Open Science for Arts, Design and Music/Publishers/International Journals

International Journals

The project Open Science for arts design and music contacted a series of international journals and supported them in implementing open access.

Case studies

Catarsi-Teatri delle Diversità

Catarsi-Teatri delle Diversità

Catarsi-Teatri delle Diversità is an Italian academic publication focusing on the social value of theatre and the performing arts in the field of social hardship, disability and imprisonment.

Description of the Publication

Catarsi-Teatri delle Divertità was founded in 1996 by Emilio Pozzi and Vito Minoia. Since then, it has been published irregularly almost every six months. The latest issue (n. 83/84) was published in April 2019. The magazine can be purchased online on the publisher's website: Edizioni Catarsi. For its production, it can also count on public (both on a national and regional level) funding.

Catarsi-Teatri delle Divertità has an informal connection to the University of Urbino through the affiliation and the director, Vito Minoia. The magazine is recognised at an international level. In is part of the IATJ, International Archive of Theatre Journals, which was born from the collaboration between the Consulta Universitaria del Teatro and the International Federation for Theatre Research. It has been collaborating with the editorial committee of the AITU-IUTA (International University Theatre Association) since 2014, and with the Publication Committee of the International Theatre Institute - UNESCO since 2017.

Catarsi-Teatri delle Divertità features articles in Italian, English, Spanish and French. It is richly illustrated with black and white photographs. Articles are optionally peer reviewed using the single-blind review system.

Implementation of Open Access

Starting point

The editorial team wants to relaunch the journal whose last issue dates back to April 2019. On this occasion, they decided to turn the journal, up to now only paper-based, into an online open access publication. They already have the content (texts and iconographic apparatus) to fill two issues. They ask for support to implement open access, recognising a lack of familiarity with the topic and possible difficulties in handling copyrighted images and sensitive data.

Challenges and recommendations

unfamiliarity with open access and need for practical support in implementation:
- we provided assistance in choosing CC licence (CC BY-SA 4.0), we drafted the magazine's open access policy and suggested with a list of steps towards implementation of OA (i.e. inclusion of DOI and recommended attribution)
sensitivity of contents: the magazine specialises in theatrical experiences in situations of social hardship - in particular with theatre in prisons - and with people with disabilities. It has an ethical and moral responsibility to protect sensitive content which is therefore in direct contrast with the needs of open access.
- we recommend paying extra attention to the protection of personal and sensitive data both at the level of textual contents and iconographic apparatus, and suggest to adopt different levels of openness (i.e. different or CC licences) depending of the sensitivity of the content.

Implementation

Open Access policy: we provided a draft for the magazine Open Access policy
letter to authors to request permission to release the content in OA: we provided a standard letter to be sent to authors asking their permission to release their articles with the CC BY-SA 4.0 licence
publication of the first issue in open access: the publication in open access of Catarsi-Teatri delle Divertità is expected in early 2025, the editorial team is in contact with the OS-ADM team

Lessons Learned

The case study proved to be very fruitful. From the very beginning, the editorial team was open to dialogue and receptive to our input. The willingness to move from a print journal to an open access digital journal demonstrated the general trend towards open content in academia. The timely exchange on copyright and sensitive material issues confirmed the need to use clearance forms from the outset.

AIS Design Journal: Storia e Ricerche

AIS/Design Journal: Storia e Ricerche

Description of the Publication

AIS/Design. Storia e Ricerche is the free, peer-reviewed, multilingual (Italian/English) online journal of the Italian Association of Design Historians (AIS/Design). The journal, founded in 2012, publishes research in all areas of design history. It is published every six months and adopts the double-blind peer review process. Articles feature many illustrations under copyright.

Implementation of Open Access

Starting point

We approached the editorial team and offered our support to implement open access and begin the application process to DOAJ. The journal is available online and can be red and downloaded for free with no need to registration or membership. Articles are not released under any CC licence. Thus, although the journal is described as 'open access' on the website, it does not comply with the requirements of open access. Moreover, the single articles do not include a DOI nor a recommended citation.

Challenges and recommendations

CC licences and open access: the editorial team expressed their willingness to open the journal but also their awareness of possible internal resistance within the association to the adoption of open licences, thus without NC and ND
- we explained differences between CC licences and clarified the requirements of open access
- we recommended the adoption of the CC BY-SA 4.0 for texts (unless otherwise stated)
Copyrighted material: the journal features many images under copyright that makes the release of content in open access challenging
- we suggested to adopt the 'as open as possible, and closed as necessary' policy, hence re-use open content when possible, keep the images under copyright and use CC BY-SA 4.0, unless differently stated

DOAJ:
- we explained the value of being included in DOAJ and clarified the requirement

Open access policy: the journal does not feature an open access policy on its website (as required to be included in DOAJ)
- we provided a draft of open access policy to be discussed internally by the editorial team and eventually uploaded online once approved

DOI (as required to be included in DOAJ) and recommended citation:
- we provided a template for the recommended citation to be included in each article
- we listed a number DOI providers

Implementation

After an initial contact and a beginning of collaboration, the work on opening up the content came to a halt due to a change in the editorial team of the magazine that will take effect from 2025. However, the journal still took a step forward towards openness and there are good chances that the new editorial board will pick up where the current one left off.

