An international symposium on the impact of Plan S, organised by the AE Cardiff Knowledge Hub in collaboration with the Young Academy of Europe, KU Leuven Libraries and Cardiff University, took place at KU Leuven on 5th-6th November 2019.
An audience of around 130 gathered at the historic Leuven Institute for Ireland in Europe. A distinguished panel of experts debated the prospects for researchers, universities, learned societies, academies and publishers.
After a welcome by Professor Sierd Cloetingh MAE, President of Academia Europaea, and Dr Mangala Srinivas FYAE, Chair of Young Academy of Europe, the conference started with the keynote address by Professor Johan Rooryck MAE, the new Open Access Champion.
The YAE contributed to the first panel discussion of the day which explored the impact of Plan S on early- and mid-career researchers. The session was chaired by Professor John Creemers, Director of the Doctoral School for Biomedical Sciences at KU Leuven. Speakers included:
- Gareth O’Neill, Plan S Ambassador
- Véronique De Herde, Eurodoc representative and contact for Plan S
- Dr Matthew DiFranco, Chair, Marie Curie Alumni Association
- Professor Toma Susi, Vice-Chair, Young Academy of Europe
Key points made during this open discussion were:
- The negative effect of the present research evaluation system and impact factors on early-career researchers, with criticism of the current narrow definition of quality.
- DORA principles are important to early-career researchers but need to be implemented properly.
- Many early-career researchers are not well-informed about Plan S, therefore clear communication is vital.
- The possibility of alternative open publishing platforms was generally welcomed, as was a transition towards more open and transparent peer review processes.
