The crowd is roaring, the floodlights are blinding, and the pitch is absolutely pristine. Football fans and nature enthusiasts, welcome to our pre-match build-up!
We are just days away from the kickoff of the biggest show on Earth. That’s right, the 2026 FIFA World Cup is commencing soon, and it is already breaking all the records. This year, we are looking at a historic 23rd edition of the tournament, running from June 11 to July 19, 2026. For the first time in history, three powerhouse nations – the United States, Mexico, and Canada – are teaming up to host across 16 spectacular cities.
But hold onto your hats, because at Pensoft, we are launching our very own tournament to run right alongside the World Cup. While the world’s best footballers are battling it out on the grass, we are hosting an equally fierce competition.
We’ve scouted our journals, drafted the top talent, and placed different incredible species into a head-to-head knockout tournament.
This biodiversity battle will rage throughout the World Cup season, with the grand finale taking place on the same week as the final. But who will lift the ultimate trophy of public affection? Only you can decide…
The Match Schedule: How to play your part
We need you, the fans, to act as the referee! Here is how the tournament layout looks:
Thursday kickoff: Every Thursday, head over to our Instagram page where the latest head-to-head match will go live on our stories. You’ll have 24 hours to cast your vote in our poll for the species you want to win.
Monday post-match analysis: Every Monday, we will announce who won their corresponding match on our Instagram Story.
Consider this your ultimate pre-match scouting report. While you’re backing your favorite species to lift the trophy, you’ll also get the inside track on some of the most fascinating species described in our journals.
Tournament disclaimer
Before we kick-off, it is noteworthy that this tournament is purely for entertainment and a bit of good-natured fun. Narrowing down our roster to just 16 species was tough and we acknowledge that we’ve left some spectacular creatures on the bench.
To ensure total fairness and transparency, our selection was based on the latest 2026 Altmetric data. This system tracks online mentions across news media, blogs, and social networks for articles published in Pensoft journals from 2010 onward.
We did our best to diversify the list as much as possible in terms of taxonomic groups. However, due to the visual-centric nature of social media, we gave preference to immediately attractive species.
Are you ready for the whistle?
Make sure you are following our Instagram page so you don’t miss out!
Once again, Pensoft joined the ESP conference as an open-access scholarly publisher, publishing services provider, and a partner at Horizon Europe consortia.
Conference Organising Committee’s Davina Vačkářová thanks the ESP2026EU’s sponsors, exhibitors and partners. Photo courtesy of the ESP.
From 18 to 22 May 2026, the historic city of Prague, Czechia, hosted the 6th European Conference of the Ecosystem Services Partnership (ESP). Set against a backdrop of global turning points, such as biodiversity declines and climate uncertainty, the event served as an important forum for discussing how ecosystem services can cultivate a sustainable and equitable future.
This year’s ESP European conference ran under the theme “Advancing ecosystem services knowledge for achieving a nature- and people-positive Europe.” Photo courtesy of the ESP.
The conference ran under the theme, “Advancing ecosystem services knowledge for achieving a nature- and people-positive Europe.” Attendees focused on how to translate major policy frameworks, including the EU Biodiversity Strategy 2030 and the new Nature Restoration Law, into inclusive and effective action that respects both nature and healthy ecosystems. A major talking point at the event was also the new path ahead of the ESP as it officially becomes an independent international community later in 2026. An election of a new Steering and Executive Committee has already been scheduled for October 2026.
For Pensoft, the ESP 2026 European conference was not only a wonderful occasion to meet once again many long-time partners and friends, including the ESP team itself; editors and loyal authors of our journals; and members of the international project consortia, where we are involved, but also an exciting opportunity to talk with new members of the ESP community and learn about the needs, interests and passions of a new generation of researchers in a rapidly changing scientific field.
Pensoft’s stand at the ESP 2026 Europe conference in Prague, Czechia.
As an open-science publisher well embedded in environmental research through its dozens of journals covering ecology, biodiversity conservation and other related fields, Pensoft Publishers also actively participated in the week’s dialogues, contributing unique perspectives on scientific communication.
The Karolinum: the seat of Prague’s Charles University hosted the pre-conference training sessions, the Opening ceremony and the Welcome reception on Monday. Photo courtesy of the ESP.
The sixth European installment of the conference kicked off on Monday, 18 May, at the Karolinum, the historic seat of Charles University. The energy of a dynamic, highly engaging week was set perfectly by a lavish evening ceremony filled with speeches from renowned local figures, traditional music, and cultural performances. Yet, long before the opening notes played, the Karolinum was already buzzing, having hosted a full slate of pre-conference training sessions throughout the day.
