University drives open science through transformative agreements with scientific publishers

On the framework of Open Access Week, the University of Navarra reaffirms its commitment to open science by organizing a lecture on transformative agreements, a new model in scientific communication that allows researchers to publish their work in open access at no additional cost. Specifically, this model removes economic barriers so that research conducted at campus can be made available immediately and free of charge to academic community and society in general.

"The change from a subscription system to a model that allows both reading and publishing in open access (known as APC), represents a significant advance in the dissemination of scientific knowledge . Currently, the University of Navarra has transformative agreements with nine publishers, allowing its researchers to publish in open access, at no added cost, in more than 5000 scientific journals," explains Isabel Iribarren, director of the Library Service.

This change is directly aligned with the open science strategy, which seeks to democratize access to knowledge, increase the visibility of research and foster partnership among scientists from different disciplines and countries. In addition, with this initiative, the University of Navarra promotes greater transparency in the processes of research and supports the inclusion of its researchers in a global ecosystem of accessible knowledge .

The importance of transformative agreements for the research community

More than 90 researchers participated in the lecture entitled "The transformation of business models in scientific communication: transformative agreements in Spain". This meeting organized by the DADUN team of the Library Services Service was at position by Luis Gonzalo Rey, director of the Library Services of the University of La Laguna and expert in the negotiation of these agreements at national level. In his presentation, Rey explained the current context of transformative agreements in Spain and offered a internship view of their implications for academic institutions and their researchers. As coordinator of the group de Compra UNIRIS, which brings together 34 Spanish universities, and a member of the CRUE-CSIC General Negotiating Committee, he provided a specialized perspective on the challenges and benefits of these agreements. "The transformative agreements in Spain are proving to be a success. Although they have not yet achieved the change or transformation of journals, they have allowed a huge increase in open publication. We must continue to bet on these agreements because more countries and institutions will join and then change will come, but this is not in the hands of the big publishers," said Rey.