Announcements

Opening Thoughts

Society of China University Journals (CUJS) visit to MDPI Basel

In August, we had the pleasure of welcoming a delegation from the Society of China University Journals (CUJS) to our Basel headquarters. The visit was part of CUJS’s broader European tour, which included meetings with several major publishing organizations.

Purpose of the visit

The delegation’s stop in Basel involved an introductory meeting and knowledge-sharing with a view to identifying potential collaboration opportunities with MDPI. The CUJS team shared an overview of the Chinese scientific publishing landscape, including recent policy developments, and gave us insights into the journals and services they operate across China’s academic institutions.

MDPI presentations

We used the opportunity to introduce CUJS to MDPI’s mission, structure, and recent achievements. I presented on the latest developments at MDPI and our role in supporting global open access, addressing many follow-up questions from the delegation. Warm thanks are due to the following colleagues for their contributions to the session:

• Liliane Auwerter (Conference Organizer, Scientific Officer and Sustainability Specialist) shared an overview of our editorial process, including the quality indicators we use to track peer-review performance.
• Renato Merki (Publication Ethics Assistant) presented on behalf of our Research Integrity and Ethics team, emphasizing our commitment to responsible publishing.
• Silvano Bonfatti (Product Manager) introduced the JAMS platform, highlighting how it supports efficient journal management for editors and publishers alike.
• Aimar Xiong (Publisher, Section Managing Editor) and Giuliano Braccini (Office Manager) facilitated the meeting, offering clarity in response to specific questions, building the relationship during and beyond the meeting itself.

“Building relationships with organizations such as CUJS allows us to increase our visibility and reputation”

Why is this important?

China is one of the world’s largest producers of scientific research, with its universities and research institutes playing a key role in global scholarly publishing. Building strong relationships with influential organizations such as CUJS allows us to increase our visibility and reputation vis-à-vis the Chinese academic community, share best practices, learn from differing publishing models, and explore collaborations that have the potential to enhance the quality, reach, and diversity of our journals.

Looking ahead

It was a productive and friendly exchange that reflected our shared commitment to advancing scholarly communication and improving journal publishing practices. We value these visits, which allow us to create collaborations with stakeholders in the global academic community.

Our Basel office is a hub for hosting international delegations, partners, and collaborators. We look forward to creating more global connections that support our mission.

Impactful Research

Appointment of Dr. Tim Tait-Jamieson as Head of Publication Ethics

As part of our ongoing commitment to research integrity and publishing excellence, I am delighted to announce that we have appointed Dr. Tim Tait-Jamieson as Head of Publication Ethics.

Department focus

Working closely with internal teams and external partners, the Publication Ethics Department focuses on refining our policies, aligning our operations with international best practices, and addressing complex cases with fairness and transparency. This work is critical in supporting our editors, reviewers, and authors, reinforcing MDPI’s contribution to the global dialogue on research integrity.

“Research integrity is something to which we all contribute through our daily work at MDPI”

About Tim

Tim joined MDPI in 2021 and has held several roles within the Publication Ethics Department, most recently serving as Research Integrity Lead. Based in our Basel office, he brings a strong academic background, with a Ph.D. in Geography from the University of Fribourg, Switzerland, and a proven track record of leadership in research integrity.

Research integrity is something to which we all contribute through our daily work at MDPI. I look forward to Tim’s leadership as we continue investing in the people, processes, and partnerships that uphold the trust and credibility of scholarly publishing.

Read more:

• Research Integrity Team: Team Expansion and Industry News
• Ethics in Open Access Scientific Publishing

Inside MDPI

How and why MDPI offers Open Peer Review

At MDPI, we are committed to advancing openness and transparency in scholarly publishing. One area where we’ve taken a leadership role is peer review. Since 2014, MDPI has offered authors the option of open peer review, giving them the opportunity to publish reviewer comments alongside their papers. Each year, more authors are choosing this path, helping to build trust in the editorial process and provide valuable context for the research we publish.

I encourage you to read this blogpost to see how MDPI is helping set standards for transparency in scholarly publishing.

Coming Together for Science

Recap of MDPI’s AIS 2025 Conference in Kuala Lumpur

Entering the month of August, we held The 2nd International Conference on AI Sensors and Transducers (AIS 2025) in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

“AIS is quickly becoming a premier event in the field”

It was also excellent to see our new MDPI journal AI Sensors, which originated from a conference topic, host a successful launch party at the event.

