SciELO Books 10 Years: Interview with the Brazilian Association of University Publishers (ABEU)

By Abel Packer and Amanda Ramalho

SciELO Books celebrates ten years of operation focused on the development of infrastructure and capabilities for publishing academic books in digital format according to the state of the art.

As part of the ten years celebratory event, which is proposed as a forum for the recognition of advances and challenges and, mainly, for the debate on the future of the digital book in the light of open access and open science, we are publishing interviews with speakers at the meeting and authorities of institutions directly linked to the development of SciELO.

We interviewed Prof. Dr. Rita Virgínia Argollo, director of the Brazilian Association of University Publishers (Associação Brasileira das Editoras Universitárias, ABEU).

1. [SciELO Books] The decision of the founding publishers to establish the SciELO platform provided Brazil and, progressively, Latin America with an infrastructure for publishing academic books in digital format (eBooks) according to the state of the art. How does ABEU evaluates the establishment of SciELO Books and its evolution?

[RITA ARGOLLO] The quantity and scope of titles from university and academic publishers that integrate the SciELO Books platform are relevant factors to affirm how fundamental this project is for the flow of knowledge produced in Brazilian research institutions. The fact that it was created by the initiative of Fiocruz, UFBA and UNESP publishers, three associates of recognized value for science beyond our country, already indicates how significant and essential this project has been for ABEU.

2. [SciELO Books] From ABEU’s point of view, what is the role of the digital book in the development of university presses and the academic book?

[RA] We already understood the relevance of the digital book before the Covid-19 pandemic. After the experiences we have had since 2020, we have no doubt that scientific publications should also be available in digital format. Although we still face a social abyss regarding internet access in Brazil, we cannot neglect the dissemination of science in online environments, while we seek public policies so that this access is based on equity.

3. [SciELO Books] According from this view, what would be the role of SciELO Books in this process?

[RA] SciELO is configured as the space that promotes the organization and distribution of this content. Furthermore, it adds credibility to our output. Since, in addition to the evaluation carried out by our referees and councils, SciELO submits it to the analysis of its scientific committee. This rigor gives greater credibility and reliability to the books that are made available. In this sense, we highlight above all the effort dedicated to the distribution and measurement of metrics, as well as the interoperability provided.

4. [SciELO Books] What could be the main lines of cooperation between ABEU and SciELO Books?

[RA] In order to train, improve our teams, and improve the process of creating new titles, I believe that a partnership would be convenient in order to offer our teams courses on digital books. This is a new process for many publishers and is constantly being updated. Having teams with better mastery of these mechanisms would give us even more satisfactory results.

The event celebrating SciELO Books’ ten years anniversary will happen on March 31th, 2022, starting at 9:00 AM (BRT). Register for the event and check the program in: https://books10.scielo.org/en/

External links

SciELO Books 10 Years: https://books10.scielo.org/en/

SciELO Books: https://books.scielo.org/en/

Translated from the original in Portuguese by Lilian Nassi-Calò.