A get-together for the editors and loyal authors of the open-access peer-reviewed One Ecosystem – the Ecology and Sustainability Data Journal took place on Monday at the Karolinum (Prague, Czechia).
Just ahead of the opening ceremony, our team at Pensoft hosted a semi-formal get-together for the editors and loyal authors of the open-access peer-reviewed One Ecosystem – the Ecology and Sustainability Data Journal. This year, the scholarly outlet, launched in collaboration between Pensoft, the ESP and the ESMERALDA Horizon 2020 project, now succeeded by the Horizon Europe-funded project SELINA, celebrated its tenth anniversary.
Chaired by Editor-in-Chief Prof. Benjamin Burkhard and Pensoft’s Head of Journal Development and PR Iva Boyadzhieva, the meeting recapped the best moments from One Ecosystem’s first decade and inspired discussions and ideas for the journal’s future. They also referred to the recently published editorial titled “Ten years of innovation and the way ahead in scientific publishing in One Ecosystem”. The piece reflects on the journal’s journey since its 2016 launch and addresses modern challenges in academic publishing, such as reviewer fatigue and the rapid rise of generative artificial intelligence.
Over the last ten years, One Ecosystem has established itself as a unique journal in the field, thanks to its commitment to openly sharing the research data underpinning each publication. It also offers a versatile range of article types. These include traditional formats (e.g. Research Article, Review Article, Data Paper), innovative options (e.g. Software Description, R Package, Single-media Publication), as well as ones specifically devised for the community, such as Ecosystem Inventory, Ecosystem Service Mapping and Ecosystem Accounting Table.
So far, the journal has published over 200 papers authored by scientists from all continents, accumulating more than 1,500,000 views, 600 citations, and 6,000 online mentions. Today, the journal’s editorial board comprises 50 experts representing diverse geographies and professional fields. One Ecosystem is indexed in over 60 relevant scholarly databases, including Scopus and Web of Science, and holds a Q1 ranking on Scopus. Authors also benefit from a swift turnaround time, with an average of just 2.5 months from submission to acceptance, and articles typically published within three months of submission.
Keynote speeches at the first conference day were delivered by Jakub Kronenberg (University of Lodz), Alessandra La Notte (Senior consultant on natural capital accounting) and Ben Delbaere (LIFE Programme).
On Tuesday, the main schedule opened with inspiring keynote speeches, with Jakub Kronenberg (University of Lodz) examining the transition towards relational values of nature, Alessandra La Notte (Senior consultant on natural capital accounting) sharing two decades of insights into natural capital accounting, and Ben Delbaere (LIFE Programme at ELMEN EEIG) demonstrating how the European LIFE Programme supports a nature- and people-positive society.
Later in the day on Tuesday, Pensoft’s Iva Boyadzhieva, Head of Journal Development and PR, gave a talk on the topic of scholarly communication as part of a session organised and hosted by the Early Career Researchers (ECR) division of the ESP: Young Ecosystem Services Partnership (YESS) and focused on building practical skills and fostering careers for young researchers.
Pensoft’s Iva Boyadzhieva gave a talk titled “Scholarly Communication: Lessons from the publisher’s kitchen” as part of the YESS session “The Early Career Lab: Skills, Identity, and Growth for the Next Generation of Ecosystem Services Researchers”.
Boyadzhieva shared insights into how authors and publishers can work collaboratively to transform scholarly publications into scientific knowledge that is accessible to everyone, everywhere, regardless of professional background or expertise, by drawing on real-life examples and automated publication processes.
One Ecosystem’s Editor-in-Chief Prof. Benjamin Burkhard.
One Ecosystem’s Editor-in-Chief Prof. Benjamin Burkhard at the ESP session “The Changing Landscape of Academic Publishing on Ecosystem Services Research: Editors’ Perspectives.”
The One Ecosystem journal took center stage once again on Friday afternoon during a panel session titled, “The Changing Landscape of Academic Publishing on Ecosystem Services Research: Editors’ Perspectives.” The event brought together the Editors-in-Chief of the three ESP-associated journals for an engaging open discussion about the shifting dynamics of scientific literature. Sharing insights gained from One Ecosystem’s 10-year journey, Burkhard highlighted how authors of research who work closely with their publishers can support knowledge sharing and empower researchers. In the case of One Ecosystem, this collaboration translates to increased visibility, discoverability, reusability and citability of the published work, as well as rapid and hassle-free authoring and peer review experience, all thanks to the automated workflows and human-centric approaches provided through the publishing solutions of the ARPHA publishing platform.
It is worth issuing a reminder that manuscripts submitted in 2026 and accepted for publication in One Ecosystem journal are eligible for a 10% discount on the article publication charge (APC).
