Diamond open access fund for UG and UMCG authors (2021-2023)

The University of Groningen launched a stimulus fund to support diamond open access initiatives by UG/UMCG researchers. The fund can be used to expand and improve existing initiatives (e.g. professionalizing or scaling-up a scholar-led journal, etc.) or to create new ones (e.g. setting up a new journal or flipping an existing journal to diamond open access).

The fund ran out in September 2023. The continuation of the fund is conditional on funding renewal by the UG/UMCG.

What is diamond open access?

Diamond open access initiatives (journals, publication platforms, etc.) do not charge subscriptions fees, nor publication fees to authors. They are free to access/read and free to publish in (no Article Processing Charges or Book Processing Charges). These initiatives are usually non-profit and scholarly-led.

Diamond open access initiatives operate on a smaller scale compared to commercial players and their operating costs are usually a fraction of those associated with pay-to-publish open access. These initiatives rely on external funding to remain operational, with funds mostly coming from university libraries, academic institutions, research funders or government grants.

Eligibility criteria and application process

Funding

The UG/UMCG is making available a total of €60,000 to be awarded over the course of 1.5 years (until August 2023). Eligible initiatives can request a one-off contribution. The indicative maximum contribution that can be requested is €5,000 per application. Higher requests can be submitted and will be evaluated by the open access team based on the assessment criteria specified below. NB: Initiatives can apply for the fund only once. Structural support or yearly donations cannot be provided through this funding instrument.

The continuation of the stimulus fund beyond August 2023 is conditional on funding renewal by the UG/UMCG.

Eligibility criteria

Eligible initiatives must have a strong connection with the UG/UMCG. For example, the journal or platform is founded or managed by one or more UG/UMCG researchers.

Assessment criteria

Applications will be assessed against the following criteria:

Connection with the UG/UMCG.
Compliance with the Fair Open Access Principles.
Feasibility of the application (i.e. whether the planned initiative can realistically be achieved within the financial boundaries of the fund).
Continuity and sustainability of the initiative.

Commitment to 'open' principles

Initiatives that receive financing should strive for the following improvements (if not yet realized):

Make it possible to publish under a Creative Commons Attribution license (CC BY).
CC BY should be preferably offered as the default license.
Register the initiative in the Directory of Open Access Journals (DOAJ).
Issue Digital Object Identifiers (DOIs) to all (future) publications.
Fully align with the Fair Open Access Principles.

How to apply

The fund ran out in September 2023. The continuation of the fund is conditional on funding renewal by the UG/UMCG.

Applications will be evaluated on a rolling basis by a committee composed of open access and publishing experts from the University of Groningen Library (UB).

The fund is managed by the open access support team of the UB. The UB reserves the right to consult faculties and institute directors in case of doubt about the eligibility of a request.

Support

If you have any questions about the fund please contact us at openaccess rug.nl or openaccess umcg.nl.

Last modified:

29 January 2024 11.00 a.m.