The Canadian Museum of Nature has entered into a Read and Publish agreement with Cambridge University Press that enables its affiliated researchers to publish open access articles in eligible gold and hybrid journals at no cost to the authors themselves.

This development strengthens the position of the museum as a key contributor to natural history and biodiversity research in Canada. Researchers based at the institution in Gatineau, Quebec, can now make their work immediately available to a global audience without facing article processing charges under the terms of the agreement.

Understanding the Agreement and Its Scope

Read and Publish agreements combine subscription access with open access publishing rights. Under this arrangement, corresponding authors affiliated with the Canadian Museum of Nature qualify for immediate open access publication in participating Cambridge journals. The model supports both fully open access (gold) titles and hybrid journals that offer an open access option alongside traditional subscription content.

The agreement forms part of Cambridge University Press’s broader portfolio of open access deals across Canada. Eligible institutions listed on the publisher’s Canadian agreements page include the Canadian Museum of Nature alongside universities and other research organizations. This structure reflects the growing emphasis on transformative agreements that shift the costs of scholarly communication toward open dissemination.

Context Within Canadian Open Access Initiatives

Canada has seen steady growth in open access arrangements coordinated through the Canadian Research Knowledge Network (CRKN). These deals typically cover multiple publishers and allow researchers at participating institutions to publish openly while maintaining read access to subscription content. The Cambridge agreement with the Canadian Museum of Nature adds to this national framework, particularly benefiting researchers in the natural sciences and collections-based disciplines.

Museum research staff often produce studies drawing on unique specimen collections, field data, and taxonomic expertise. Making such work openly available accelerates collaboration with universities, government agencies, and international partners. The agreement aligns with broader Canadian efforts to increase the visibility and impact of publicly funded or supported research.

Benefits for Researchers and the Research Community

For individual researchers at the Canadian Museum of Nature, the primary advantage is the removal of financial barriers to open access publication. Authors no longer need to seek separate funding for article processing charges, which can otherwise range from several hundred to several thousand dollars per article depending on the journal.

Immediate open access increases the potential reach of museum-based studies on topics such as species discovery, climate impacts on biodiversity, and conservation biology. Readers worldwide, including those without institutional subscriptions, can access, cite, and build upon the work more readily. This is especially valuable for research tied to Canada’s natural heritage and northern ecosystems.

Photo by Igor Kyryliuk & Tetiana Kravchenko on Unsplash

• Enhanced visibility for collections-based research
• Compliance with funder and institutional open access expectations
• Support for early-career researchers who may have limited grant funding
• Contribution to global biodiversity databases and knowledge sharing

Implications for Higher Education and Research Careers in Canada

While the Canadian Museum of Nature is not a university, its research staff frequently collaborate with academic institutions on joint projects, co-supervise graduate students, and publish alongside university-based colleagues. The agreement therefore indirectly supports the broader Canadian higher education ecosystem by facilitating open dissemination of collaborative outputs.

PhD-track job seekers and early-career researchers interested in museum or collections-based careers may view such open access provisions as an attractive feature of research environments in Canada. Institutions that reduce barriers to open publishing can strengthen their appeal in a competitive academic job market.

Broader Trends in Scholarly Publishing

Transformative agreements like the one between Cambridge University Press and the Canadian Museum of Nature represent a transitional model in scholarly publishing. They aim to shift subscription spending toward open access while maintaining access to the full journal portfolio during the transition period.

Publishers, libraries, and research organizations across Canada continue to negotiate similar deals with multiple providers. The inclusion of a national museum alongside universities signals recognition of the diverse institutions that contribute to Canada’s research output in the natural sciences.

Future Outlook and Potential Developments

As open access mandates from funders and governments become more common, agreements of this type are likely to expand. The Canadian Museum of Nature’s participation positions its researchers to meet evolving expectations around open research practices with minimal administrative burden.

Continued digitization efforts at the museum, including specimen data and library holdings, complement the publishing agreement by increasing the overall accessibility of Canadian natural history resources. Together, these initiatives support evidence-based decision making on environmental and biodiversity issues.

Stakeholder Perspectives

From the perspective of museum administrators, the agreement supports institutional goals of maximizing the impact of research conducted by staff scientists. For individual researchers, it removes a practical hurdle in the publication process. Publishers benefit from increased article submissions and greater dissemination of content under open access licenses.

University administrators and librarians monitoring national trends may see the museum agreement as an indicator of how non-university research institutions are being integrated into Canada’s open access infrastructure.

Photo by Maxime Doré on Unsplash

Practical Steps for Eligible Authors

Researchers affiliated with the Canadian Museum of Nature who wish to take advantage of the agreement should confirm their eligibility through the publisher’s workflow at the point of article submission. Corresponding authors typically select the open access option during the submission or acceptance process, and the agreement handles the associated charges.

Details on participating journals and the precise eligibility criteria are available on the Cambridge University Press site dedicated to the agreement. Authors are encouraged to check the most current list, as journal coverage can evolve over time.

Conclusion

The open access publishing agreement between Cambridge University Press and the Canadian Museum of Nature marks a meaningful step in expanding equitable access to Canadian natural history research. By removing cost barriers for affiliated authors, the arrangement supports wider dissemination of findings that inform science, policy, and public understanding of Canada’s natural environment.

As the Canadian research community continues to advance open scholarship, similar agreements are expected to play an increasing role in shaping how knowledge is created and shared.