Editor(s), Open-Access Journal Engaging Science, Technology, and Society
Publications Call for Nominations and Proposals
Society for Social Studies of Science
The Publications Committee of the Society for Social Studies of Science solicits nominations and proposals for Editor(s) to lead the 4S-sponsored diamond open access journal, Engaging Science, Technology, and Society (ESTS - https://estsjournal.org). ESTS is a vibrant peer-reviewed venue for addressing how science and technology infuse the world in which we live.
The journal publishes peer-reviewed content in both long-form and short-form genres: original research articles, thematic collections, engagements, perspectives, and research data. Content is organized into three issues annually, and includes work that represents the full range of 4S scholarship.
Thanks to the financial support of the 4S community, ESTS is a Diamond Open Access journal, meaning, it does not charge fees to either authors or readers. We believe this is significant for knowledge equity as it ensures that authors and readers around the world can both access and contribute research outputs to the STS scholarly commons regardless of location or institutional affiliation. 4S Council envisions ESTS and its editorial leadership will continue playing a formative role in developing and experimenting with open access scholarly communication. The society supports the operation of ESTS through paid staff, including a Managing Editor, two Assistant Editors, and an Open Data Editor.
Given the increasing transnational character of STS scholarship, the 4S Council has a preference for an Editorial Collective that is well placed to attend to different intellectual traditions, geographic emplacements and career-stages within the field, as well as a vision for how to support the growth of transnational scholarship. Additionally, the Editor or the majority of the members of the Editorial Collective should hold a secure position at an academic or research institution, demonstrate editorial or very closely related experience, have strong organizational skills, and have support from their home institution for editorial tasks. Editorial duties, selection procedures, and guidelines for institutional support can be found below.
The editor(s) will be appointed for a 3-year term, which may be renewed for an additional 2 years.
Evaluation of proposals will begin March 31, 2025.
We welcome expressions of interest and nominations as soon as possible. Potential candidates are encouraged to talk to the current Editor-in-Chief Aalok Khandekar (aalok@la.iith.ac.in) about the journal’s operations before finalizing a proposal. Potential candidates are also welcomed to contact Publications Committee Chair Nicole Nelson (nicole.nelson@wisc.edu) for advice on crafting their proposal. For any individuals or small groups who are interested in ESTS editorial work but do not yet have a fully-formed team, Nelson is happy to facilitate conversations to foster the development of well-rounded editorial teams.
The formal proposal (preferred length around 2000 words excluding CVs and narrative bios) should include:
A vision statement for the journal in its next phase. The statement should include a vision for how the editorial team will contribute to 1) the continued transnationalization of STS scholarship, and 2) sustaining open access scholarly communication infrastructures for the field.
A description of how the editorial team will be structured and how duties will be distributed (e.g. a board of 5 Associate Editors with rotating Editor-in-Chief responsibility, or 10 Associate Editors with 2 Editors-in-Chief, etc.). To facilitate consideration of the distribution of tasks within the editorial team, a list of duties is provided below.
CVs and short narrative biographies (approximately 300 words) of people in the editorial collective, foregrounding relevant experience.
A description of the level of committed institutional support for all involved institutions.
Any outstanding questions that might require iterative communications with the Search Committee.
Selection Process: The Search Committee will review all proposals, and make a recommendation to the 4S Council. Results of the selection process will be communicated to proposers no later than April 30, 2025. The preferred start date for the new Editor(s) is flexible, but a start date in the second half of 2025 is preferred to allow for a period of overlap between the incoming Editor(s) and the outgoing Editorial Collective (whose term will conclude at the end of 2025).
Finalized applications should be submitted to Nicole Senter (nicole.senter@wisc.edu). People from groups underrepresented in the Society for Social Studies of Science are strongly encouraged to apply.
Have a clear and transparent organizational structure and workflow, specifying individual responsibilities and ways of working with the journal’s Managing Editor and other staff.
Demonstrate capacity to be responsive to differently situated authors and intellectual traditions in STS.
Include at least one person with expertise in and responsibility for engagement with the ever-evolving set of issues associated with open access publishing, providing visible leadership in deliberations about open access.
Regularly communicate with an Editorial Board, providing clear feedback pathways.
Publicize and solicit submissions for the journal in appropriate venues.
Develop the look, feel, and format of the journal (including types of intellectual material that will be represented) in consultation with the 4S Council Publications Committee. 4S seeks an editorial collective with intellectual vision, creative approaches to presentation, and commitment to high quality scholarship.
Read and make decisions on new manuscripts in a timely manner. ESTS receives about 200-250 submissions per year, with a desk rejection rate between 80-90%. Once a manuscript moves beyond the initial review phase, the Editor(s) select multiple reviewers for each submission, track reviewers to ensure timely reviews, and make final acceptance decisions.
Encourage authors to make use of the affordances of its digital mode, incorporating multi-media and born-digital content into their articles, also soliciting high-quality content in other genres of scholarly expression (photo essays, debates, review essays, interviews, maps, conference reviews, etc).
Assemble accepted articles and features for publication. The Managing Editor is responsible for ensuring that revisions are completed in a timely fashion, according to the Editor(s) recommendations. The Managing Editor will distribute and advertise the journal.
Compile an Annual Report, to be submitted to the Publications Committee, the 4S Council and the Executive Committee. The report should contain data on the number of submissions, number of publications, success rate per submission, average time from submission to decision, and include prospects for and concerns about the journal. The discussion of prospects and concerns should include input from the Editorial Board. This report will be due one month before the annual 4S meeting.
Meet with the 4S Council and its Publications Committee at the 4S annual meeting, and ideally participate in ad hoc meetings, funding proposals, and professional workshops organized by the network of STS journal editors.
Participate where possible in various forums and activities to deepen open access publication infrastructure (for example, the current collective has led a financial pledging campaign to diversify the journal’s funding streams).
