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Episciences

Center for Direct Scientific Communication (CCSD)
France
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About

Launched: 2013
Record Updated: Dec 09, 2024
Peer review system
Publishing system
Submissions system
Episciences is an overlay journal platform to host and disseminate diamond open access publications from all disciplines. Hosted in France, supported by the Centre pour la Communication Scientifique Directe (CCSD), a support and research unit created by the CNRS, joining Inria and INRAE. It benefits from the support of the French Ministry of Higher Education and Research.
Episciences offers technical and editorial support to journal teams from all over the world.
Documents published by Episciences overlay journals are hosted by open repositories such as arXiv, HAL, Zenodo, bioRxiv, medRxiv. Episciences welcomes new or existing journals from any country or language.
Academic-led and owned, initiated by researchers, the aim of the infrastructure is to provide a complete publishing system for overlay journals. In addition to the free technical support, the software development and hosting, Episciences provides free services to support the journal’s editorial workflows.

Mission

Episciences is a publishing platform providing free hosting and free services to diamond open access overlays journals. It is the largest academic platform offering free hosting and support to overlay journals.
Thanks to Episciences, scientific communities can create and operate high-quality Open Access journals with an overlay model. Several platforms provide hosting for diamond open access journals but the Episciences approach is unique in the sense that the overlay model is similar to the “publish, review, curate” (PRC) model.
Episciences overlay journals contribute significantly to the democratisation of scientific knowledge. We support Open Science by making research more accessible, affordable, and transparent, thereby fostering a more inclusive and efficient dissemination of scientific knowledge as a common good.

Technical Attributes

Maintenance Status

Actively Maintained

Open Code Repository

Implemented
Website (Opens in new window)

Technical Documentation

Implemented
Website (Opens in new window)

Code License

Implemented
Website (Opens in new window)

Open API

Implemented
Website (Opens in new window)

Open Data Statement

In Progress

Open Product Roadmap

Implemented
Website (Opens in new window)

Technical Attribute Statements

Programming Languages

  • html
  • mysql
  • php
  • typescript

Technology Readiness Level

  • Actual system proven in operational environment

Code Licenses Used

  • GNU General Public License (GPL)

Content Licensing

  • Creative commons licenses

Standards

Metadata

  • Atom
  • DataCite metadata schema
  • Dublin Core
  • JSON
  • JSON-LD
  • Linked Data Design Principles
  • OAI-PMH
  • OpenAIRE guidelines
  • REST
  • Signposting
  • XML-TEI
Other:
COAR Notify

Persistent Identifier

  • ORCiD
  • Research Organization Registry

Integrations

  • arXiv
  • bioRxiv
  • Creative Commons Licenses
  • Crossref
  • DataCite
  • Dataverse
  • Directory of Open Access Journals (DOAJ)
  • medrXiv
  • OpenAlex
  • OpenCitations
  • Research Organization Registry (ROR)
  • Zenodo
Other:
HAL ; Software Heritage ; zbMATH Open

Community Engagement

Community Engagement

In Progress

Community Statements

Engagement with Values Frameworks

  • FAIR Guiding Principles for Scientific Data Management and Stewardship

SCOSS Participation

Yes

Policies & Governance

Policies

Bylaws

Implemented
Website (Opens in new window)

Privacy Policy

Implemented
Website (Opens in new window)

Web Accessibility Statement

In Progress

Governance Structure & Processes

Implemented
Website (Opens in new window)

Policy Statements

Board Structure

  • Multi-board governance

Board Level

The Steering Committee
- Defines the global strategy of the CCSD and arbitrates the priority axes according to the proposals of the orientation committee;
- Approves the budget and overall resources of the CCSD;
ensures the coherence of the pricing policy related to the HAL portals;
- Validates the annual activity report and the financial statement of the CCSD;
- Proposes and deliberate on the admission of a new supervising body;
- Appoints the director of the CCSD;
- Appoints the members of the international scientific council.
Orientation Committee
- Proposes scientific and technical orientations to the Steering committee;
- Centralizes and prioritizes the needs of all users.

Community Governance

  • Ad hoc

Additional Information

Organizational History

https://www.episciences.org/governance/
https://www.ccsd.cnrs.fr/en/governance/

Organizational Structure

Business or Ownership Model

Fiscal sponsorship (academic institution)

Full-time Staff

1-5

Volunteers

More than 20

Current Affiliations

The financing of the CCSD is jointly ensured by its supervising bodies (CNRS, Inria, INRAE) ; the French Ministry of higher education and research (MESR)
Inria and Institut Fourier bring a specific support to Episciences by their contribution to the editorial support of the journals.
The IT infrastructure of Episciences is shared with HAL and Sciencesconf.
Long-term preservation of content published on Episciences is ensured by C.I.N.E.S. (Centre Informatique National de l’Enseignement Supérieur).

Funding

Primary Funding Source

  • Contributions

Funding Needs

- Developing new services (IT development)
- Supporting copy editing services for the journals
- Supporting the users
- Outreach and engagement
- Finding new funding sources
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