UC Libraries Expand Support for Diamond Open Access with Strategic Investments in the Open Journals Collective and Biogeography

By Lidia Uziel and Jim Dooley / April 20, 2026

The University of California Libraries announce new systemwide investments in the Open Journals Collective (OJC) and the Diamond Open Access journal Biogeography. Together, these new investments reflect UC Libraries’ ongoing commitment to advancing open, equitable, and community-governed approaches to Diamond OA scholarly publishing.

At a time when the limitations of both subscription-based systems and author-pays open access models are increasingly apparent, Diamond Open Access offers a viable and necessary alternative. By removing financial barriers for both readers and authors, it aligns with the mission of public research universities to make knowledge broadly accessible. It also supports bibliodiversity by enabling a wider range of scholarly voices, languages, disciplines, and publishing practices to thrive. This is particularly important in disciplines where grant funding is limited and author-facing charges are not sustainable, and where existing models do not adequately support the full range of scholarly output.

These investments are part of a broader shift toward collective funding approaches that enable libraries to support open access without transferring costs to authors. The Open Journals Collective exemplifies this model. It is structured as a collective agreement with a consortium of Diamond OA publishers, including university presses and library-based publishers such as the Open Library of Humanities, University College London Press, London School of Economics Press, Michigan University Press, and UC’s own eScholarship Publishing program. Through shared contributions, participating libraries sustain a portfolio of journals that are already open access or transitioning to open access, with funding directed to journal operations and essential infrastructure.

Within this framework, UC’s systemwide investment reflects a deliberate strategic direction. It supports a growing body of Diamond OA journals while contributing to the transition of titles away from subscription-based models, offering a pathway to reduce long-term reliance on commercial publishing packages. It also aligns with UC’s existing publishing infrastructure: OJC includes eScholarship as a publishing partner, bringing UC-published journals into a shared international framework and increasing their visibility within a broader Diamond OA ecosystem. More broadly, this approach signals a rebalancing of systemwide resources toward non-commercial, scholar-led publishing environments governed through collaborative structures and transparent allocation processes.

In addition to this commitment to funding OJC, the UC Libraries are also supporting the new Diamond OA journal Biogeography via the Lyrasis Open Access Community Investment Program (OACIP). In 2023, the majority of the editorial board of the commercially published Journal of Biogeography resigned due to disagreements over editorial policies and the size of article processing charges. These authors then founded a new Diamond OA journal, Biogeography, that is scholar-led with no fees for readers or authors. The journal is published by Stanford University Press, which received a grant from the Gates Foundation to cover the publisher’s start-up publication costs, including copy editing, proofreading and the use of the online publication system. The managing editor is UC Merced Professor Mike Dawson.

In 2024, the UC Libraries joined with other stakeholders to provide three years of financial support to a package of nine Diamond OA journals through OACIP. This program enables multiple stakeholders to evaluate and collectively fund mission-aligned Diamond OA journals. Starting in 2026, the Libraries agreed to add Biogeography to the suite of Diamond OA journals supported through the Lyrasis program. The initial funding commitment is for three years on behalf of all ten UC Libraries. These new investments build on earlier UC Libraries commitments to OACIP journals, including Combinatorial Theory and the UCLA American Indian Studies Center’s American Indian Culture and Research Journal, both published by eScholarship.

These two new initiatives are also closely connected to the needs of UC and California research communities. Diamond OA expands access to publishing and editorial opportunities for faculty, students, and researchers across disciplines, particularly in the humanities and social sciences, and supports early-career scholars and those without access to grant funding. At the same time, it enhances the visibility and accessibility of research produced within the UC system, ensuring that it can be shared broadly without barriers. By participating in and helping to shape these models, UC Libraries are supporting not only global open access efforts but also the specific needs of the communities they serve.

Through these coordinated investments, UC Libraries continue to advance a more sustainable, equitable, and resilient scholarly communication ecosystem, grounded in openness, shared responsibility, and long-term stewardship. Looking ahead, UC Libraries remain committed to working collaboratively—within the UC system and with partners globally—to expand and strengthen these models as part of a durable, values-aligned future for open scholarship.