CC licences: the two issues of AIS/Design. Storia e Ricerche published in 2024 – Storie di Semiotica e Design, v. 11 n. 20 (2024); wip – have been resealed with the CC licence CC BY-NC-ND 4.0. Although not compliant with open access, the licence is a starting point towards opening the content.

Lessons Learned

Since the magazine was already available online for free, it was an excellent candidate for the opening of content. The initial absence of CC licences, even though the journal was advertised as open, suggested the need to clarify the open access requirements and the still common confusion between 'downloadable for free' and 'open'. The conversation with the editors also revealed a need for arguments to convince authors (and in this case also the members of the association) to agree to the use of open licences. For fear of a loss of control over possible re-use of materials, the most common licence is CC BY NC ND.

ISIA Istituto Superiore per le Industrie Artistiche di Urbino

ISIA Journal of Design

Description of the Publication

ISIA Journal of Design is a new editorial initiative by the design school ISIA. Following the reception of public funding for the dissemination of research results, ISIA-Firenze has decided to use these funds to finance the launch of a new academic journal in collaboration with the ISIA of Rome, Faenza, Urbino and Pescara.

Implementation of Open Access

Starting point

The editorial team is planning the first issue of the journal. They are asking us for assistance in understanding the feasibility of opening up all content (including images) and advice on how to manage, from a commercial point of view, a dual version, digital in open access and print for sale.

Challenges and recommendations

unfamiliarity with open access and need for practical support in implementation:
- we provided the editorial team with assistance in choosing CC licence (suggested licence: CC BY-SA 4.0), we drafted the magazine's open access policy and suggested with a list of steps towards implementation of OA (i.e. inclusion of DOI and recommended attribution)
managing the dual (open access and for sale) version of the magazine:
- we debated whether to make a distinction between the print and digital versions: the digital version could be issued biannually while the print version would be issued annually and would include a selection of digital materials; it is also recommended to focus on the design of the print version in order to encourage and justify its purchase

DOAJ:
- we explained the value of being included in DOAJ and clarified the requirement

Implementation

CC licence: ISIA Journal of Design is a diamond open access magazine licenced under CC BY-SA unless otherwise stated
Website https://www.isiajournalofdesign.com/
- Open Access policy: the open access policy provided by the OS-ADM team is published on the website
- in accordance to the requirement of DOAJ, the website include a Code of ethics of the journal
dual versions:
- the digital version will be made available on the platform Open Journal Systems, while the paper version is published by Mimesis Edizioni.

Lessons Learned

The case study has showed the importance of dealing with open access from the very conception of a new magazine. Being involved from the early stages of the publication process allowed us to clarify immediately the requirements of open access and thus avoid misunderstanding. This was especially relevant when negotiating with the publisher.

It also confirmed that there is a growing awareness of open access and that new academic publications, especially when they have received public fundings, must comply with it.

Bembo Officina Editoriale

Bembo Officina Editoriale

Description of the Publication

Bembo OE is the Publishing Workshop of the Doctoral School of the Iuav University of Venice. It publishes in Open Access titles of research and critical reflection on the themes of the scientific and cultural fields of the School, with the aim of encouraging the circulation and discussion of the research of doctoral students and doctoral students.

Implementation of Open Access

Starting point

We approached the editorial team and offered our support to push further their open access policy. According to the OA policy published on the publisher's website: "Bembo OE chooses the Open Access mode of publication, in accordance with the Berlin Declaration (2003) and the European and international goals for sharing knowledge and research as a public good". However, the chosen licence is a CC BY NC SA, hence not fully compliant with open access. The publications are also missing the DOI and recommended citation, in particular for individual contributions in edited texts.

Challenges and recommendations

CC licences: we clarified the requirements of OA with a focus on CC licences thus explained a need to choose another licence different from the current CC BY NC SA, the editorial team was very knowledgeable and willing to commit but explained that they were encountering some internal diffidence from the faculty members which were not comfortable with a non NC licence, thus we were asked for help in explaining the benefits and requirements of OA as well as some best practices for the negotiation with authors.

Implementation

Guidelines: to meet the request for help in convincing authors of the benefits of open access, we provided guidelines and various materials in the form of slides and webinars

Lessons Learned

The publishing house proved to be sensitive to and very knowledgeable about OA issues and we therefore found fertile ground for an open and fruitful dialogue. The most interesting aspect of the case study, already found in others, was the confirmation of a difficulty in convincing the authors of the benefits of OA. The initial premise that it was necessary to negotiate with publishers was therefore disproved. Furthermore, the case study again demonstrated a common problem related to misinformation on open access requirements, with particular reference to licence compatibility.

ICOM Publications and Documentations Department

ICOM Publications and Documentations Department

ICOM – International Council of Museums is a membership international association and a non-governmental organisation which establishes professional and ethical standards for museum activities. The association serves as a platform both digitally on its website and on paper with its numerous publications.

Description of the Publication

ICOM publishes a vast array of materials: peer-review journals, books, online editorials (ICOM voices), codes of conduct, press releases, proceedings, study series, annual reports. Some of ICOM publications are already available for free online (ICOM online library, institutional documents, standards and guidelines) but they are either under copyright or without a clear indication of the open licence.

Implementation of Open Access

Starting point

We contacted twice the Publications and Documentations Department of ICOM asking more information about their open access policy. We offered our consultancy towards an implementation of open access within ICOM publications.

Challenges and recommendations

compliance with Open Access: since ICOM publications do not comply with the definition of open access, they are not an eligible platform for researchers who need/want to publish in open access