Category: News

News, Newsletter

C4DISC Releases Workplace Equity in Scholarly Communications 2023 Executive Summary

Five years after the Workplace Equity Survey (WE Survey) first benchmarked the state of diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) in the global scholarly publishing industry, C4DISC conducted the survey for a second time in 2023.

This week, C4DISC releases the Workplace Equity in Scholarly Communications 2023 Executive Summary, the initial analysis of the 2023 data and free-form comments collected across six continents from 1,755 respondents, 48% more than in 2018.

You can now download the Workplace Equity in Scholarly Communications 2023 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY and its Appendix.

Learn more about the project, methodology and key findings here.

News, Newsletter

Welcoming STM as a C4DISC Member

C4DISC is delighted to welcome STM as a new Member.

“C4DISC’s mission closely aligns with STM’s work in social responsibility, which seeks to create a more equitable, inclusive and sustainable world while advancing trusted research,” STM CEO Caroline Sutton said. “We have already been working to support our members in prioritising diversity, inclusion and accessibility and meeting the SDGs. We look forward to collaborating with C4DISC and its members

to build further momentum to advance this work.”

Read STM’s full announcement here.

Learn more about how to get involved in C4DISC’s work.

We look forward working with STM – a great addition to C4DISC’s membership.
News, Newsletter

Webinar recording: Spotlight on Neurodiversity

The recording of this recent webinar (March 13 2024) is now available.

 

Neurodivergence is the divergence of mental or neurological functions from what is considered typical. Neurodiversity is the array of neurotypes in a space which can lead to differences in thinking, attention and memory. Neurodivergent is an umbrella term for conditions including but not limited to ASD, ADHD, dyslexia, dyscalculia, dyspraxia, Bipolar, OCD, anxiety disorders, and Tourette’s Syndrome. Research suggests that approximately 15-20% of the population is neurodivergent, a segment that contributes a wealth of valuable and unique strengths to scholarly communications. However, this group encounters distinct challenges within professional, educational and social environments. By fostering inclusive and accessible working environments that provide the necessary support, organizations stand to unlock the vast potential for creativity and innovation inherent in this diverse population.

This enlightening panel is tailored for scholarly communications professionals seeking a deeper understanding of neurodiversity and a desire to actively support their neurodivergent colleagues. We will discuss:

  • How workplaces can implement policies and procedures for supporting colleagues
  • Understanding language and terminology
  • Lived experience examples of navigating the workplace

Moderator

Dianndra Roberts, Senior Publishing Coordinator, Royal College of Psychiatrists
Dianndra is the Senior Publishing Coordinator at the Royal College of Psychiatrists working across the books and journals portfolio. In 2019 she founded the RCPsych African and Caribbean Forum. Dianndra has been the ISMTE DEI Advisory Council Co-Chair since 2021 and joined The Scholarly Kitchen/SSP in 2022 as DEIA Associate Editor. Dianndra is passionate about equity, diversity, and inclusion and how we can use our platforms to be active allies, especially in the workplace.

News, Newsletter

Next DEIA Community of Practice Call – April 11

The next C4DISC Community of Practice call will be on April 11, 2024 at 11 am Eastern / 4 pm UK. The topic will be Open Access.

Time converter link

Open Access: our definition for the purposes of this call is when there are no financial, legal or technical barriers to accessing content. In most cases, the author pays for the article publication charge. There are many different models across publishers and societies.

Questions for discussion

  • What are the biggest challenges from your organizations’ perspective? 
  • How is the article submission process addressing implicit bias by/from editorial reviews? 
  • How are broader DEI practices translating into goals that support both authors and the community? 
  • What is your experience in open pedagogy? 
  • Are authors/researchers receiving due credit when co-authoring; how do we ensure equitable credit? 
  • Are DEI principles being integrated into OA initiatives to promote a scholarly ecosystem that is accessible and inclusive of all?

Participants will have breakout room discussions around any aspect of this topic they wish to bring and we will come together for the last part of the call to hear key takeaways.

If you are a COP member you will receive the Zoom link ahead of the call. If you have not yet joined the COP then – learn more here on how to join the community. We have bimonthly calls looking at topics suggested by community members and a discussion group for asynchronous communication.

Last month’s Community call had the topic Recruitment and Retention. You can find previous DEIA Community of Practice Call Summaries here.

News, Newsletter

February 8 Community of Practice Call: Recruitment and Retention

The next C4DISC Community of Practice call will be on February 8, 2024 at 11 am Eastern / 4 pm UK. The topic will be Recruitment and Retention.

The theme encompasses the process of seeking out, interviewing, hiring and onboarding employees, partners and vendors. In the publishing industry this includes authors, reviewers and editors. Factors affecting DEIA can include how you choose to advertise or identify candidates; the language, platforms and methodologies used throughout; how feedback is incorporated; and how employees are prepared to support new colleagues.