Despite excellent on-site organization, many sessions struggled to accommodate the massive turnout.Photo courtesy of the ESP.
Throughout the week, the daily program featured eight parallel session tracks covering a wide range of topics, many closely aligned with ESP Working Groups and National Networks. A dedicated poster session took place on Wednesday afternoon.
One of the field excursions offered ESP 2026 Europe delegates the challenge of an intense, half-day climbing experience in a nature park just outside Prague. Photo courtesy of ESP.
On Thursday, delegates had the opportunity to join one of several field excursions. These ranged from a visit to the unique rewilding reserve located in the former military area in Milovice, to a walk through the Prague Pasture: one of the city’s most remarkable natural sites, and an intense climbing experience just outside Prague.
Zdeněk Ent was awarded Best Poster for his poster, “Experiencing Ecosystem Services: Art, Sensory Engagement and Transformative Learning in Peri-Urban Landscapes”. In a yearly tradition, part of the award includes a free publication in the One Ecosystem journal.
Following an ESP tradition, the three highest-voted posters were recognised during Friday’s closing ceremony, with the first-prize winner receiving a free publication in One Ecosystem, sponsored by Pensoft. This year, the Best Poster Award went to Zdeněk Ent from Prague Institute of Planning and Development for the poster “Experiencing Ecosystem Services: Art, Sensory Engagement and Transformative Learning in Peri-Urban Landscapes”.
During the week, Pensoft’s exhibition stand welcomed dozens of inquiries regarding the publisher’s tailored journal portfolio. Visitors also expressed keen curiosity about the publishing services and self-developed platform available to journal owners, book authors, and conference organizers. Meanwhile, delegates showed notable interest in several titles, both well-established journals like Nature Conservation, NeoBiota, Metabarcoding & Metagenomics and One Ecosystem, and newly launched ones, including Individual-based Ecology and Advances in Pollinator Research.
A lot of Pensoft stand’s visitors were also pleased to see that there was a new player amongst the journals of Pensoft aimed at an emerging field in ecology. The recently rebranded Agricultural and Ecological Modelling (AEM) provides a unique scholarly outlet thanks to its modern approach to publishing by increasing transparency, giving credit to research objects across the entire modelling research lifecycle. This is achieved through publishing specialised article types, such as: Formal Model, Model Testing and Calibration, Model Implementation and Documentation, Data Papers and Software Descriptions. These new publishing formats are designed to keep pace with advances in Modelling research and to make it FAIR (Findable, Accessible, Interoperable, and Reusable) by enabling scholarly credit for diverse research outputs, often created by different groups of authors. For the time being, AEM remains a Diamond Open Access journal, meaning that it will not charge authors for open-access publication.
AEM also has a focus on open science and reproducibility; it is currently archived in four databases (CLOCKSS, Zenodo, Portico, and Zendy) and indexed in over 40 services, including AGRICOLA, CABI, ChronosHub, CNKI, FAO AGRIS, ResearchGate, and Swisscovery, among others. You can learn more about AEM in the latest editorial.
For those who missed the opportunity to sign up for the journals’ newsletters at the stand, they can do this by filling in their email address from the homepage of the journal they are interested in, or by updating their profiles in the Pensoft system.
Undoubtedly, amongst the greatest highlights at the Pensoft’s stand was the Horizon Europe-funded GREEN TALENT project, where our Project Department leads the project’s Work Package dedicated to Communication, Dissemination and Exploitation.
The conference delegates were intrigued to learn about the international initiative’s aim to build biodiversity and climate capacity at national, trans-European and global levels, with a focus on Widening Countries. The partners at Green Talent: both from academic and non-academic backgrounds, are to contribute expertise, training, and secondments and connect pilot projects to broader EU and global networks. One of the ways the GREEN TALENT consortia does this is by designating four Demonstration Pilots (a.k.a. Demo Hubs) in four Widening countries: Malta, Greece, Cyprus and Bulgaria, where secondees can benefit from real-world experience and foster partnerships across sectors, while working on scalable solutions to climate and biodiversity challenges, acting as collaboration hubs between academic and non-academic sectors.
Members of the Horizon Europe-funded GREEN TALENT project consortium. Photo courtesy of ESP.
Having only kicked off a year ago and set to run for four years in total, there are many new developments and results yet to be announced from GREEN TALENT, including a Capacity-Building Platform that will allow users to browse various opportunities and events meant to help them improve their skills; to get in touch and foster collaboration with other experts; and to learn about best practices from across different institutions and relevant companies. This is why we strongly recommend visiting the GREEN TALENT, signing up for the project’s newsletter and following the initiative on BlueSky and Linkedin.
