The role of the University of Malta Library in scholarly publishing

Abstract

Scholarly communication is bringing innovative discoveries in science, medicine, and other professions into light for readers and scholars. Every sector in our economy and our culture is confronting the pervasive impact of information technology. To this effect, scholarly publishing is right at the centre of the information revolution - from a reliance on print publishing towards online publishing, and an increasing use of other digital forms of scholarly communication, such as scholarly websites and blogs, as well as a growing emphasis on collaborative projects. As new models of scholarly communication emerge, librarians and information professionals are obligated to play a key role in the development of these models for academic publishing. The University of Malta Library (UML) has embarked on a number of ambitious projects, which support local researchers with the publishing and dissemination of their research output. Reference to the launch of the first Institutional Repository (IR) in the Maltese islands, which was branded as OAR@UoM. An IR is a digital platform whereby academics and researchers can upload their research output in Open Access.