This document summarizes a presentation given to editors on open access publishing. It discusses two organizations represented - the European Association of Science Editors (EASE) which works to improve science editing standards internationally, and the Publishing Unit at Italy's National Institute of Health (ISS) which produces scientific publications and supports dissemination. The presentation poses five questions to editors in attendance: how many editors there are, what the role of an editor means, what types of content editors work with, the importance of editor certification and training, and how editors can influence research. It provides information on EASE and ISS activities as well as perspectives from editors in the audience.

1. EASE, European Association of Science Editors
ISS, Publishing Unit, Istituto Superiore di Sanità
EDITORS
who are we?
Open Access Publishing ● CNR - Rome ● December 9, 2015

2. 5 questions to focus on the issue
P. De Castro ● Editors who are we? ● Open access publishing ● CNR, Rome December 9, 2015
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the presention
2 umbrellas
the EASE, a professional association
the ISS, a research institute
MULTIDISCIPLINARY APPROACH

3. EUROPEAN ASSOCIATION OF SCIENCE EDITORS
To improve the global standard and quality of science editing
by promoting the value of science editors and supporting
• professional development
• research
• collaboration.
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an international community of individuals and associations
from diverse backgrounds, linguistic traditions and professional experience
in science communication and editing
Mission
Excellence and Accountability in Science Editing
http://www.ease.org.uk/
P. De Castro ● Editors who are we? ● Open access publishing ● CNR, Rome December 9, 2015

4. EASE
Publications
Training material
Events
Working groups
as an oppurtunty
to share and
grow together…
P. De Castro ● Editors who are we? ● Open access publishing ● CNR, Rome December 9, 2015
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5. P. De Castro ● Editors who are we? ● Open access publishing ● CNR, Rome December 9, 2015
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National Institute of Health (Italy)
To promote and guarantee
PUBLIC HEALTH
Research, Surveillance,
Regulation, Control, Prevention,
Communication, Advise, Training
it produces knowledge (research and experimentation) and
disseminates knowledge and scientific evidence
to policy makers, health operators, citizens
to garantee and promote public health
MISSION

6. PUBLISHING UNIT at ISS - National Institute of Health (Italy)
Produces publications (journals, newsletters and other)
Collects and the scientific output of ISS researchers (repository Dspace ISS)
Develops dissemination and training strategies (for different tagets)
Promotes and takes part in research
• Editorship, communication, dissemination, evaluation, guidelines
• Multidisciplinary research in collaboration with ISS Research Departments
• Promotes national and international cooperation
P. De Castro ● Editors who are we? ● Open access publishing ● CNR, Rome December 9, 2015
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7. Question 1
How many editors?
P. De Castro ● Editors who are we? ● Open access publishing ● CNR, Rome December 9, 2015
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Raise hands

8. Question 2
What do we mean
by editor?
P. De Castro ● Editors who are we? ● Open access publishing ● CNR, Rome December 9, 2015
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9. What does it mean for you
BEING AN EDITOR?
NOT
a publisher, a publishing house,
the owner of a journal
P. De Castro ● Editors who are we? ● Open access publishing ● CNR, Rome December 9, 2015
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10. What is the relationship
Fraud
Editing Peer review
Plagiarim
Editorship
Revision
Editorial
freedom
Conflicts
of interests
copyright
BEING AN EDITOR
and …
readership
authorship
P. De Castro ● Editors who are we? ● Open access publishing ● CNR, Rome December 9, 2015
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11. Fraud
Editing Peer review
Plagiarim
Editorship
Revision
Editorial
freedom
Conflicts
of interests
Copyright
BEING AN EDITOR
Readership
Authorship
Preservation
P. De Castro ● Editors who are we? ● Open access publishing ● CNR, Rome December 9, 2015 11
Transparency
IS STRIVING FOR QUALITY
Embargos
Evaluation processes