GREEN TALENT’s project coordinator, Prof. Dr. Mario V. Balzan, presented at a session dedicated to sustainable and inclusive approaches to ecosystem services tailored to the needs of islands.
In addition to the various GREEN TALENT information brochures and promo materials present at the Pensoft stand, people at the conference could spot quite a few of the project’s members around the ESP venue. There were several talks by GREEN TALENT representatives, including the project’s coordinator: Prof. Dr. Mario V. Balzan (Ecostack Innovations). His talk, part of the session “Islands at the forefront of sustainable and inclusive ecosystem services approaches” examined governance and knowledge gaps in pollinator ecosystem services on small islands, where he used Malta as a case study.
The signature journal stickers by Pensoft were once again a common sight at the ESP conference in Prague. Photo courtesy of ESP.
Ultimately, the conference successfully highlighted the tools needed to drive sustainable development across Europe. Through active contributions to both the overarching policy discussions and the targeted skill-building sessions for the next generation of researchers, Pensoft continued its commitment to making environmental science open, transparent, and globally accessible.
The peer-reviewed, open-access Endocrinologia Journal, published by the Bulgarian Society of Endocrinology is moving to ARPHA, the publishing platform developed by Pensoft.
Focusing on research in basic and clinical endocrinology and metabolic disorders, the journal publishes review articles in Bulgarian, alongside original papers and case reports available in both English and Bulgarian. The paper issues of the journal are published quarterly while the electronic online versions of the papers are published as soon as final approval is granted and formatting is completed.
Due to the generous support of the Bulgarian Society of Endocrinology, publication in the journal is free to all authors.
Homepage of the Endocrinologia Journal.
In addition to a refreshed, user-friendly design, the Pensoft-developed publishing platform ARPHA provides its signature fast-track, end-to-end publishing system to the benefit of its users: authors, reviewers and editors alike.
Each submitted manuscript is carried through the review, editing, publication, dissemination and archiving stages without leaving ARPHA’s collaboration-focused online environment. The articles are available in PDF and machine-readable XML formats, so that they are easy to discover, access, cite and reuse. Endocrinologia Journal is indexed in Scopus, CrossRef, EMBASE, and the Bulgarian Citation Index, and archived through CLOCKSS and Zenodo.
Endocrinologia Journal
The introduction of an online platform for submitting manuscripts will contribute to improved management of the publishing activities of the journal Endocrinology and will help the journal, as the official publication of the Bulgarian Society of Endocrinology, meet current standards for full integration into international scientific databases,
commented Prof. Maria Orbetzova, the journal’s Editor-in-Chief.
Endocrinologia Journal brings a rich legacy of peer-reviewed endocrinology research to our portfolio, and we are excited to support its next chapter. Through ARPHA, we hope to give the journal’s authors, reviewers and editors the tools they need to publish faster, reach further, and make a greater impact,
added Prof. Lyubomir Penev, founder and CEO of Pensoft and ARPHA.
About the Bulgarian Society of Endocrinology:
Founded in 1958, the Bulgarian Society of Endocrinology (BSE) is a professional medical organization dedicated to advancing endocrinology in Bulgaria. Its core mission encompasses the continuous education of endocrinologists, trainees, GPs, and other specialists, alongside the development of national screening programmes for diabetes, obesity, hypertension, and dyslipidaemia, and the establishment of Bulgarian clinical guidelines on diabetes management. The BSE supports both healthcare professionals, through Schools of Endocrinology and specialist symposia, and patients, via public education courses and media outreach. It hosts annual scientific congresses and publishes the peer-reviewed journal Endocrinologia.
About ARPHA:
ARPHA is a full-featured, end-to-end publishing platform for journals, books, conference materials and preprints. ARPHA offers flexible operating and business models, and a wide-range of automated and human-provided services. The ARPHA team places a special focus on its scholarly communication solutions designed to leverage the visibility and outreach of academic output, while promoting inclusivity and engagement.
Founded in 1992 “by scientists, for scientists”, the academic open-access publishing company is well known worldwide for its novel cutting-edge publishing tools, workflows and methods for text and data publishing of journals, books and conference materials. Back in 2010, Pensoft became the first scientific publisher to introduce semantic enrichments in scholarly publications. Through its Research and Technical Development department, the company is involved in various research and technology projects.
In honour of the International Day of Women and Girls in Science, Pensoft Publishers celebrates the remarkable contributions of women in our journals’ editorial teams.
