New book published under the UKRI open access policy

Cover image of monograph entitled Diaspora Reads: Community, Identity, and Russian Literaturocentrism

Diaspora Reads: Community, Identity, and Russian Literaturocentrism, written by Dr Angelos Theocharis from the Newcastle University School of Arts & Cultures, has been published open access (OA), by Modern Humanities Research Association/Legenda https://www.mhra.org.uk/publications/Diaspora-Reads

Diaspora Reads explores the role of literature and reading practices in the community life of Russian-speaking migrants in Britain. Russophone culture abounds with myths about the special mission of literature and the writer in society. The broader cultural myth of Russian literaturocentrism encompasses the sacralisation of highbrow literature, the idolisation of authors as heroes and martyrs, and the idealisation of avid readership. In the diaspora, literaturocentrism takes on a new form, retaining elements of the Russian and Soviet tradition while primarily responding to the needs of migrant readers.

Following the discussions, games, and celebrations of a community book club in London, Diaspora Reads demonstrates how collective reading enables migrants to shape shared cultural identities, forge communities, build a long-distance relationship with their homelands, and become members of a global network of readers.

Angelos Theocharis is a Leverhulme Early Career Fellow at the Department of Media, Culture, Heritage at Newcastle University. Diaspora Reads is his first monograph.

This is the second book published at Newcastle as a result of the UKRI open access policy for long-form publications, with open access costs covered by UKRI funding. You can read more about the first edited book Pushing the Paradigm of Global Water Security, published in October 2024.

The UKRI open access policy aims to ensure that findings from research funded by the public through UKRI can be freely accessed, used and built upon. The policy was updated at the beginning of 2024 from previously focusing on peer-reviewed research articles to now include long-form outputs, namely book chapters, monographs and edited collections.

Full details of the UKRI open access policy and how we in Library Research Services can support you to publish open access can be found on our UKRI Policy for long-form publications page.

If you have any questions or concerns about the policy, and how this might affect any current or future publications, please contact openaccess@ncl.ac.uk.

What’s happening in Library Research Services: March and April 2025

This March, you can come and chat with members of the Library Research Services (LRS) team at our in-person event (12.00-14.00) on the 28th in the Henry Daysh Building, HDB.1.04, as part of the Universities for North East England Open Research Week.

Other events coming up:

Check out the library calendar for further courses and dates in 2025.

Universities for North East England Open Research Week – 24 to 28 March 2025

The Universities of Durham, Newcastle, Northumbria, Sunderland and Teesside are pleased to invite you to attend their Open Research Week.

We have organised a series of events, featuring a range of speakers, discussing Open Research practices in our institutions and beyond. The events aim to explore and share good practice, discuss barriers and strategies to enable Open Research.

Who should attend? Anyone with an interest in knowing more about Open Research, including researchers, academics, technicians, research staff support and students.

Registration details and more information about each event are available at the links below (all times are in GMT). The majority of events are hosted online via Teams, and registration is open to all.

Monday 24th March

  • 14:00 – 15:30 – Open Data?! Benefits and strategies for sharing research data
    (Prof Eamonn Bell, Durham University; Dr Alan Bowman, Teesside University; Dr Martin P Eccles, Newcastle University; Prof Sarah Lonbay, University of Sunderland; Dr Sebastian Potthoff, Northumbria University; Dr Louise Rayne, Newcastle University)

Tuesday 25th March

Wednesday 26th March

Thursday 27th March

Friday 28th March

Each institution will advertise an in-person drop-in session open to its own staff and research students. Please check individual institutions for details.

  • 11:00 – 13:00 – Open Research Drop-in (Research Commons Collaboration Space 1)
    (at Northumbria University)
  • 12:00 – 14:00 – Open Research Drop-in
    (at Teesside University)

Friday 4th April

Link to all events

If you have any questions please contact Library Research Services lrs@ncl.ac.uk

What’s happening in Library Research Services: February 2025

The Library Research Services (LRS) team are here to help in 2025.

Coming up in the next month:

Check out the library calendar for further courses and dates in 2025.

Data Access Statements: Building Trust through Transparency

In Love Data Week, we show our love for research data.

The Research Data Management teams in the libraries of both Newcastle University and Northumbria University are organising a collaborative event for research colleagues and PGR students during Love Data Week. It will take place a day before Valentine’s Day to help us improve our relationship with research data, before the big day.

Regardless of your research methods (qualitative or quantitative), or whether you write code, you will collect or produce data. Research data are what supports our research claims, underpins our research publications, and brings credibility and a deeper understanding to our work. If you are trying to publish your work, or you collect, analyse, store or share research data, book your place and find out how your data access statement can enhance the transparency of your work.

In this session we will cover:

·         The principles and importance of data access statements in research.

·         Practical guidance on writing clear and impactful statements.

·         Real-world examples and common pitfalls to avoid.

·         Where to share research data.

·         Resources and support to simplify the process.

Date: Thursday, 13th February 2025.

Time: 10:00 – 11:30.

Book you place: https://newcastle-uk.libcal.com/event/4311014.

Treat your data with love this Valentine’s Day!

Contact the team via email at rdm@ncl.ac.uk, or visit the website.

Visit the Love Data Week website for more events.

Open Access Support Sessions 2024/25

Our Open Access Support Sessions are continuing between January to July 2025.

