Open Science

The management of scientific knowledge dissemination is a crucial issue for the future of research and innovation. At present, access to scientific information and to the tools used for evaluating research is increasingly controlled by major commercial publishers, whose primary aim is often to satisfy the economic interests of their investors rather than to promote scientific progress or serve the public good. The most evident consequence is that the right to open access to science is effectively undermined by the high costs of accessing journals through subscriptions and publishing scientific articles via open access fees.

At the root of this phenomenon lies a research assessment system still anchored to bibliometric indicators and a “publish or perish” culture. Recent calls from the research community and growing support for recognised open science practices make it urgently necessary to refocus on the interests of the scientific community itself.

The Library of the Institute began a pioneering journey into open science as early as 2013, formally endorsing international open access declarations. Over the years, this commitment has been strengthened through the adoption of a research ethics policy, guidelines for data deposition, and adherence to the FAIR principles.

Building on these strong foundations, IZS Te-Press was established: the Institute’s digital, open access publishing platform, created to promote and disseminate scientific research outputs. To date, the imprint publishes two peer-reviewed journals, Veterinaria Italiana and One Health Journal, which adhere to internationally recognised quality standards and are indexed in the Directory of Open Access Journals (DOAJ) as well as in general and specialised databases. It also publishes the BENV bulletin and a series of editorial collections.

IZS Te-Press represents the natural evolution of the Institute’s commitment to open science. It has developed into a publishing hub capable of managing scientific communication in an integrated way, supporting researchers through an organisational structure dedicated to editorial workflows, bibliometric tracking, access and archiving systems, and research dissemination.