Since its inception by the United Nations in 2015, February 11 has marked the International Day of Women and Girls in Science, dedicated to honouring the transformative role women play in the laboratory, field and archives. Despite their undeniable impact, women account for only a third of the world’s STEM researchers and 35 per cent of all STEM graduates, with only one in ten reaching leadership positions.
While the campaigns of the previous two years urged concrete steps for the promotion of gender equality in science, this year showcases existing good practices and solutions for making STEM environments more inclusive.
At Pensoft, we champion this mission by amplifying the voices of the women on our editorial boards. By sharing their wisdom, reflections and visions for the future, we hope to foster a more equitable scientific community and inspire the next generation of girls to pursue their passions in STEM.
For young women and girls dreaming of a career in science, Sandy Knapp, co-Editor-in-Chief of the open-access journal PhytoKeys, offers a powerful reminder:
“Keep going and keep doing. Don’t let anyone tell you that science isn’t for girls – it most certainly is. Science is for everyone, and it thrives on diversity. We need all kinds of people to make it truly work.”
As a woman leading a major scientific journal, Knapp also believes that creating a sense of belonging is a shared responsibility:
“We all need to work on this, both women and men. I think we need to not immediately assume subordinate roles – this doesn’t mean shouting and stamping our feet, but rather assuming a quiet and determined excellence.”
Knapp conducting fieldwork in Brazil in the 1980s.
She highlights that representation is key to influence, noting that “the more of any minority there are in the room, the easier it is to make your voice heard and your opinions count.” This same spirit of determination defines the advice she would give her younger self:
“Don’t let anyone tell you something is too difficult – it might be for them – but not for you! Believe in yourself.”
Knapp at the launch of the Fixing Our Broken Planet Exhibition at the Natural History Museum, London.
Meanwhile, Tammy Robinson-Smythe, co-Editor-in-Chief of the open-access journal NeoBiota, emphasises the sheer excitement of being at the forefront of scientific research:
“Science is an exciting environment to work in. I love the fact that what we discover today is feeding into the textbooks of tomorrow. A career in science is worth all the effort!”
Robinson-Smythe conducting fieldwork.
Robinson-Smythe also shed light on the intersection of professional life and family. “Making space for women to be moms while contributing to the scientific community is vitally important,” she explains. To achieve this, she advocates for practical, structural changes:
“By offering childcare on campus and at conferences we can help moms to feel like they belong, rather than feeling like they need to ‘switch off’ motherhood when they arrive at work.”
Reflecting on her own beginnings, Robinson-Smythe’s advice centers on the importance of individual path-finding:
“I’d remind myself that everyone is different. Learn from how others navigate the research environment, but find a way that matches with your morals and goals.”
The co-Editor-in-Chief of the Natural History and Museomics journal, Deborah L. Paul, similarly encourages young women and girls to believe in their dreams – “your motivation matters the most”. To succeed, she suggests surrounding oneself with supportive individuals who say “yes” to those dreams and actively encourage exploration.
When it comes to building a scientific community where women truly belong, Paul believes the responsibility lies in active leadership and self-reflection. She asserts that “we each need to set an example,” which involves constantly questioning current workflows to ensure we are creating “spaces where we can be heard and contribute.”
Reflecting on her own career, she recalls the impact of mentors and offers the simple yet powerful advice:
“Be that person for someone.”
She ends with a heartwarming piece of advice she would have told her younger self when first starting her career:
“Recognise that one’s path through life may not be linear and that’s okay. Know that discovery will lead you to new places and new adventures.”
For Pensoft, celebrating women in science means building a publishing environment where their research is seen, and their voices heard. As we look at insights from senior editors like Sandy Knapp, Tammy Robinson-Smythe and Deborah L. Paul, the message is clear: the field is better when it is diverse.
Berlin (Germany) and Sofia (Bulgaria), 10th February, 2026 – ResearchGate, the professional network for researchers, and Pensoft Publishers, an independent open access publisher and provider of high-quality scholarly publishing services, today announced an expansion of their Journal Home partnership. Building on an earlier collaboration announced in 2023, the list now expands to 40 journals, covering the majority of Pensoft’s and partners’ journals using the publisher’s ARPHA Publishing Platform.
With most of Pensoft’s eligible partner journals choosing to participate, the expansion reflects strong demand for greater exposure and engagement opportunities, particularly among smaller and developing journals in niche research areas. Through Journal Home, partner publishers can reach more relevant audiences, improve discoverability, and connect more effectively with researchers worldwide.
Participating Pensoft journals will also benefit from:
Increased usage and readership, with full-text open access journal content seamlessly surfaced to highly relevant researcher communities across the ResearchGate platform.
