A new study of open access journals which are free for readers and authors, known as “diamond journals” has been published. The in-depth report and its recommendations cover diamond journals across the world and provide a better understanding of the open access diamond landscape.

Funded by Science Europe and commissioned by cOAlition S, the study represents the culmination of work undertaken from June 2020 to February 2021 by a consortium of 10 organisations, including DOAJ and led by OPERAS.

The group recommends that an action plan be kickstarted to support diamond journals by organising an international symposium in six months, setting up a funding plan in one year and creating a capacity center in two years. The full results of the study are presented at length in a findings report published today.

The study was based on a widely disseminated survey (responses from 1600 journals), three focus groups and 10 interviews. It examines the core areas which are critical for OA diamond journals to operate, encompassing everything from legal structures and governance to technical capabilities, editorial processes and funding models and they face many operational challenges and rely heavily on volunteering. 

In line with the objectives set by cOAlition S, the separately published recommendations have been based on an extensive study of the data gathered. The analysis presented by the group in the report points to clearly defined areas in which research funding organisations, institutions, societies and infrastructures can focus in order to strengthen and sustain OA diamond journals and the ecosystem in which they operate, as well as assisting these journals in compliance with open access policies such as Plan S.

In the light of the study DOAJ will continue our efforts to secure archiving of OA-journals in the collaboration with CLOCKSS Archive, Internet Archive, Keepers Registry and PKP, intensify our works to become a DOI-provision sponsor and intensify our outreach to OA Diamond journals not yet included in DOAJ. A couple of projects are ongoing, a number are lined up, and depending on resources available we will expand our work in getting Non-English language journals “DOAJ-ready”.

Additional materials are shared with the community for further research and reuse: the study dataset, the references library, and the crowdsourced non-DOAJ Journals Inventory.

The study group intends to engage with the community in the coming weeks to initiate fruitful discussions about how the OA diamond sector could be better coordinated and supported. Coming events and updates will be announced on this web page: https://www.operas-eu.org/the-oa-diamond-journals-study 

Download Study outputs:

Study Funders: Science Europe and cOAlition S

Consortium Members: OPERAS, SPARC Europe, Utrecht University Library, UiT The Arctic University of Norway, The Center for the Sociology of Innovation, OASPA, DOAJ, Redalyc/AmeliCA, LIBER, ENRESSH

Contact: Pierre Mounier (pierre.mounier[at]operas-eu.org)