inclusive practices.

“The “Advancing Accessibility in Scholarly Publishing” blog series consists of three parts:

Part 1: Fostering Empathy
Part 2: Building Support
Part 3: Recommendations for Digital Accessibility Best Practices…”

Guest Post – Advancing Accessibility in Scholarly Publishing: Fostering Empathy – The Scholarly Kitchen

“This three-part series aims to discuss the topic of advancing accessibility within scholarly communication with the focus on digital accessibility. The contributors, members of the SSP Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Accessibility Committee, draw attention to the challenges related to addressing accessibility in publishing and communication workflows. They provide examples of exclusion resulting from lack of accessibility of digital content, list key points for getting buy-in from key stakeholders to implement and grow accessibility programs, and offer recommendations for inclusive practices.

“The “Advancing Accessibility in Scholarly Publishing” blog series consists of three parts:

Part 1: Fostering Empathy
Part 2: Building Support
Part 3: Recommendations for Digital Accessibility Best Practices…”

Antiracism Toolkit for Black, Indigenous, and People of Color | Coalition for Diversity and Inclusion in Scholarly Communications

So many people put a tremendous amount of time into making this toolkit a reality. First are the BIPOC writers, readers, and editors who shared their experiences, knowledge, and training to the shaping of this content. A full list of contributors can be found at the end of this toolkit. We also thank the Coalition for Diversity & Inclusion in Scholarly Communications (C4DISC) and the Society for Scholarly Publishing (SSP) for supporting this work as well as the Knowledge Futures Group for committing resources towards producing this toolkit and hosting it on PubPub, the open-source community-led publishing platform. Additionally we would like to thank the GRAPHEK design team that graciously volunteered their time and skills to create the visual concept for this toolkit. We wanted specifically to share GRAPHEK’s notes on how they envisioned this thoughtful design:
“This concept is based on embroidery as a way to show the resilience of the BIPOC community in academic research and the networking encouraged by the toolkit. When cloth is damaged, embroidery and patches not only repair, they reinforce the cloth to be stronger and more resilient to future wear & tear. Even though each individual goes through their own unique experiences and tribulations, there are connecting threads that create solidarity. By sharing stories, crossing paths, and giving each other the resources necessary to navigate spaces riddled with systemic biases and racism, this toolkit can help BIPOC shape a more just and inclusive field.”

 

Left in the Cold: The Failure of APC Waiver Programs to Provide Author Equity – Science Editor

“This article is about author equity and waivers, not about workplace diversity and equity, which is the focus C4DISC’s efforts to date. But we believe concern over waiver programs and author equity aligns squarely with the stated values of C4DISC and with many of the stated diversity, equity, and inclusion values of its member organizations. We also believe it is insufficient for scholarly communication organizations to only pursue equity and diversity in certain aspects of their operations while ignoring it in others. Therefore, this is an article about inequity in scholarly communication. It is about the continued restriction of space for marginalized communities in scholarly communication. And it is about the growth of barriers and the exclusion of diverse perspectives in scholarly communication.

The authors will offer 3 perspectives on the issue of waiver programs and author equity: 1) Romy Beard, until recently, was the Licensing Programme Manager at Electronic Information for Libraries (EIFL), where she worked with libraries and consortia from developing and transitioning economy countries in Europe, Asia, and Africa; 2) Sara Rouhi is the Director of Strategic Partnerships at PLOS, where she focuses on building non-APC, inclusive business models to make publishing more equitable; and 3) Curtis Brundy oversees collections and scholarly communications at the Iowa State University Library, which has committed to transitioning its subscription spending to support equitable OA. We will include recommendations for improving waiver programs as well as for adopting open models that have equity built in, making waivers unnecessary….”

Passed our 100-member milestone for Adoptees of the Statement of Principles! – Coalition for Diversity and Inclusion in Scholarly Communications

“C4DISC is honored and excited to announce that we’ve passed our 100-member milestone! The Coalition was founded by 10 trade and professional associations across the publishing and scholarly communications industry. We set out to discuss and address the diversity and inclusion issues we face as a community….”

Ensuring Equitable Participation In Open Science – YouTube

“Open access and open science are attempts to ensure knowledge is as widely accessible as possible. More and more publishers are launching open access journals and embracing open science principles. Questions remain, however, as to whether open access and open science are currently accessible to all. The most visible notions of open access and open science are primarily founded in—and have perpetuated—the values and standards established by organizations, institutions, and funders in Western Europe and North America. Open access and open science can therefore continue to exclude the very researchers that these models are supposed to benefit. For example, business models like article processing charges do not account for unequal access to funding. Other issues not specific to open access are exclusionary English-language style standards and unconscious bias in the peer review process.

In this webinar, we will explore how models of openness have not always resolved, and in some instances may have created, inequitable barriers for some researchers. We will unpack the impact of those barriers on researchers and propose some ways to overcome them.”

ARL Joins Coalition for Diversity & Inclusion in Scholarly Communications – Association of Research Libraries

“The Association of Research Libraries (ARL), representing 125 member organizations in Canada and the United States, has joined the Coalition for Diversity and Inclusion in Scholarly Communications (C4DISC). ARL members are trusted sources of scholarly information and data, and constitute a significant share of the academic publishing market. A growing number of research libraries run their own publishing programs, house or partner with university presses, and collaborate with emerging scholar-led presses. The Association is proud to join publishing colleagues in C4DISC as part of a commitment to better understand the causes of, and to advance remedies for, racial inequity in scholarly communication. In joining, ARL endorses the C4DSIC Joint Statement of Principles.”

C4DISC announces new opportunities for scholarly publishing professionals to demonstrate commitment to diversity, inclusion, and equity – Coalition for Diversity and Inclusion in Scholarly Communications

“September 15, 2020 – The Coalition for Diversity and Inclusion in Scholarly Communications (C4DISC) is pleased to announce that it is now accepting new members, partners, and volunteers. C4DISC was originally formed in 2017 by a small group of trade and professional associations, to discuss and address issues of diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) within the scholarly communications industry.

Since then, the founding members have met regularly to establish a joint statement of principles, and define the organization’s mission, vision, and values. Over the past year, with the generous support of Educopia, C4DISC engaged in the formal process of developing an operational model. Under this governance structure, two of the founding member organizations, the Society for Scholarly Publishing and the Association of University Presses, will serve as joint host organizations….”