Stronger engagement from new and returning authors, connecting partner journals, including specialist and emerging titles, with targeted researchers and potential authors throughout the research lifecycle.
Dedicated Journal Profiles and prominent placement of Pensoft journals to enhance visibility and branding, boosting recognition of partner journals with researcher communities around the world.
Improved author experience, with the automatic addition of published articles to author profiles, clearer insight into reader engagement, and greater opportunities for meaningful collaboration.
“Journal Home allows us to provide our partner journals with improved visibility and stronger connections with global researcher communities. Many of these journals serve highly specialised fields, and Journal Home helps make sure their articles reach the right researchers, who will benefit from them most.”
Lyubomir Penev, CEO and founder of Pensoft Publishers
“We’re pleased to expand our Journal Home partnership with Pensoft to support an increasing number of partner journals. By bringing these journals onto the platform, smaller and emerging titles can expand their reach, attract high-quality submissions, and connect with the most relevant researcher communities at key moments in their research journey.”
Robyn Mugridge, Head of Partnership Development at ResearchGate
For more information about Pensoft Publishers, please visit www.pensoft.net.
About ResearchGate
ResearchGate is the professional network for researchers. Over 25 million researchers use researchgate.net to share and discover research, build their networks, and advance their careers. Based in Berlin, ResearchGate was founded in 2008. Its mission is to connect the world of science and make research open to all.
About Pensoft Publishers
Pensoft is an independent, open-access scholarly publisher and technology provider, best known for its 40+ biodiversity journals, including ZooKeys, Biodiversity Data Journal, PhytoKeys, MycoKeys, One Ecosystem, and Metabarcoding and Metagenomics. Ever since becoming the first to introduce semantic enrichments and hyperlinks within a scientific article in the field of biodiversity in 2010, Pensoft has been working on various tools and workflows designed to facilitate data findability, accessibility, discoverability and interoperability.
Prophy’s AI-driven discovery system will provide editors with a broader and more diverse pool of qualified peer reviewers based on automated semantic analysis.
In a new partnership between open-access scholarly publisher Pensoft and the AI-driven reviewer discovery system provider: Prophy, the editorial teams at all journals hosted on the publisher’s ARPHA Platform receive access to a broader and more diverse global pool of researchers.
The integration connects ARPHA’s editorial and peer review workflows with Prophy’s continuously updated database of millions of active, qualified researchers. As a result, editorial teams across more than 90 open-access peer-reviewed journals powered by ARPHA can now opt to enjoy data-driven reviewer recommendations based on structured analysis of researcher expertise and publication history, with matches based on each manuscript’s topic, field, and research focus.
This development responds to a growing challenge in scholarly publishing. As submission volumes rise, the pressure on a relatively small pool of frequently invited reviewers increases, which eventually leads to delays and reviewer fatigue. By expanding the pool of potential experts and improving how they are identified with the help of semantic analysis, the integration supports a more sustainable and balanced approach to peer review.
“By working with Prophy, we’re helping editors discover expertise that might otherwise be overlooked, opening the door to a more inclusive, well-distributed, and resilient peer review ecosystem. This is about using technology not to replace human judgment, but to support it in a smarter and more responsible way.”
Prof. Dr. Lyubomir Penev, founder and CEO of Pensoft and ARPHA.
“We’re excited to work with Pensoft and ARPHA to bring smarter reviewer discovery to their editorial teams. Peer review should be efficient and fair, and this partnership helps with both. Editors can find the right expertise faster, which means less time searching and fewer delays. This integration helps editorial teams manage growing submission volumes without burning out their reviewer networks.”
Oleg Ruchayskiy, CEO of Prophy.
To further support editorial teams and client journals’ owners, Pensoft and ARPHA are offering the Prophy integration free of charge to all journals on the platform until the end of 2026.
The partnership reflects Pensoft and ARPHA’s continued focus on equipping journals with practical, forward-looking tools that strengthen peer review, support editors, and help ensure the long-term sustainability of scholarly publishing.
Stay up to date with the latest from Pensoft and ARPHA by subscribing to our blogs and following us on social media, including BlueSky, Facebook and Linkedin.
The agreement encompasses five key research and medical bodies, and allows corresponding authors to publish their findings without individual Article Processing Charges.
Pensoft and the University of Zurichhave signed a comprehensive Open Access (OA) agreement, starting a partnership that enables researchers at participating institutions to publish their findings in Pensoft’s peer-reviewed journals without incurring individual Article Processing Charges (APCs).
Under this new framework, publishing costs for corresponding authors affiliated with the respective institutions are 100% covered by a centralised institutional deposit secured by the University of Zurich. By removing financial barriers, the agreement encourages scientists to disseminate their work to both the academic community and the wider public, making research immediately and freely available upon publication.
