Editorial challenges in scientific communication: The paths of Revista Geousp

Over the years, Revista Geousp has undergone several changes aimed at improving editorial processes, adopting practices in line with the demands of high-level scientific journals, and now in 2024 it is among the most important publications in Geography in Latin America.

Over almost three decades, it has been necessary to update the technical means, to improve the reception and evaluation of manuscripts, with transparency in the procedures and reliability regarding authorship, as well as agility in the editorial process itself. As a result, new questions about the publishing world of scientific journals permeate the daily life of a journal like Geousp: What strategies can be adopted to make the journal more accessible and more diverse? How does the scientific journal interact with new forms of communication, such as social networks? How can we recognize the new and growing demands of the academic publishing world while maintaining a balance and harmony with our essence as an accessible and plural publication? To think about these questions, we will discuss the path we have traveled so far, 2024.

From 1997 to 2009, the journal was published exclusively in print. From 2010 onwards, it was made available in an electronic version based on the Open Journal Systems (OJS) platform ¹, its previous collection was also digitized and is now fully available on the USP Journals Portal, which has concentrated most of the University of São Paulo's journals since 2008 ( Serradas, 2015). Since 2014, 100% of the editorial process and flow has been carried out through the OJS platform, from the submission of the manuscript by the author, through the processes of reception and evaluation by blind peers to sending it for layout, as Antas Junior (2022) pointed out. Over the last 10 years, 1281 submissions have been received digitally, an average of 127 per year ². Out of these, 345 were accepted for publication (37/year) and 727 were rejected (75/year).

Geousp Journal has been growing steadily as a reference source for scientific work, as shown in the graph in Figure 1, based on citations measured by Google Scholar. Despite published no more than 3 years ago, the indexes from 2020 to 2023 present high citation rates, expressing the relevance of these publications ( Garcia, 2024).

Figure 1:
citation index by year measured by Google Scholar.

We have consolidated a growing trend in accesses to the SciELO platform, with the negative fluctuations being consistent with the academic vacation periods ( Figure 2). It should also be noted that these figures do not include accesses to the USP Journals Portal.

Figure 2:
Accesses to Geousp Magazine on the SciELO platform between january/2022 and december/2023 (generated using Scielo.org analytics tool).

National and international relevance

We currently have a national and international presence (especially in Latin America, Portugal, Spain and Mozambique), with a Scientific Council composed of 25 names, 8 of which are foreign (USA, Germany, Spain, Chile, UK, China, France, Argentina), 13 from various Brazilian states and 4 from the University of São Paulo. The Editorial Committee is comprised of 15 professors, 7 of whom are external to the University of São Paulo: 5 researchers with affiliations abroad (Universidad de Buenos Aires - Argentina; Universidad de Chile - Chile; Facultad Latinoamericana de Ciencias Sociales - Quito/Ecuador), 9 Brazilians (Federal University of Amazonas, Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul, State University of Ceará, Federal University of Grande Dourados, Universidade de Brasília, Federal University of Uberlândia, State University Estadual of Campinas). Eight Professors are linked to the postgraduate programs in Human Geography and Physical Geography at FFLCH/USP.

Regarding the authorship of articles, the presence of researchers from other countries has grown consistently, with the international presence already reaching more than 25% of the articles and essays published in 2023.

Table 1 -
Number of authors with a foreign affiliation

Year	Publications with international authorship		Publications (total)	Annual Percentage	Percentage Biennium
	Annual	Biennium
2015	2	2	44	4.5%	4.5%
2016	2	6	45	4%
2017	4		50	8%	7%
2018	5	6	47	11%
2019	1		43	2%	8%
2020	2	6	38	5%
2021	4		38	10%	21%
2022	6	15	39	15%
2023	9		34	26%

In 2021 the journal was indexed in the SciELO database, which marks the current stage of the journal, seeking to fulfill the requirements for continuity in the database, including: publication of articles in English, 25% participation of authors and evaluators affiliated with institutions abroad ( Figure 3), application of open science practices, among others. In the last two years, for example, 196 submissions were received, 85 of which were approved and 151 rejected - an approval rate of 27%. XML ³ was incorporated in December 2019. At this time, the journal joined the USP Journal Portal and began operating in OJS version 3.0.

Figure 3:
Distribution by language measured by SciELO, between jan/2022 and dec/2023 (generated using Scielo.org analytics tool).

Among the most significant changes is the new editorial structure and human resources. The journal now has a broader group of professionals: an editor-in-chief, a doctoral professor responsible for the general edition and human geography articles; a deputy editor, a doctoral professor responsible for physical geography articles; an executive editor, a technical server responsible for the editorial flow; a postgraduate trainee who collaborates in receiving manuscripts and in various editorial activities; and an undergraduate trainee who collaborates in communication activities and institutional relations through social networks. The section editors are each responsible for observing the quality of the articles within their field of expertise (urban geography, geomorphology, economic geography, geography teaching, cartography, etc.) from the acceptance of the article through the choice of referees and the dialogues and solutions to specific problems to the final acceptance of the article for publication.

