Geologica Acta is a scientific journal with a long-standing tradition of publishing research in Earth sciences, including vertebrate paleontology. Edited in Catalonia by the UB since 1966, it currently involves the Autonomous University of Barcelona (UAB), Geosciences Barcelona (GEO3BCN-CSIC), the Cartographic and Geological Institute of Catalonia (ICGC), and the Institute of Environmental Assessment and Water Research (IDAEA-CSIC). It is a non-profit publication indexed in leading international databases (Scopus, Journal Citation Reports) and published electronically under a diamond open-access model, meaning that its contents are freely available, with no costs for either authors or readers.

Among the articles published are numerous works by Miquel Crusafont, founder of the ICP’s precursor institution, who contributed to the journal when it was known as Acta Geológica Hispánica and he was a professor at the UB. Over the years, this link has been maintained through the publication by many other ICP researchers.

The ICP’s Commitment to Open Access

Under the new agreement, the ICP will contribute financially to the journal’s publishing costs and will participate in its editorial management. Researcher Josep Fortuny, a specialist in tetrapod paleobiology, joins the editorial team as a scientific editor, while David M. Alba, director of the ICP, will represent the institution on the journal’s Editorial Board.

This initiative forms part of the ICP’s broader strategy to promote an open publishing model that enables the dissemination of high-quality research without associated publication costs, a model that depends on institutional support.

“Open-access journals without publication fees are essential to ensuring open and equitable science. This is the path we believe should be followed, but it is only possible if institutions actively commit to it,” emphasizes David M. Alba, Director of the ICP.

Currently, the ICP benefits from the transformative agreements established by I-CERCA, which facilitate open-access publication in hybrid journals. In addition, the institute has long promoted access to published versions of subscription-based articles through the UAB Digital Document Repository, following the green open-access route. With this new agreement, the ICP takes a further step forward in strengthening its commitment to open-access publishing.