{"id":8034,"date":"2026-06-29T02:50:02","date_gmt":"2026-06-29T02:50:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blog.doaj.org\/?p=8034"},"modified":"2026-06-29T02:50:02","modified_gmt":"2026-06-29T02:50:02","slug":"in-the-spirit-of-ubuntu-my-ten-year-journey-with-doaj","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blog.doaj.org\/de\/2026\/06\/29\/in-the-spirit-of-ubuntu-my-ten-year-journey-with-doaj\/","title":{"rendered":"In the spirit of Ubuntu: My ten-year journey with DOAJ"},"content":{"rendered":"

During June 2026, DOAJ celebrates ten years of the Ambassador Programme.  In this very special post, Ambassador for Southern Africa Ina Smith<\/strong> reflects on her DOAJ journey.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

As I write tonight, I want to admit that this is deeply personal and emotional. My heart aches when I think of the history of our country, South Africa, and how people were excluded, rejected and denied access to knowledge based on so many different factors. It is for this reason that I am taking this moment to pause, to look beyond the visible DOAJ activities – the meetings, workshops, outputs, reports and presentations – and to reflect on who I was and who I have become. Did I succeed, together with so many others, in supporting open access to knowledge and working towards a more open and transparent South Africa, Africa and world?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I could not believe that I was still able to find my emails from 2016, in which my role was discussed with Lars Bj\u00f8rnshauge and Dominic Mitchell. I even still have the link to the original Call for Ambassadors, although unfortunately it no longer resolves. It feels like just the other day that I started working as a volunteer DOAJ Ambassador. I remember my hesitation in applying, followed by the surprise and joy of being appointed and offered the opportunity to work beyond South Africa.<\/p>\n\n\n

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Image: Lars Bj\u00f8rnshauge at the first Ambassadors meeting in Crete, June 2014<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

Although I had been responsible for organising the Berlin Open Access Conference, co-hosted by the Max Planck Society and Stellenbosch University from 7 to 8 November 2012, and although I had sometimes collaborated with EIFL on various initiatives, working with DOAJ as an Ambassador opened up a whole new world of international collaboration. Initially, I worried about whether I would be able to live up to expectations, and how I would balance my personal life, my work at ASSAf (Academy of Science South Africa)<\/a>, and my volunteering for DOAJ. Looking back, becoming a volunteer DOAJ Ambassador in 2016 was one of the best decisions I have ever made. Over the past ten years, I have met so many wonderful people, learned so much, developed a broader worldview, and grown in ways I could never have imagined.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

My journey with DOAJ reflects my commitment to supporting African communities by promoting equitable access to quality open access publishing, but also to share quality African research and make the African voice heard. It has been about fulfilling my purpose and contributing, in my own way, to changing the trajectory of our country and our continent. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Knowledge is power, and when people have access to knowledge, they can achieve so much. <\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

Initially, my responsibility was to assist with evaluating new DOAJ applications. Over time, however, this evolved into something much broader: creating awareness about DOAJ, advocating for the importance of trusted open access scholarly journal indexing, and supporting promising, high-quality African journals to become DOAJ-compliant and consider applying for inclusion.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Still today, DOAJ offers me a platform from which I continue to learn so much about different cultures, perspectives and approaches. Learning to work and collaborate as part of an international team remains one of the greatest highlights of this journey. Although we have made significant progress in opening access to research published in scholarly journals, the work continues.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Over the years, I have come to understand that open access is about more than making research available online. It is also about inclusion, dignity, recognition and participation. For many African journals, being visible on trusted platforms such as DOAJ means being seen as part of the global scholarly conversation. It means that local research, local challenges and local knowledge systems are not left at the margins.<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

Through workshops, conversations with editors, and many hours of guidance and follow-up, I have seen how much commitment exists across Africa. Many editors work with limited resources and sometimes use their own monies, yet they continue because they believe in the importance of scholarly publishing. Supporting them has reminded me that patient conversations, helping a journal understand best practice, encouraging an editor not to give up, and making one more African journal visible to the world can all contribute to meaningful change. It is not about me, but about building capacity, passing on knowledge to younger generations, and to make the world a better place.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

One of the highlights for me was DOAJ being acknowledged as part of the DHET (South African Department of Higher Education and Training)-accredited journal lists, positioning DOAJ at national policy level. I am deeply thankful to Tom Olijhoek, who played an instrumental role in making this happen. This was more than an administrative milestone. For South Africa, it helped strengthen the connection between open access, quality, trust and national recognition.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The people I have met through DOAJ have also shaped me deeply. Lars and Dominic opened the door to this journey. Tom helped make possible an important milestone for South Africa. I have also worked closely with Judith Barnsby from the UK, whose guidance and encouragement helped me find my way, and now with Katrine Sundsb\u00f8, who has been an incredible source of help and inspiration. Katrine continues to inspire me with her dedication, support and commitment. I would be lost without her creative ingenuity and the finishing touches she adds whenever I ask for help. I have also learned to ask for support and not to do everything by myself. Thank you so much, Kat.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

These relationships remind me that open access is built not only on systems and standards, but also on trust, generosity and shared purpose.<\/p>\n\n\n

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Image: Sonja Brage, Leena Shah, Judith Barnsby , Vrushali Dandawate, Ina Smith, Tom Olijhoek, Lars Bj\u00f8rnshauge and Ivonne Lujano in Glendefels, Spain, March 2017.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

Looking back over the past ten years, I can see that becoming a DOAJ Ambassador was an incredibly important part of my growth story. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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It helped me connect my professional work with my values: open access, African scholarship, equity, inclusion, and the belief that knowledge belongs to all and should be visible, trusted and shared.<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

As I look ahead, I know that the work is far from complete. Many African journals still need support, recognition and visibility. Many communities still need access to knowledge that can help them grow, heal and participate more fully. My hope is to continue playing my small part in this larger movement: to support trusted open access, to strengthen African scholarship, and to help ensure that knowledge is not reserved for the few, but shared for the benefit of all.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

To return to the question I asked at the beginning: Did I succeed in playing a small part and making a difference through both my work at ASSAf and DOAJ? I sincerely hope so, and I will continue to try.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In the spirit of Ubuntu<\/em> – the belief that \u201cI am because we are\u201d – my DOAJ journey has reminded me that none of us builds knowledge systems alone. Together, we are stronger; together, we make knowledge more open, visible and meaningful for all.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

My heartfelt thanks to ASSAf for allowing me to fulfil this role over the past ten years, and to each and every colleague at DOAJ for a wonderful journey so far. And to each and every person I have worked with over the many years, editors, journal managers and more – THANK YOU.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n