May 23, 2023May 23, 2023 Administrator
The Council has adopted on May 23, 2023 someCouncil conclusions on high-quality, transparent, open, trustworthy and fair scientific publications, in which he calls for immediate and unrestricted open access in the publication of research involving public funds.
The dangers of scholarly publishing
Scientific articles and other forms of scholarly publication remain the primary means of disseminating research results and scientific discoveries. However, far from every article is available to other researchers or other interested readers. The paywall costs to access and publish articles are becoming unsustainable and the publishing channels for researchers are often in the hands of private companies, which often control the intellectual property of the articles. Peer review of articles is essential to ensure article quality control, but this process presents challenges such as increased submissions and reviewer fatigue. There is also a problem with predatory and questionable editorial practices.
In its conclusions, the Council calls on the Commission and the Member States to support policies towards a non-profit, open access and multi-format scholarly publishing model, at no cost to authors or readers. Some Member States have introduced secondary publication rights into their national copyright law, allowing open access to scholarly publications involving public funds. The Council encourages national open access policies and guidelines to make scholarly publications immediately accessible under open licences. The conclusions acknowledge positive developments in terms of monitoring progress, such as in the framework of the European Open Science Cloud (EOSC), and suggest including open science monitoring in the monitoring mechanism of the European Research Area.
CONCLUSIONS
Towards an open, equitable and sustainable scholarly publishing system
- RECALLS that academic publication in journals is currently the main academic medium for disseminating research results and new scientific knowledge; REITERATES that it is important to accelerate the transition towards open science in order to improve the quality, efficiency and impact of research, promoting transparency, accessibility, diversity, reuse, reproducibility and reliability of research results, that open access to scholarly journals, in particular their re-use, is one of the fundamental elements of an open science system, and that action is needed to ensure that scholarly journals support these goals;
- NOTES that the digital transition, while presenting its challenges, continues to provide opportunities for new methods of efficient and effective scholarly publishing, such as online publishing tools, repositories and platforms for a wide range of research outputs across the board, both national and European scale, but that much of the current system is based on business and operating models that have not yet fully harnessed the potential of digitization, in particular in relation to the growing variety of increasingly important research results, such as ensembles data, software and research protocols; and UNDERLINES the importance of investing in e-infrastructures and digital and innovative tools and capabilities;
- STRESSES that scholarly publishing should uphold the essential principles of academic freedom, research integrity and scientific excellence, as well as maximum accessibility and re-use of research results, while supporting research communities and their transdisciplinary collaboration, and UNDERLINES that scientific practices that guarantee reproducibility, transparency, exchange, rigor and collaboration are important means to achieve a publication system that responds to the challenges of democratic, modern and digitized societies; STRESSES that immediate and unrestricted open access should be the norm in publicly funded research publication, with prices that are transparent and proportional to publishing services and their costs should not be covered by individual authors or readers;
Support diversity and ensure equity in scholarly publishing
- NOTES that publishing practices vary from discipline to discipline, and STRESSES that some publication formats such as monographs, books and long text formats should continue to be supported, especially in the social sciences and humanities, while while promoting open access publishing and allowing the coexistence of a wide range of formats, as well as publication in a number of languages;
- NOTES that the current scholarly publishing system is managed by various organizations, both for-profit and not-for-profit, and RECOGNIZES with concern that increased payment barriers to access scientific journals and for scholarly publishing lead to inequalities and it is becoming unsustainable for public research funders and institutions responsible for the use of public funds, reducing the funding available for research;
- HIGHLIGHTS the importance of non-profit open access scholarly publishing models, which do not charge fees to authors or readers and in which authors can publish their work without eligibility criteria being applied in terms of funding or institutional; TAKES NOTE of the variety of models that do not rely on article processing fees or similar unit rates, and STRESSES the importance of supporting the development of these models led by public research bodies;
- STRESSES that it is essential to avoid situations where researchers are constrained in their choice of publication channels by financial capabilities rather than quality criteria, and where access to research publications is limited by payment barriers ; WELCOMES coordination within the EU and with global partners to support equity in scholarly publishing, taking into account the UNESCO Recommendation on Open Science;
Enhance trust and ensure high quality, transparency and integrity in scholarly publishing
- UNDERLINES that academic freedom encompasses the right to freely define research questions, choose and develop theories, collect empirical material, employ academic research methods, challenge popular opinion and present new ideas, and implies the right to share, disseminate and publish their results, including through training and teaching, and EMPHASIZES that any restriction of these practices constitutes a threat to academic freedom and research integrity;