12. EDITORS’ TAXONOMY
“managing editors”
They ensure that editorial processes or projects run smoothly.
There are generally not involved in the content of a publication.
Levels of responsibility (roles)
“chief editor”, “decision editor”
Regional or section editors, editorial board, advisors, etc.
They take decisions (reject, publish with or without modification.
They are generally supported by referees
“technical editor”, “copy editor”, “desk editor”, “sub-editor”.
They take responsibility for implementation of house style,
correct use of language, layout, and so on.
1. Content
2. Presentation
3. Process
Polderman A, ESE, 2009
P. De Castro ● Editors who are we? ● Open access publishing ● CNR, Rome December 9, 2015
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13. Editors roles, duties
facing the challenge from Open science
P. De Castro ● Editors who are we? ● Open access publishing ● CNR, Rome December 9, 2015
Portal of
reporting
guidelines
Committee
Publication
Ethics
Editors
Associations
Top Journal
websites
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14. Question 3
What do we edit?
P. De Castro ● Editors who are we? ● Open access publishing ● CNR, Rome December 9, 2015
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15. EDITORIAL RESPONSIBILITIES
AND PROCEDURES ARE DIFFERENT
Books
Journals
Web pages
Blogs
Reports
Proceedings
What kind of?
What target?
What budget?
What is the deadline
P. De Castro ● Editors who are we? ● Open access publishing ● CNR, Rome December 9, 2015
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16. PERFECTION IS
IMPOSSIBLE
TO REACH
scientific content, ethical issues, technical issues, fashions, traditions
P. De Castro ● Editors who are we? ● Open access publishing ● CNR, Rome December 9, 2015
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17. 1. Be aware of your target audience.
2. Make instructions to authors simple and understandable and review them regularly.
3. Ensure a fair peer review process (usually with 2-3 reviews, or more if necessary).
4. Pay due attention to ethical issues: data fabrication or manipulation, plagiarism,
authorship, conflict of interest, copyright, legislation, etc.
5. Respect others; inform authors about progress and delays as soon as possible; do not
overburden reviewers and authors.
6. Do your best to ensure that publications are complete, concise, and clear,
with appropriate methods and correct citations.
7. Make sure that abstracts properly summarize essential information (usually:
background, objectives, methods, results, and conclusions) and contain major keywords
8. Ensure safe long-term storage of publications and documentation of the editorial
process.
9. Develop your journal.
10. Perfection is impossible to reach, so common sense is necessary.
GOLDEN RULES
FOR SCHOLARLY JOURNAL EDITORS
P. De Castro ● Editors who are we? ● Open access publishing ● CNR, Rome December 9, 2015
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18. Question 4
How important is editors’
certification and traning?
P. De Castro ● Editors who are we? ● Open access publishing ● CNR, Rome December 9, 2015
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19. CERTIFICATION IS NECESSARY
(unpublished data from EASE survey 2015)
P. De Castro ● Editors who are we? ● Open access publishing ● CNR, Rome December 9, 2015
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Certify competence or Professional knowledge?
On what basis do you think certification should be awarded?

20. P. De Castro ● Editors who are we? ● Open access publishing ● CNR, Rome December 9, 2015
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(unpublished data from EASE survey 2015)

21. Define Core Competencies
for journal editors
A project led by Dr. David Moher,
Ottawa Hospital Research Institute in Canada
to outline a minimum set of core competencies
for scientific editors of biomedical journals.
The project is international in scope and includes several key stakeholder
groups, such as the World Association of Medical Editors (WAME), the
Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE), the Council of Science Editors,
and the Cochrane Collaboration.
Contact: James Galipeau, Ph.D. jgalipeau@ohri.ca
October 2015
P. De Castro ● Editors who are we? ● Open access publishing ● CNR, Rome December 9, 2015
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22. P. De Castro ● Editors who are we? ● Open access publishing ● CNR, Rome December 9, 2015
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EASE
Regional Chapters

23. TERMINOLOGICAL
RESEARCH
web semantic group (Italy)
Bilingual glossary in the area of digital publishing
A terminological tool to cooperate in the web
using the same concepts to compare and retrieve
information and experiences.
A work in progress (English/Italian/Spanish)
to verify experts and publications in the field
P. De Castro ● Editors who are we? ● Open access publishing ● CNR, Rome December 9, 2015
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Paola CapitaniHttp://gruppowebsemantico.blogspot.com

24. Question 5
How can editors
influence research?
P. De Castro ● Editors who are we? ● Open access publishing ● CNR, Rome December 9, 2015
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25. EDITORS AS AGENTS OF CHANGE
In 2005, the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors
(ICMJE) initiated a policy requiring investigators
to deposit information about trial design into an accepted clinical
trials registry before the onset of patient enrollment… and
included requirement for registration in the Uniform Requirements
P. De Castro ● Editors who are we? ● Open access publishing ● CNR, Rome December 9, 2015
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Scientists require evidence
The story of clinical trials
Before that, trials registration was the exception; now it is the rule.