This initiative ensures that research is shared under open licences in strict accordance with the FAIR principles—making data Findable, Accessible, Interoperable, and Reusable.
“We are excited to start this partnership with the University of Zurich and sign an agreement that reflects our strong commitment to inclusive and equitable open science. By supporting researcher-driven publishing, we continue to foster a sustainable environment for high-impact scientific communication.”
Prof. Lyubomir Penev, CEO of Pensoft
“We are pleased to extend our portfolio of gold open access journals, in which our researchers can publish their findings without paying individual APCs. We thereby strengthen our commitment to open research information.”
University Library Zurich
Are you affiliated with a research institution operating with OA agreements? Is your institution interested in helping resident researchers navigate the complex processes underpinning academic publishing and knowledge sharing? Reach out to <publishing@pensoft.net> to discuss a potential collaboration.
With deep historical roots and a commitment to high-quality peer-reviewed research, the two journals have officially transitioned to Pensoft’s advanced publishing platform, ARPHA, marking a new chapter in their Open Access journey.
Dr. Daniel Marty, associate lecturer at the University of Basel, will continue to lead both SJP and SJG as the Chief Editor.
The Swiss Journal of Palaeontology (SJP), published on behalf of the Swiss Academy of Sciences (SCNAT), dates back to 1874. The journal launched under the name “Schweizerische Paläontologische Abhandlungen (Mémoires Suisses de Paléontologie)”, focusing primarily on the publication of palaeontological monographs.
Subsequently, the journal’s stewardship transitioned formally to the SCNAT in 1940, leading to the establishment of the Kommission für die Schweizerischen Paläontologischen Abhandlungen (KSPA), which has since managed the journal’s dedicated funds. After decades of irregular publication with “Birkhäuser” (obtained by Springer in 1985), the journal was rebranded to its current name in 2011 and established as a scientific peer-reviewed journal.
More recently, in response to a 2020 decision, made by the Swiss National Science Foundation (SNSF) to cease supporting traditional ‘subscription model’ journals, the SJP transitioned to a fully Open Access model. In 2025, the SJP became officially affiliated with the Swiss Geological Society (SGS). With the previous publishing contract concluding in late 2025, KSPA and SGS have partnered with Pensoft Publishers “where processes are more streamlined to the needs of the SJP.”
The SJP continues to be a vital home for research spanning alpha taxonomy, systematics, palaeobiology, biostratigraphy, and conservation palaeontology, among many other specialized fields.
The first three publications from SJP are now available on the journal’s new website along with an editorial by the Editor-in-Chief. Additionally, you can use the email alert button on the homepage of SJP to subscribe for the journal newsletter.
The Swiss Journal of Geosciences (SJG) is the other journal with a rich history, published on behalf of the Swiss Geological Society and is a member of the Swiss Academy of Sciences. It was first published in 1888 as “Eclogae Geologicae Helvetiae”. From the 1920s until 2006, it was published in collaboration with Birkhäuser, eventually merging in 2006 with the Schweizerische Mineralogische und Petrographische Mitteilungen (SMPM, first published in 1921) and was then renamed to Swiss Journal of Geosciences. After the Swiss National Science Foundation (SNSF) decided to stop supporting traditional ‘subscription model’ journals, SJG transitioned to a fully Open Access format in 2020.
As of the beginning of 2026, the journal will be published by Pensoft “where processes are more streamlined to the needs of the SJG”. The journal continues to focus on original research of international interest regarding the evolution of the Tethys realm and the Alpine/Himalayan orogen, covering disciplines such as Tectonics, Geochemistry, and Orogenesis and many more.
The first three publications of SJG under this new partnership, along with an editorial by the Editor-in-Chief, are now available on the journal’s new website.
Now powered by Pensoft’s open-access scholarly publishing platform
In joining Pensoft, both SJP and SJG will get access to improved publishing infrastructure and benefit from increased visibility and discoverability for their published research. The journal will use Pensoft’s self-developed platform, ARPHA – an end-to-end publishing solution that makes it easy for both people and machines to access, cite, and reuse research. With its design, ARPHA streamlines publishing workflows, providing a single online ecosystem for the entire editorial process, from manuscript submission to peer review, editing, publication, and archiving.
“The migration of SJG and SJP to Pensoft Publishers will permit both journals to grow in a sustainable way and that it will considerably increase their visibility and quality as they will benefit from streamlined and professional processes and services offered by Pensoft. This will be a big advantage for our authors.”