- STRESSES that rigorous peer review must remain essential for scholarly publishing: researchers must take responsibility for peer review and offer expert advice to editorial boards, ensuring scientific standards, validity and quality of research ; STRESSES that peer review should continue to build and maintain research integrity and trust in science, including by retracting invalid publications; RECOGNIZES that the peer review system currently faces several challenges, such as the increasing number of submissions and "reviewer fatigue"; UNDERLINES the need to promote transparency through open peer review practices, and to recognize and reward researchers for peer review;
- STRESSES that reproducibility is a key characteristic of research quality that is closely related to the transparency and integrity of research, and that lack of reproducibility can have negative effects on scientific progress and confidence in science;
future performance
framework conditions
- ENCOURAGES Member States and the Commission to step up support for the development of harmonized institutional and funding policies and strategies for non-profit open access scholarly publishing models in multiple formats in Europe, free of charge for authors or readers, and to establish and apply roadmaps or action plans for a significant expansion of said publication models;
- WELCOMES the introduction of secondary publication rights by several Member States in their national copyright law, allowing open access to scholarly publications involving public funding; ENCOURAGES the Commission, in the context of ERA Action 2 defined in the ERA 2022-2024 action targets, to examine and propose measures at EU level to remove barriers to access and re-use of research results publicly funded research, as well as publications and data for research purposes, while ensuring the consent of the author; INVITES Member States to update their national open access policies and guidelines to make scholarly publications immediately openly accessible under open licenses and to apply the FAIR (Findable, Accessible, Interoperable) principles to research data. and reusable) and the principle "as open as possible and as closed as necessary", taking into account the OECD Recommendation on access to data from publicly funded research;
- STRESSES that there is a need for a change in the research culture that recognizes diverse research activities, with the overall aim of maximizing high quality and impact of research; WELCOMES, in this regard, the activities of the Coalition for the Advancement of Research Evaluation (CoARA); and ENCOURAGES a close dialogue between stakeholders, Member States, the Commission and partner countries in research evaluation reform, in coordination with global partners;
- NOTES that the lack of reliable data and information on the status of scholarly publishing, including costs and bibliometric data, hampers progress in the development, implementation and evaluation of open access policies and weakens the position of Member States and research organizations in negotiations with commercial publishers; TAKES NOTE of the ongoing progress towards monitoring progress towards open science in the framework of the European Open Science Cloud (EOSC), based on national monitoring and common qualitative and quantitative indicators; ENCOURAGES Member States and the Commission to accelerate such progress and reduce the fragmentation of monitoring efforts by including open science monitoring in the ERA monitoring mechanism, and to strive to ensure that monitoring data abide by the FAIR principles;
Capacities: infrastructures and skills
- CONTINUES to encourage Member States to support the management of Open Research Europe as a large-scale, non-profit, collective open access research publishing service for the public good, and to promote and support other thematic publishing platforms and models specific and national non-profit and open access publishing services that offer high-quality publishing services to researchers and, where possible and appropriate, are connected at European level to increase capacity, efficiency, usability and cost effectiveness;
- ENCOURAGES Member States and the Commission to invest in and promote interoperable not-for-profit publishing infrastructures based on open source software and open standards in order to avoid a dependency on services and systems owners, and to connect these infrastructures to the European Open Science Cloud;
- ENCOURAGES Member States and the Commission to develop mutual learning exercises on peer review, covering principles and practices, how to promote transparency and how to recognize and reward peer review activities in the evaluation of the researchers;
- ENCOURAGES Member States and the Commission to take action to promote institutional capacity building and increase researchers' knowledge of intellectual property rights and their value, including the consequences of copyright transfers to publishers and the importance of strategic management of researchers' intellectual property in facilitating immediate and unrestricted open access to scientific publications;
- INVITES Member States and the Commission to align their open access and open science policies and recommendations with the Pact for Research and Innovation in Europe8 and the European Code of Conduct for Research Integrity of the European Federation of Academies of Sciences and Humanities, and STRESSES that, to this end, it is essential to develop training and materials that support researchers in their efforts to apply the principles of open science, while ensuring that high standards of research integrity are met;
- INVITES Member States, in collaboration with the Commission, to systematically address the issue of predatory publishing and to promote and support training on responsible, open and ethical publishing practices for students and researchers at all stages of their thus equipping them with the skills and competencies they need, as well as ensuring adequate training and awareness about predatory, questionable, misleading and low-quality publication practices and their negative effects on the reliability of research.