Are you looking for advice and information on open access or managing publications? Come to one of our monthly drop-in sessions and meet members of the Library Research Services team, who will be happy to answer questions on:

  • Publishing open access
  • Understanding research funder policy requirements
  • Copyright and licencing issues relating to your publications
  • Uploading your publications to MyImpact

Whether you’re a seasoned researcher, student or simply keen to explore the possibilities within open access, these sessions offer a welcoming space to ask questions, gain insights and delve deeper into the realm of open access.

Each session is informal, and will focus on a specific area and how this relates to open access:

23 January Publisher Agreements 13.00-13.45

18 February  Licences and Copyright for Open Access Publications 13.00-13.45

20 March Rights Retention and ePrints 13.00-13.45

29 April Data in Publications 13.00-13.45

5 June Funders and Open Access 13.00-13.45

10 July Library Research Services 13.00-13.45

Please note registration is required for you to receive the online zoom link. 

All are welcome!

What’s happening in Library Research Services: December

This December, you can come and chat with members of the Library Research Services (LRS) team at our pop-up event (12.00-14.00) on the 11th at The Atrium, Urban Sciences Building.

We’re also running:

Check out the library calendar for further courses and dates in December and 2025.

What’s happening in Library Research Services: November

This November, you can come and chat with members of the Library Research Services (LRS) team at one of our pop-up events (12.00-14.00) on the 5th (Medical School Foyer) and 12th (Henry Daysh Café Space).

We’re also running the following session:

Coming up next month:

Check out the library calendar for further courses and dates.

Library Research Services Pop-Up Events

Library Research Services is excited to announce a series of informal Pop-up Sessions across campus in November and December. These sessions are designed to showcase the wide range of services we offer. We warmly invite academics and researchers to join us with any questions they may have about open access publishing, data management, or any specific open research queries. Below, you will find a full list of our locations and dates.

  • Tuesday, 5th November, 12pm-2pm: Medical School Foyer
  • Tuesday, 12th November, 12pm-2pm: Henry Daysh Café Space
  • Wednesday, 11th December, 12pm-2pm: The Atrium, Urban Sciences Building

Don’t worry if you miss us this time—you’ll have the opportunity to speak to us again in the new year. You can also contact us anytime at lrs@ncl.ac.uk

First book published under the UKRI open access policy

We are very excited to share that ‘Pushing the Paradigm of Global Water Security’, co-edited by Victoria Anker, Rachael Maysels and Maria Valasia Peppa, from the Newcastle University School of Engineering, has been published open access (OA), by IWA Publishing. https://doi.org/10.2166/9781789062540

This book brings together early career researchers, non-governmental organisations and industry practitioners, indigenous and local communities, and government agency workers to interrogate the concept of water security. Most notably, the authors push for the radical acceptance of the indivisibility of environmental conservation, social stability, and economic vitality. Essential reading for water practitioners, policy makers, and multilateral organisations in the development sector, it is also a must-read for doctoral and master’s students working at intersections of water, and undergraduates who want to challenge their subject-specific perspectives on water and push disciplinary boundaries.

This is the first book published at Newcastle as a result of the UKRI open access policy for long-form publications, with open access costs covered by UKRI funding.

Open publishing of research increases the visibility and accessibility of the research, increasing the potential reach of the work to audiences online anywhere in the world, without the need to pay to read. Books published open access receive more views, with OA books considered to have ten times more downloads than non-OA books and more than double the number of citations [1]. They also have a higher geographic diversity of usage and reach more countries [1]. Research has also shown that OA publication has the potential to increase digital and print revenue, depending on the sales models used [2].

Comments from Victoria Anker (editor):

In the current academic climate, there is an expectation that our outputs will be made open access – and this should be standard for any research funded by the UK government. This book represents a new way of thinking about water security, which is designed to be useful to people outside of the academic sphere. These sorts of organisations don’t usually have access to traditional academic journals. As such, we are particularly grateful to Newcastle University for enabling open access through [the UKRI open access fund], which may not otherwise have been possible. 

Comments from Wegayehy Asfaw (contributor):

This achievement means a lot to us, and I want to extend my heartfelt congratulations to all the editors and contributors who have worked tirelessly to bring this project to fruition.

The contribution from the Early Career Network is truly remarkable, and I believe it will have a significant impact across disciplines and around the globe. Together, we are addressing critical challenges and proposing innovative solutions for water security.

In summing up this achievement, Wegayehy Asfaw said

Thank you all for your hard work and dedication. Let’s celebrate this milestone and continue making a difference!

Comments from Catherine Flynn (ESRC)

The Early Career Network brings hope for a bright future, not only in water security, but in international development and international partnerships.

The UKRI open access policy aims to ensure that findings from research funded by the public through UKRI can be freely accessed, used and built upon. The policy was updated at the beginning of 2024 from previously focusing on peer-reviewed research articles to now include long-form outputs, namely book chapters, monographs and edited collections.

Full details of the UKRI open access policy and how we in Library Research Services can support you to publish open access can be found on our UKRI Policy for long-form publications page.

If you have any questions or concerns about the policy, and how this might affect any current or future publications, please contact openaccess@ncl.ac.uk.  

[1] Neylon C, Ozaygen A, Montgomery L, Huang C-K (Karl), Pyne R, Lucraft M & Emery C 2021 More readers in more places: the benefits of open access for scholarly books Insights: the UKSG journal 34 (1) p 27 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1629/uksg.558

[2] Brown L, Dayan M, McLaughlin B, Schonfeld R C, Sherer J & van Rijn E 2023 Print Revenue and Open Access Monographs: A University Press Study Ithaka S+R DOI: https://doi.org/10.18665/sr.319642