Questions for discussion

  • Do you have examples of best practice for inclusive recruitment and retention?
  • Do you have examples where there was room for improvement?
  • How do you feel our workplaces and communities can support us in inclusive recruitment and retention?
  • Is there anything you would do differently when recruiting and retaining volunteers?
  • How do you feel mentor and buddy schemes impact inclusive recruitment and retention?
  • How can we ensure people from low-income backgrounds are able to access careers in publishing?

Participants will have breakout room discussions around any aspect of this topic they wish to bring and we will come together for the last part of the call to hear key takeaways.

If you are a COP member you will receive the Zoom link ahead of the call. If you have not yet joined the COP then – learn more here on how to join the community. We have bimonthly calls looking at topics suggested by community members and a discussion group for asynchronous communication.

Last month’s Community call had the topic Psychological Safety. You can find previous DEIA Community of Practice Call Summaries here.

News, Newsletter

Next Community of Practice Call – Thursday, December 14

You are warmly welcomed to the next C4DISC community call on Thursday December 14 at 11am EST / 4 pm UTC.
This month’s call has the theme of Psychological Safety.
Here are some brief notes and questions to consider. We will cover these and whatever participants bring in breakout rooms during the call.
Psychological safety is a framework of creating a culture and environment that nurtures those who are in it. It is the ability to feel safe speaking up, taking risks, disagreeing openly and raising any concerns without fear of negative repercussions or tone policing. When psychological safety is present in a work environment there is more room for innovation, collaboration and growth. The four stages of psychological safety is a universal framework that explains the necessary cultural elements of any high-performing, inclusive team. These four stages include:

Inclusion safety
Allowing for space to talk and express curiosity, respecting boundaries
Express curiosity
Learner safety
Honesty and vulnerability around knowledge or gaps in knowledge
Non-assuming work ethic
Contributor safety
Communicate expectations and commitment/participation
Constructive feedback vs criticism – is it warranted or asked for? Was it necessary?
Challenger safety
Ask who disagrees and hear out the why
Show gratitude for the opportunity to grow and learn

Questions:

  • Do you have examples of what your workplace does well?
  • Do you have examples where your workplace could improve?
  • Is there anything in particular you would feel supported by?
  • Do you have any examples for the different areas of psychological safety?
Please note call dates for upcoming community calls
2024
February 8
April 11
June 13
August 8
October 10
December 12

The C4DISC DEIA Community of Practice is a peer-to-peer community of interest intended to enable participants to build trusted connections and provide knowledge-sharing opportunities. All those working in any DEIA capacity (whether in a dedicated role or not) in scholarly communications organizations are welcome.  We hope this community will provide the opportunity to learn from each other, share resources and best practices, hear of challenges and successes, explore opportunities for participating in cross-industry initiatives, coordinate effort, and to speak with one voice to increase effectiveness.

Join the Community by completing this short invitation form where we can collect some brief information and enable you to share your priorities for discussion. You will be notified of bimonthly community calls.

Please share the invitation link with colleagues and peers who may find it useful – https://forms.gle/zC1r3YfgpXYqzKAH8

Learn more about the background to this community on this page.

News

C4DISC DEIA Community of Practice

Welcome to learning more about the C4DISC DEIA Community of Practice. This peer-to-peer community of interest is intended to enable participants to build trusted connections and provide knowledge-sharing opportunities. All those working in any DEIA capacity (whether in a dedicated role or not) in scholarly communications organizations are welcome.  

This CoP will provide the opportunity to learn from each other, share resources and best practices, hear of challenges and successes, explore opportunities for participating in cross-industry initiatives, coordinate effort, and to speak with one voice to increase effectiveness.

Join the Community by completing this short invitation form where we can collect some brief information and enable you to share your priorities for discussion. You will be notified of bimonthly community calls and be added to the discussion group.  

We welcome those who are working to further DEIA initiatives to join us for the next hour-long community call via Zoom – find details of forthcoming calls here. We encourage participation by anyone who has a dedicated DEIA role as well as others with a DEIA remit as part of their role, whether in a paid or volunteer capacity. 

We need your help to fulfill our mission to build equity, inclusion, diversity, and accessibility in scholarly communications and hope you will join us on this call or a future one. 

Please share the invitation link with colleagues and peers who may find it useful – https://forms.gle/zC1r3YfgpXYqzKAH8

Learn more about the background to this new community on this page.

You can find previous DEIA Community of Practice Call Summaries here.

 

News

Remember to take part in the Workplace Equity Survey 2023!

The 2023 Workplace Equity Survey has already received hundreds of responses. We invite everyone working in scholarly publishing to take and share the survey. To be representative of the scholarly publishing industry, we need the broadest range of respondents around the world.

We ask industry leaders, DEI committees, and people and culture leaders to help us gain the insights about how perceptions of our global industry workforce have changed since 2018.

Including

  • Work-Life Balance and Work Culture
  • Career Breaks
  • Job Satisfaction
  • Professional Development Supports
  • Attitudes and Beliefs about Opportunity and Compensation

No personally identifiable data is collected and responses are stored entirely anonymously. Please take and share this survey before June 30, 2023. Results will be widely reported later in 2023.

You can find the full background information about the 2023 survey here on the C4DISC site.