Leave a commentCancel reply
FAQs
What is the he Council of the European Union the meeting forum for? ›
Overview. In the Council of the EU, informally also known as the Council, government ministers from each EU country meet to discuss, amend and adopt laws, and coordinate policies. The ministers have the authority to commit their governments to the actions agreed on in the meetings.
What is the Publications Office of the European Commission? ›The Publications Office of the European Union is the publishing house of the institutions, agencies and other bodies of the European Union. It provides free access to European law and to the publications of the European Union. It is based in Luxembourg and employs over 600 staff.
Is European Commission a publisher? ›Our mission. The Publications Office of the European Union is the official provider of publishing services to all EU institutions, bodies, and agencies. As such, it is a central point of access to EU law, publications, open data, research results, procurement notices and other official information.
What is the Council of the European Union Library? ›The Council Library provides access to a wide range of information resources relevant to the work of the Council of the European Union and the European Council. The collections focus on EU policies, EU integration and member states, law, political science, international relations, languages, and more.
What does the Council of Europe try to promote? ›International organisation, based in Strasbourg, which was created in 1949 and now includes 46 European countries. Set up to promote democracy, human rights and the rule of law.
Who is the Council of the European Union 2023? ›Sweden holds the Presidency of the Council of the European Union from 1 January to 30 June 2023.
Who owns the European Commission? ›The European Commission (EC) is part of the executive of the European Union (EU), together with the European Council.
Who runs the European Commission? ›Leadership. The European Commission is led by its President and the 26 Commissioners, one per country. The Commission President is elected for a 5-year term by the European Parliament, following the European elections.
Who regulates the European Commission? ›The European Parliament is the only directly elected EU body, with representatives apportioned by each member state's population. Unlike traditional legislatures, it can't propose legislation, but laws can't pass without its approval. It also negotiates and approves the EU budget and oversees the commission.
What is the difference between EU and European Commission? ›The European Commission is the EU's politically independent executive arm. It is alone responsible for drawing up proposals for new European legislation, and it implements the decisions of the European Parliament and the Council of the EU.
What is the white paper of the European Commission? ›
The purpose of a White Paper is to launch a debate with the public, stakeholders, the European Parliament and the Council in order to arrive at a political consensus. They are published on the Commission's 'Have Your Say' web portal.
What kind of organization is the European Commission? ›The European Commission represents the common interests of the EU and is the EU's main executive body. It uses its 'right of initiative' to put forward proposals for new laws, which are scrutinised and adopted by the European Parliament and the Council of the European Union.
Is the Council of the EU Democratic? ›In the European Union, there are two sources of democratic legitimacy: the European Parliament, chosen by the electorates of the individual EU countries; and the Council of the European Union (the "Council of Ministers"), together with the European Council (of heads of national governments), that represent the peoples ...
What are the powers of the European Council? ›The European Council defines the EU's overall political direction and priorities and sets the EU's policy agenda. It usually adopts conclusions during European Council meetings which identify issues of concern and actions to take. It does not negotiate or adopt EU laws.