Highlights from participant feedback:

• Southeast University (China) sent a student delegation and considers AIS a regular fixture for Ph.D. students in need of international conference experience.
• CAS Aerospace Information Research Institute sent a 10-member delegation and plans to further promote AIS internally.
• Japanese researchers regard AIS as a must-attend event, placing it on a par with IEEE conferences and citing the benefits of networking and exchange.
• Korean academics praised the organization and noted improved perceptions of MDPI among their institutions, viewing AIS as a strategic opportunity to deepen engagement in the region.

Award winners

We recognized the recipients of the Best Presentation, Best Scientist, Best Poster, and Best Student Paper awards, whose contributions set a standard for academic excellence. The full award announcement is available here.

Looking ahead

The 3rd International Conference on AI Sensors and Transducers will be held from 5 to10 August 2026 in Jeju, Korea. The General Chairs will be Prof. Inkyu Park (Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology), Prof. Zhou Li (Tsinghua University), Prof. Xinge Yu (City University of Hong Kong), and Prof. Chengkuo Lee (National University of Singapore). We look forward to bringing together innovators, researchers and experts who are shaping the future at the intersection of sensors, sensing technology, transducers and artificial intelligence.

Thank you

Our conference team managed this event with great agility and professionalism and are already planning improvements to make the conference even more accessible. Special thanks to the National University of Singapore for their support, and to our entire conference team and collaborators for their dedication.

AIS is gaining momentum, and we look forward to supporting its role as a bridge between MDPI and the global academic community.

“Our conference team managed this event with great agility and professionalism”

Closing Thoughts

Recognizing our outstanding reviewers

As we close this edition of the newsletter, I would like to spotlight MDPI’s 2024 Outstanding Reviewer Awards, which showcase a group of winners whose contributions often go unseen but are essential to the integrity of scholarly publishing: our reviewers.

In 2024, more than 215,000 reviewers dedicated their time and expertise to MDPI journals. From this community, we are proud to recognize 356 recipients of the Outstanding Reviewer Awards, who went above and beyond by providing timely, thorough and constructive feedback.

These awards are not only a token of our appreciation but also a reflection of the values we stand for: rigor, fairness and collaboration in advancing science.

To explore the full list of awardees across disciplines, from life sciences to the humanities, please visit the following pages:

• Biology and Life Sciences
• Business and Economics
• Chemistry and Materials Science
• Computer Science and Mathematics
• Engineering
• Environmental and Earth Sciences
• Medicine and Pharmacology
• Physical Sciences
• Public Health and Healthcare
• Social Sciences, Arts and Humanities

About MDPI Awards

To recognize the academic community, MDPI journals regularly offer various awards to researchers in specific fields. Serving as a source of recognition and inspiration, these awards help increase the influence of scholars who have been credited with outstanding achievements and are making a significant contribution to the advancement of their respective fields.

To explore more opening Outstanding Reviewer Awards, please click here.

To all our reviewers: thank you for being the foundation of trust that makes open access publishing possible!

Opening Thoughts

Talent Drives Our Progress

For the first time in MDPI’s history, we now have over 8,000 colleagues across the company. I would like to take a moment to celebrate this milestone and acknowledge the driving force behind our growth and success: our people.

As the world’s leading fully open access publisher, MDPI has grown thanks to the dedication, talent, and teamwork of colleagues across the company. Already halfway through 2025, we’ve welcomed nearly 2,000 new colleagues. 

“Our achievements are also about the people behind them”

We now manage over 475 journals, with 298 receiving an Impact Factor, and hundreds more indexed in major databases, including 343 in Scopus, and 92 by PubMed. As the reach and impact of our journals continues to grow, so does the need for dedicated and qualified teams to support that growth. Thus, attracting and retaining exceptional talent remains a cornerstone of our success.

Our achievements are not just about the results of journal expansion, however: they’re about the people behind them. From our hardworking editors to our meticulous English editing and production teams – from our journal relationship specialists, public relations, marketing and communications professionals to our conference teams and the project teams behind Preprints, Scilit, SciProfiles, JAMS and more. Our success reflects the work of thousands of people showing up each day, taking pride in their work, and committed to excellence and service.

What we’re doing to support talent:

• Investing in onboarding and training to help new colleagues feel welcomed and empowered to thrive.

• Creating clearer career paths across all functions, from editorial to communications and beyond.
• Launching mentorship programs and internal knowledge-sharing sessions to promote growth and collaboration.
• Evolving our recognition and rewards programs to better celebrate your contributions.
• Expanding our training systems and platforms.

