The University of California (UC) Libraries have released a new report, Advancing Open Monograph Opportunities at UC, outlining a values-based framework, key recommendations, and practical strategies for advancing open access (OA) monograph publishing. Developed within UC, the report is intended to inform and support conversations within the library and scholarly communication communities about how scholarly monographs—particularly in the arts, humanities, and social sciences (AHSS)—can be made more open, equitable, and sustainable. The report synthesizes the current landscape of OA monograph publishing and presents a framework including investment strategies and tactics that are grounded in shared scholarly values.

The framework builds on UC Libraries’ earlier work, including the 2018 Pathways to Open Access toolkit, which examined open publishing models for journals. This new analysis focuses specifically on the distinct challenges and opportunities of OA monographs and on the practical realities of supporting authors and OA book publishers at scale. It describes a publishing environment that remains fragmented, shaped by diverse publisher types, uneven infrastructure, and a wide range of business and funding models that continue to evolve. “The University of California has been at the forefront of Open Access innovation for the past decade, and I am excited that we are taking a next step to explore how we might expand support for OA monographs,” said Lidia Uziel, Associate University Librarian at UC Santa Barbara and project co-chair.

Rather than promoting a single solution, the report advances a model-agnostic, portfolio-based investment approach. This approach acknowledges that no single model can cater to the diverse needs of all disciplines, languages, regions, or publishing traditions. Instead, it emphasizes coordinated investment across multiple approaches—guided by evidence, aligned with institutional values, and responsive to the structural conditions of scholarly book publishing.

Four core recommendations anchor the new framework:

• Strategic investment in BPC-based OA monograph initiatives that directly support authors and publishing programs aligned with UC research and teaching.
• Support for Diamond OA and free-to-read models that remove both author- and reader-facing fees while advancing bibliodiversity, multilingual scholarship, and community-led publishing.
• Strengthened partnerships with university presses, recognizing their central role as trusted stewards of peer-reviewed scholarship and their importance in the transition to open models.
• Investment in open, community-owned infrastructure and high-standards OA initiatives that support discoverability, metadata quality, preservation, and long-term sustainability.

These recommendations are guided by shared principles—scholarly excellence, fiscal responsibility, transparency, equity, bibliodiversity, and community stewardship. The framework draws on the OAPEN/DOAB classification of open access book models and is paired with a values-based evaluative approach designed to support clear, consistent, and evidence-informed decision-making.

The report was developed by the multi-track Project to Advance Open Monograph Opportunities at UC (2024-2025), co-led by Lidia Uziel (UC Santa Barbara) and Erik Mitchell (UC San Diego, UC Council of University Librarians), with members from across the UC system: Miranda Bennett (California Digital Library), Bryan Kehr (UC San Diego), Michael Ladisch (UC Davis), Scott Stone (UC Irvine), Allegra Swift (UC San Diego), and Erich van Rijn (UC Press).

Although written primarily for the UC Libraries, this public version of the report is shared openly to support dialogue, experimentation, and collaboration across the global scholarly communication community.  “I am so appreciative of the work of the project team,” said Bill Garrity, University Librarian and Vice Provost at UC Davis and 2025-26 chair of the Council of University Librarians.  “We have already taken steps to explore how the strategies in this report might be implemented in the coming years.”

Read the full report in eScholarship: https://escholarship.org/uc/item/9r22k58w

Tags: Books, Open Access, Pathways to OA, UC Libraries