Does the Council of Europe still exist? ›The European Council is the EU institution that defines the general political direction and priorities of the European Union.
What are the three aims of the Council of Europe? ›The Council of Europe advocates freedom of expression and of the media, freedom of assembly, equality, and the protection of minorities.
What country left the EU? ›The UK is the only sovereign country to have left the EU. The UK had been a member state of the EU or its predecessor the European Communities (EC), sometimes of both at the same time, since 1 January 1973. Following Brexit, EU law and the Court of Justice of the European Union no longer have primacy over British laws.
What are the three reasons for population decline in Europe? ›Population ageing in Europe is caused primarily by three factors: declining fertility rates, increased life expectancy, and migration.
Is the US a member of the Council of Europe? ›In addition to representing the United States in expert committees and in meetings of the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe (COE), the United States works closely with COE on specific issues.
Is the US in the Council of Europe? ›The Council of Europe was established in 1949 to promote human rights, democracy, and the rule of law. Based in Strasbourg, France, it includes 46 Member States, 27 of which are members of the European Union. The United States participates as an Observer State.
Who will be the EU Council Presidency 2023 2024? ›
Three successive presidencies are known as presidency trios. The current trio (2022–2023) is made up of France (January–June 2022), Czech Republic (July–December 2022) and Sweden (January–June 2023).
Who has power in the EU? ›The President of the European Commission is one of the most powerful officeholders in the EU, controlling the European Commission (executive arm of the EU) which collectively has a monopoly on initiating all EU legislation and is responsible for ensuring its enforcement.
What are the 4 principles of the EU? ›The common principles and values that underlie life in the EU: freedom, democracy, equality and the rule of law, promoting peace and stability.
Is the EU Commission accountable? ›The EU executive, the European Commission, is accountable to the European Parliament which has the power to dismiss it and may be also subject to judicial oversight. Its financial activities are bound by audit rules and political scrutiny by other institutions.
Which country most recently joined the European Union? ›Since then, the EU's membership has grown to twenty-seven, with the latest member state being Croatia, which joined in July 2013.
How many states are in the European Commission? ›Each of the 27 Member States is bound by the Treaties and the acquis communautaire.
How many countries are in the EU? ›The European Union ( EU ) is an economic and political union of 27 countries.
Which is the most powerful of the EU political institutions? ›The European Council brings together EU leaders to set the EU's political agenda. It represents the highest level of political cooperation between EU countries.
What are the 3 main institutions of the EU? ›- The European Parliament.
- The Council of the European Union.
- The European Commission.
promote peace, its values and the well-being of its citizens. offer freedom, security and justice without internal borders, while also taking appropriate measures at its external borders to regulate asylum and immigration and prevent and combat crime. establish an internal market.
Does the European Commission enforce EU law? ›
The European Commission enforces EU laws and upholds the Treaties, as the 'Guardian of the Treaties'. This overarching role gives the Commission central responsibility for enforcement.
What is the European Commission black list? ›The European Union tax haven blacklist, officially the EU list of non-cooperative tax jurisdictions, is a tool of the European Union (EU) that lists tax havens. It is used by the Member States to tackle external risks of tax abuse and unfair tax competition.
What is a US Army white paper? ›White papers are used to present possible research projects to DoD or military-assisting Federal Agencies to assess an interest in, or possibility of, funding a specific research project.
What is the Green Paper of the European Commission? ›Green papers are documents published by the European Commission to stimulate discussion on given topics at European Union (EU) level. They invite the relevant parties (bodies or individuals) to participate in a consultation process and debate on the basis of the proposals they put forward.
What does the European Commission consist of? ›The European Commission is composed of the College of Commissioners, with one member from each of the 27 European Union (EU) Member States. Each Commissioner is responsible for a portfolio assigned to them by the Commission's President.
Why is the European Union so important? ›The EU is the largest trade bloc in the world. It is the world's biggest exporter of manufactured goods and services, and the biggest import market for over 100 countries. Free trade among its members was one of the EU's founding principles. This is possible thanks to the single market.
