(6 November 2017, Washington, D.C.) A group of prestigious not-for-profit scientific membership societies today announced the launch of the Scientific Society Publisher Alliance (SSPA) (byscientistsforscience.org), an intiative focused on building awareness of and support for publication of scientific research by scientist-run scientific societies.
The SSPA started as a collaboration of scientific societies that came together to reinforce and communicate the excellence, importance, and uniqueness of their journals. The launch of the SSPA today formalizes this collaboration. The SSPA seeks to emphasize the value of publishing vital scientific research in scholarly journals managed by working scientists, and edited and peer reviewed in a fair and supportive manner by working scientists. Publishing in a society journal supports researchers and the scientific community, through reinvestment of revenues in the scientific community, in science advocacy, and in the careers of scientists at all stages, as part of the not-for-profit society mission.
“The ASM’s mission is to promote the microbial sciences and to facilitate communication between scientists, policy makers, and the public to improve health and economic well-being,” said Barbara Goldman, Ph.D., Director, Journals, ASM. “The ASM Journals program has a high standard for quality, rigor and fairness. We are proud of the influential scientific research published in our journals that are not only managed by working scientists, but are also edited and peer reviewed by academic editors from eminent institutions. ASM supports the SSPA and their mission to promote society-sponsored journals.”
“We began this collaboration to promote our editorial principles, processes, and practices, and to communicate the value of our journals,” said Mark Johnston, Editor-in-Chief, Genetics (owned and published by the Genetics Society of America), and Chair of the SSPA. “In a world where new scholarly journals are continually being launched, we wanted to ensure that researchers are aware of the core values and strengths of our journals – peer-editing, transparent community governance, advocacy for science, and a rich history of investing in the scientific community – when making decisions about the best place to publish their findings.”
The SSPA Founding members are:
• American Physiological Society (APS)
• American Society for Cell Biology (ASCB)
• American Society for Microbiology (ASM)
• American Society of Plant Biologists (ASPB)
• Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology (FASEB)
• Genetics Society of America (GSA)
• Society for Molecular Biology and Evolution (SMBE)
• Society for Neuroscience (SfN)
• American Association of Immunologists (AAI)
• American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology (ASBMB)
• American Society for Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics (ASPET)
The SSPA wants researchers to understand the value of publishing in society-sponsored journals, and to submit their best work for publication in society-sponsored journals. “Submission to a professional society journal helps me as a researcher. I know that highly knowledgeable peers will evaluate my paper and help me improve them. And I also know that publishing in society journals supports the important work they do,” said Martin Chalfie, University Professor, Columbia University, and 2008 Nobel Laureate in Chemistry. “I am a member of four professional societies and have benefited from publishing in journals of each one of them.”
For more information about the Scientific Society Publisher Alliance (SSPA), including information on membership, visit byscientistsforscience.org.
The Scientific Society Publisher Alliance (SSPA) is dedicated to identifying and disseminating vital scientific research, by scientists for science. Our not-for-profit societies provide authors with the opportunity to have their work validated by peers in a fair manner for publication in a prestigious journal managed by working scientists. By reinvesting in the community, the members of the SSPA are committed to delivering important discoveries worldwide.
The announcement is here.