MDPI’s in-house training department offers over 215 training courses, covering topics from editorial development to cross-cultural collaboration. In 2024 alone, we had 44 full-time trainers and 196 part-time training assistants supporting the learning and development needs of colleagues worldwide. These efforts ensure our teams are equipped with the skills and confidence to grow professionally and contribute meaningfully.

Over two-thirds of our workforce is editorial, and of our more than 5,400 editors, 87% hold a Master’s degree and 6% a PhD. Their collective contributions are central to delivering a high-quality publishing experience and supporting global academic communication.

As we celebrate this milestone, we also aim to continue on a path of steady and sustainable growth, one that balances journal expansion with investment in people, outreach, processes, and innovation. Together, we are shaping the future of open access and academic publishing. Thank you for your hard work, your ideas, and your commitment to serving the global research community.

Let’s continue working together to create a culture where great talent grows and every colleague feels valued.

Impactful Research

Visiting South Korea: Building Connections and Supporting the MDPI Seoul Office

In July, I had the opportunity to visit our team in Seoul and engage directly with academic communities in South Korea. The visit focused on deepening MDPI’s relationships with local universities, institutions, and partners, and supporting the great work of our colleagues at the MDPI Seoul office.

Korea Association of Private University Libraries (KAPUL) Conference

A highlight of the visit was our participation in the Korea Association of Private University Libraries (KAPUL) Conference, where we presented to over 100 academic librarians. I delivered a keynote speech titled “The Evolving Publishing Landscape: Open Access and Beyond,” while my colleague Dr. Jisuk Kang (Public Affairs Specialist) shared insights in her presentation, “Inside MDPI: Editorial Practices & Research Integrity.”

Facts & Figures: South Korea

• South Korea is MDPI’s sixth-largest publishing country by article volume (over 90,000 MDPI papers published to date).
• In 2024, Korea ranked 16th globally by total publications, and 6th (among these top 20 countries) by citation impact.
• 52% of Korean publications in 2024 were OA – and 73% of those were Gold OA.
• MDPI published about 20% of all OA papers from Korea in 2024.
• Over 2,000 active Editorial Board Members from South Korea contribute to MDPI journals, with 11 Section Editors-in-Chief.
• We currently have 11 Institutional Open Access Program agreements and two society partnerships in Korea:
• Korean Society of Pharmaceutical Sciences and Technology (with MDPI journal Pharmaceutics)
• Korean Tribology Society (with MDPI journal Coatings)

MDPI Seoul Office and the First Korea Salon

Our Seoul office serves as a regional hub for marketing, communications, and community engagement. It continues to grow in size and influence, prioritizing supporting scholar visits, conference sponsorships, and outreach events such as the recent MDPI Korea Salon.

The inaugural Salon, themed “Exploring Research Trends in Medical Publishing, Ethics, and AI,” brought together over 20 scholars and Editorial Board members serving MDPI journals.

Thank you to our guest speakers including Professors Young-Joon Surh of Seoul National University, Kwang-Sig Lee of Korea University, and Jin-Won Noh of Yonsei University who presented on the landscape of medicine in South Korea and across the globe. The Salon also included presentations from MDPI colleagues on Open Access, ethics, and how the IOAP can support researchers in this field.

“Our Seoul office continues to grow in size and influence”

Looking Ahead

MDPI is already the leading OA publisher in South Korea, yet challenges and misconceptions around OA and APCs remain. Visits like this one, along with the ongoing efforts of our Seoul office, are important to building understanding, trust, and long-term relationships with the local academic community.

A big thank-you to our colleagues in Seoul for their warm hospitality, professionalism, and energy! Our new office is well situated, staffed, and ready to grow. This visit marked an important step forward in our continued mission to support global research communities and advance Open Science.

Inside MDPI

Preprints.org Reaches 100,000 Preprints: A Major Milestone for MDPI and Open Science

In case you missed it, Preprints.org recently surpassed 100,000 preprints posted. This is a major milestone for our platform and one worth celebrating.

Preprints are a key pillar of the Open Science movement, which promotes transparency, equity, and faster knowledge-sharing through initiatives such as Open Access, Open Data, Open Source, and Open Peer Review. The benefits of Open Science extend beyond researchers, as they support funders, educators, policymakers, and the public in advancing discovery and innovation.