26. Numbers of registered clinical trials on the International
Clinical Trials Registry Platform (ICTRP) and numbers of
publications about clinical trials on PubMed (1998 – 2013)
Roderik F Viergever, and Keyang Li BMJ Open 2015;5:e008932P. De Castro ● Editors who are we? ● Open access publishing ● CNR, Rome December 9, 2015
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27. Registration
facilitates the dissemination of information
among clinicians, researchers, and patients,
helps to assure trial participants that the information that
accrues as a result of their altruism will become part of the
public record.
Contributes to increase public trust in medical science.
Laine C et al. Clinical Trial Registration — Looking Back and Moving Ahead. N Engl J Med 2007;
356:2734-2736June 28, 2007
Effects of standard approach
in the registration of clinical trials
P. De Castro ● Editors who are we? ● Open access publishing ● CNR, Rome December 9, 2015
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28. Two examples of successful
collaboration ISS / EASE
in the development of editorial guidelines
COBRA, Citation of Bioresources
in Journal Articles
(standard citation of bioresurces
to allow impact evaluation
BMC Medicine 2015
SAGER, Sex and Gender Equity in Research
Guidelines for editorss - Article Submitted for publication
EASE GPC Interdisciplinary research group
1
2
P. De Castro ● Editors who are we? ● Open access publishing ● CNR, Rome December 9, 2015
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29. Bioresources are drivers of
innovation and scientific
progress and their sharing is a
priority for biomedical
research;
yet,
the limited acknowledgement
of the efforts required to
establish, maintain and share
them is an obstacle for impact
evaluation, often leading to
waste.
P. De Castro ● Editors who are we? ● Open
access publishing ● CNR, Rome December
9, 2015
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REWARD Conference
Edinburgh, 28-30 September 2015

30. WHY A GUIDELINE ON SEX AND
GENDER EQUITY IN RESEARCH?
In any field of research,
from medicine to biology, humanities and social sciences,
physical and environmental sciences,
sex and gender differences play a very important role
influence the research outcome in a variety of ways
with direct implications
on the economic and financial sides
and
E
A
S
E
G
P
C sex and gender aspects are generally
overlooked and underreported
1
2
yet
3
P. De Castro ● Editors who are we? ● Open access publishing ● CNR, Rome December 9, 2015
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31. We need a “SAGER” vision
The EASE Gender Policy Committee
has adopted the acronym SAGER to express its work
Sex
And
Gender
Equity in
Research
S
A
G
E
R
P. De Castro ● Editors who are we? ● Open
access publishing ● CNR, Rome December
9, 2015
SAGER Guidelines
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32. Objectives of SAGER guidelines
promote sex/gender reporting
and gender balance in editorial management
on a global level, and across disciplines,
in scientific communication
establish a methodological framework for
reporting sex and gender differences (or
similarities) targeting authors and editors
for improved reporting
P. De Castro ● Editors who are we? ● Open access publishing ● CNR, Rome December 9, 2015
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2
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33. Cooperation
are key words for editors to…
P. De Castro ● Editors who are we? ● Open access publishing ● CNR, Rome December 9, 2015
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Work with authors, referees, publishers, librarians, web masters…
Guarantee quality
Disseminate reserch output
Respect readership (what readers need and deserve to know)
Promote and agree on standards and policies
Promote and participate in research projects
Negotiate with state holders (embargo, standards, guidelines…
Improve the global standard
Facilitate learning (dissemination of scientific evidence)
Share (not own) knowledge (J. Willinsky)
Progress towards sustainable goals
Integration
Finalconsiderations

34. QUESTIONS MAY REMAIN UNSOLVED, YET DISCUSSION IS ALWAYS USEFUL
Thank you
paola.decastro@iss.it
EDITORS
who are we?
Open Access Publishing ● CNR - Rome ● December 9, 2015
How many editors?
What do we mean by editor?
What do we edit?
How important is editors’
certification and traning?
How can editors influence
research?
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