Said the Swiss Geological Society and Dr. Daniel Marty, Editor-in-Chief of both Swiss journals
“We are thrilled to welcome both the Swiss Journal of Palaeontology and Swiss Journal of Geosciences to the Pensoft family of next-generation scientific journals. We appreciate this new partnership and look forward to seeing the journal thrive using our advanced publishing services.”
Prof Lyubomir Penev, CEO and Founder of Pensoft commented
The agreement covers almost 100 institutions, including Karolinska Institutet, Lund University, Uppsala University, and the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences.
Pensoft and the Bibsam Consortium, operated by the National Library of Sweden, are pleased to announce the signing of a comprehensive Open Access (OA) agreement, marking a significant step in the transition towards a more transparent and open scholarly publishing landscape in Sweden.
Thanks to this move, researchers at participating institutions will be able to publish their findings in 65 journals published by Pensoft or using its advanced publishing platform ARPHA, including flagship titles such as ZooKeys, PhytoKeys, Biodiversity Data Journal, NeoBiota and IMA Fungus, without incurring individual article processing charges (APCs).
All authors affiliated with participating institutions can benefit from this agreement, with publishing costs 100% covered by an institutional deposit secured by the National Library of Sweden.
Unlike subscription-based systems, an OA framework ensures that scientific findings are immediately and freely available to the global community, supporting the global shift toward accessible science and adhering to the FAIR principles (Findable, Accessible, Interoperable, and Reusable).
OA agreements like this one reduce the financial burden on scientists and encourage them to share their work with both academia and the wider public, ultimately lowering barriers to sharing knowledge in a time when scientific input is key to resolving global challenges.
“We are excited to start this partnership with Bisbam and sign an agreement that reflects our strong commitment to open science. By supporting researcher-driven publishing, we continue to foster a sustainable environment for high-impact scientific communication.”
Prof. Lyubomir Penev, CEO of Pensoft
“We are delighted to announce the addition of Pensoft Publishers to our portfolio of nationally funded agreements for 2026. This represents an important step towards achieving full open access to scientific publications in Sweden.”
Niklas Willén, License Manager at Bibsam Consortium and National Library of Sweden
Are you affiliated with a research institution operating with OA agreements? Is your institution interested in helping resident researchers navigate the complex processes underpinning academic publishing and knowledge sharing? Reach out to <publishing@pensoft.net> to discuss a potential collaboration.
Estuarine Management and Technologies now accepted in the Directory of Open Access Journals: a key scientific index, internationally renowned as a trusted quality filter for open-access journals.
Having EMT accepted by DOAJ means that the journal has successfully passed a thorough assessment concerning its compliance with global standards of ethics, transparency and quality. The evaluation conducted by DOAJ includes an examination of the journal’s peer-review processes, editorial governance, transparency (e.g. publication fees, funding) and ethical policies (e.g. plagiarism, conflicts of interest). For many institutions, funders and libraries, DOAJ is seen as a credibility signal that distinguishes legitimate journals from predatory and/or low-quality ones.
The journal’s recognition comes only two years after the journal was launched as part of a promising joint initiative between a team of scientists headed by Dr. Soufiane Haddout (Ibn Tofail University, Morocco) and the open-access scientific publisher and technology provider Pensoft.
All articles published in the journal are already indexed and browsable on DOAJ. Future papers will be fetched by the platform right after they are published in EMT due to the automated data export workflows powered by Pensoft’s in-house ARPHA Publishing Platform.
Since early 2024, the journal has been seeking to support the exchange of research findings and ideas related to the conservation and sustainable management of estuarine ecosystems by utilising new technology and novel approaches. To further support scientists from around the globe, the journal operates under a Diamond Open Access model, meaning that neither publishing, nor reading incurs charges for authors or readers, respectively.
Today, EMT welcomes studies from a wide spectrum of disciplines, including physics, chemistry, geology, biology, and hydrology, with a focus on interdisciplinary, multifaceted approaches and holistic perspectives. A unique feature of the journal is its diverse range of publication types, such as Education & Communication, Estuarine scientists and Video paper in 180s.
“We are proud to announce that Estuarine Management and Technologies has achieved indexing in the Directory of Open Access Journals: our first significant milestone on the path to greater visibility and impact in the global scholarly community,”
said Dr. Soufiane Haddout, on behalf of the journal’s Editorial Board.
“This crucial first step in our indexing journey validates EMT’s commitment to rigorous, transparent, and immediately accessible research on technological innovations for estuarine research, management, and conservation. DOAJ inclusion enhances discoverability for our authors’ work and strengthens our role in advancing interdisciplinary solutions for these vital ecosystems.We are grateful to our authors, reviewers, and the Pensoft team,”