“Preprints.org has grown into one of the world’s leading preprint platforms”

Some quick facts worth noting:

• About 56% of the preprints on Preprints.org are later published in peer-reviewed journals.
• The platform is now indexed in Web of Science (Preprint Citation Index), Europe PMC, and Crossref, helping improve visibility and trust in the preprints shared.
• Recent upgrades – including a revamped website, new features such as search subscriptions, curated reading lists, and community feedback tools (PREreview) – show our commitment to developing Preprints.org in line with researchers’ needs.

This growth and progress would not be possible without the dedication of the Preprints.org team, our Advisory Board members, screeners, and colleagues across MDPI who support the platform’s development. This milestone is a reminder of our shared mission: to accelerate scientific communication and build a more open, transparent, and inclusive research ecosystem.

I’m excited to see what’s ahead as we approach Preprints.org’s 10-year anniversary in 2026!

Coming Together for Science

Malaysia Media Roundtable: Educating on Open Access and MDPI’s Presence in Southeast Asia

At the end of June, I had the opportunity to participate in a strategic media roundtable in Kuala Lumpur, focused on raising awareness about the importance of Open Access (OA) and on MDPI’s growing presence in Southeast Asia.

We were also joined by two local Editorial Board Members (EBMs) who offered first-hand insights into their experiences working with MDPI and how OA has shaped their publishing choices.

The discussion covered a range of questions from the press, from OA publishing models to editorial standards, and highlighted MDPI’s unique contribution to accelerating scientific communication in the region.

As the leading fully OA publisher, we see it as our responsibility to continue educating research communities and the broader public on the impact of OA, especially in emerging and high-growth academic markets.

Spotlight on Malaysia

Malaysia continues to rise as a regional research hub, with five universities ranked in the global top 200 and 11 subjects in the global top 50. In 2024, Malaysia ranked 2nd in Southeast Asia in total publication output, 10th in Asia, and 25th globally.

MDPI’s presence in Malaysia:

• Over 21,000 research articles published to date from Malaysian institutions
• More than 1,100 articles published in 2024 alone
• In the period 2020–2024, 54% of Malaysia’s total publications were OA
• 36 EBMs from Malaysia, across 27 MDPI journals
• Around 100 conferences sponsored in Malaysia in the past five years
• MDPI is hosting the 2nd International Conference on AI Sensors and Transducers in Kuala Lumpur (29 July- 3 August 2025)

Media Coverage & Editorial Voices

Following the roundtable, we saw positive coverage across several local outlets, with articles highlighting MDPI’s role in empowering Malaysian researchers. Notable pieces included:

• Open-Access Empowers Malaysia’s Research Future
• Empowering Malaysian Researchers to Meet the Nation’s Innovation Ambitions
• MDPI and empowering Malaysian researchers

Our local EBMs also shared their perspectives:

Prof. Denny Ng Kok Sum (Sunway University, EBM of MDPI journal Processes) and Prof. Lee (EBM of MDPI journal Bacteria) share their experiences with MDPI and the role Open Access plays in their publication decisions.

“We see it as our responsibility to continue educating research communities on the impact of OA”

“I didn’t want my work stuck behind a paywall.”
— Prof. Denny Ng Kok Sum, Sunway University, Processes Editorial Board Member

“Open Access opens doors for collaboration and visibility, especially in fast-developing regions like ours.”
— Prof. Lee, Bacteria Editorial Board Member

This roundtable marked another step in building trust, understanding, and collaboration in Southeast Asia. A big thank-you to the MDPI Malaysia team and all those who contributed to the event’s success.

Closing Thoughts

MDPI Signs First North American Agreement with Canadian Consortium

We are proud to announce a major milestone for MDPI Canada and an important step forward for OA in North America.

In July, our Toronto office finalized MDPI’s first North American consortium agreement with the Federal Science Libraries Network (FSLN). This is a significant achievement that strengthens our expansion in Canada and reinforces our global commitment to supporting Open Science.

This two-year agreement gives Canadian federal agencies access to MDPI’s IOAP, including discounted article processing charges for affiliated researchers across our portfolio of over 475 OA journals. It lowers barriers for Canadian scientists to share their work more openly and reach a global audience.

Participating FSLN institutions include:

• Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada
• Environment and Climate Change Canada
• Health Canada
• National Research Council Canada
• Natural Resources Canada

By partnering with some of Canada’s largest science-based agencies, we reaffirm our goal of advancing OA across continents. We look forward to developing our support for Canadian researchers and continuing to drive progress in Open Science across North America and beyond.