The Stockholm Declaration: Reformation of Science Publishing

20 Nov 2025

A new and important initiative has emerged in the field of scholarly communication, calling for a fundamental reform of academic publishing. The Stockholm Declaration: Reformation of Science Publishing was recently released as a call to action in response to the current crisis in the scholarly communication system – ranging from paywalls and predatory journals to the growing number of fake or manipulated studies, often produced using artificial intelligence.

The declaration, which is the outcome of discussions held at a workshop organised by the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences, calls for profound changes in the way academic publishing operates. Its key points include:

• Returning control over scholarly publishing to the academic community, with a strong emphasis on nonprofit models such as Diamond Open Access.
• Valuing quality over quantity in the assessment of researchers’ careers.
• Establishing independent mechanisms for detecting and preventing fraud and fraudulent publications.
• Introducing legislative and policy measures to support the integrity and quality of scholarly outputs.

The Stockholm Declaration therefore appeals to universities, research organisations, funding bodies, and policymakers to work together towards a system that supports trustworthy, transparent, and equitable scholarly publishing. The document reflects growing concerns within the academic community about the current state of scholarly communication and advocates for models that prioritise openness and quality.

📌 Read the Stockholm Declaration and support the reform of scholarly publishing:
➡️ https://sciii-it.org/stockholm-declaration/