Are all states in the EU democratic? ›European values
While each EU country has its own culture, language and traditions, they all share the same common values which they must comply with as members of the European Union. One fundamental value that unites all EU countries is democracy.
European Union is limited to the Europe. United Nations is to the whole world. European Union was founded to boost the economical and political aspects of the member European countries while United Nations was founded, especially, with the hope of upholding international peace.
Does the European Council have legal powers? ›The European Council does not have the power to make laws, but it can ask the European Commission to propose laws. The Council meets 4 times per year at least. It usually adopts 'conclusions' at its formal meetings. Conclusions set out the EU's position on key policy matters.
What rights does the Council of Europe have? ›Our rights
The Convention protects the right to life, security, freedom of thought and expression, to marry… it prohibits torture, death penalty, discrimination, slavery…
Why is Russia not in the Council of Europe? ›
After Russia was suspended from the Council of Europe in the wake of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, and subsequently announced its intention to withdraw from the organization, former President (2008–2012) and Prime Minister (2012–2020) Dmitry Medvedev endorsed restoring death penalty in Russia.
When did Russia leave the Council of Europe? ›The CoE expanded following the end of Communism in Central and Eastern Europe in the 1990s. It currently comprises 46 Member States. Its membership was reduced by one in March 2022 when Russia was expelled following its invasion of Ukraine (see below).
Which countries are not part of the Council of Europe? ›- Canada.
- Holy See.
- Israel (Observer to the Parliamentary Assembly)
- Japan.
- Mexico.
- United States.
The Council of Europe is the continent's leading human rights organisation. It comprises 46 member states, including all members of the European Union. All Council of Europe member states have signed up to the European Convention on Human Rights, a treaty designed to protect human rights, democracy and the rule of law.
What is the Council of Europe European Convention? ›The European Convention on Human Rights is the first Council of Europe's convention and the cornerstone of all its activities. It was adopted in 1950 and entered into force in 1953. Its ratification is a prerequisite for joining the Organisation.
What does the European Committee for? ›The European Committee of the Regions (CoR) is the voice of regions and cities in the European Union (EU). It represents local and regional authorities across the European Union and advises on new laws that have an impact on regions and cities (70% of all EU legislation).
Who attends the meetings of the EU Council? ›The members of the European Council are the heads of state or government of the 27 EU member states, the European Council President and the President of the European Commission.
Why is the Council of the EU important? ›Overview. The European Council brings together EU leaders to set the EU's political agenda. It represents the highest level of political cooperation between EU countries.
What is the difference between the EU and Council of Europe? ›The European Union is the main institutional partner of the Council of Europe in political, legal and financial terms. Co-operation embraces all sectors of the Council of Europe and a wide spectrum of activities, making the European Union an “across the board” partner.
Who runs the European Council? ›European Council president – Charles Michel
Appointed by: national leaders (heads of state or government of EU countries).
What is the Council of Europe summary? ›
Council of Europe, organization of European countries that seeks to protect democracy and human rights and to promote European unity by fostering cooperation on legal, cultural, and social issues. The council is headquartered in Strasbourg, France.
Is the European Council democratic? ›The European Union describes its values as being 'Human Dignity, Freedom, Democracy, Equality, Rule of Law, and Human Rights'. Democracy is a cornerstone of the project that is the European Union, and has been since its inception. It thus also represents a criteria for accession to the EU.
How many members does the CoR have? ›Resolutions. Resolutions enable the committee to express its view on important and topical issues. The CoR's political groups or 32 CoR members can draw up resolutions.
What is the difference between the Council and the European Commission? ›The Council of the European Union consists of one government minister from every member state. The Council is part of the law making process in the European Union. The European Commission is the executive of the European Union.
What are the 4 requirements of the Copenhagen criteria? ›- stability of institutions guaranteeing democracy, the rule of law, human rights and respect for and protection of minorities;
- a functioning market economy and the ability to cope with competitive pressure and market forces within the EU;