After the journal was indexed on the SciELO database, we concentrated our efforts on improving the editorial policy, focusing on ethics and the publication of original articles, as well as incorporating procedures suited to the new qualitative levels reached by the journal, such as increased relevance in the field of geography and internationalization. In this sense, the journal's participation in international events such as EGALC 2023 in Santo Domingo (Meeting of Geographers of Latin America and the Caribbean), which was attended by four members of the editorial board, and ENANPEGE in Palmas-TO (National Meeting of Graduate Studies and Research in Geography), which was attended by the editor-in-chief and members of the editorial board. The promotion of academic events and the dissemination of content through releases to scientific and university media, such as the SciELO Blog ( Figure 4), as well as publications on our own social networks, are also part of the communication and relationship strategies we are carrying out.

Figure 4:
Geousp article featured on the SciELO blog and profile on the Instagram social network contribute to communication with audiences outside academia.

Geousp and the current context of academic journals

At this point in our journey, Revista Geousp: Espaço e Tempo is guided by three aspects in its editorial actions: 1) improving and constantly reviewing its editorial policy and maintaining open access; 2) improving its graphic design and, above all, ensuring and improving the quality of the text in terms of editorial responsibility and ethics; 3) scientific communication and dissemination.

As far as editorial policy is concerned, the journal aims to expand its vocation as a publication of human and physical geography in the national and international community of geographers, with a special outreach to Latin American countries, promoting publications in the form of articles, essays, interviews and dossiers.

As part of the SciELO Brazil Collection, Revista Geousp follows the criteria, policy and procedures of the SciELO Network for national journals, as well as being guided by the Guide to Good Practices for Strengthening Ethics in Scientific Publication and taking on the challenges expressed in the Declaration in Support of Open Science with IDEIA - Impact, Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Accessibility. Since 2022, we have been adopting the IDEIA principles to ensure the editorial board has 40% women and we believe that this number will increase in the coming years.

In this sense, actions are needed to ensure the dissemination of journals among the international scientific community, both to encourage the submission of manuscripts by researchers from institutions abroad, as well as in the composition of the editorial board and participation in the editorial process.

An invitation to read our 1st issue of 2024

We began this year with the publication of 10 articles, 3 of which belong to the Dossier: Borders of Latin America and the interview with US geographer Ruth Gilmore. We hope you enjoy reading all the geographical knowledge available here.

In his article, Carlos Brandão reflects on how the relationship between money and markets in perspective to the so-called “Platform Capitalism” in a geohistorical context of operations of economic activities, calculations and exchanges that are mediated by digital devices and technologies.

Still in the field of economic geography, Villy Creuz explores the role of money in the social and territorial division of labor, highlighting the role of these businesses in shaping the landscape of the city of Buenos Aires.

Larissa Lira analyzes the reflections of a group of geographers and their controversies over the choice of the new location of Brasilia and the logics of regional planning, observing the performativity of geographical science in its ability to construct territories.

Francyjonison do Nascimento's article links Geography and the work of Byung-Chul Han, a contemporary German-Korean philosopher, establishing a theoretical effort to relate the author's notion of Earth to the most diverse geographical traditions.

The research carried out by Warlen de Oliveira and Marcelo Nero analyzes the hydrosedimentological connectivity index and its effects, seeking to understand sediment dynamics, which requires the use of variables that represent the morphology and environmental conditions involved in space and time.

Leandro Bortoluzzi and José Tadeu Tommaselli analyze Foz do Iguaçu as a city that receives strong action from the State as a producer of urban space and its expansion through the temporal analysis of documents, aerial photos and satellite images.

We wish you an enjoyable read!

References

• ANTAS JUNIOR, R. M. Editorial. GEOUSP: Espaço e Tempo (Online), [ S. l], v. 26, n. 3, 2022. DOI: 10.11606/issn.2179-0892.geousp.2022.203695. Available at: https://www.revistas.usp.br/geousp/article/view/203695 Accessed on: April 5, 2024.
  » https://doi.org/10.11606/issn.2179-0892.geousp.2022.203695» https://www.revistas.usp.br/geousp/article/view/203695
• GARCIA, T. M. Relatório anual São Paulo: Revista GEOUSP - Espaço e tempo, 2022. (Internal document.)
• SERRADAS, André. Portal de revistas da USP: crescimento e visibilidade dos periódicos. Fisioterapia e Pesquisa, v. 22, n. 1, p. 1-2, jan./mar. 2015.
• SCIELO Analytics. Base de dados da Scielo Available at: https://analytics.scielo.org/ Accessed on April 04, 2024
  » https://analytics.scielo.org/

• This translation was financed by the Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES). Finance code 001.
• 1
  Open Journal Systems (OJS) is a free open source system for the administration and publication of journals, developed with support and distribution by the Public Knowledge Project under the GNU General Public License.
• 2
  This number does not include essays written upon invitation by the magazine.
• 3
  XML is a programming language used for data storage. In scientific journals, it allows the storage of the full text and metadata of articles in indexers such as SciELO. It makes it possible to generate versions for media such as HTML, ePub, PDF and other systems such as Crossref DOI, ORCID, DOAJ etc. and allows interoperability between systems: Lattes, Crossref, SciELO, Web of Science, as well as automating validations. Cf: PORTAL DE REVISTAS DA USP. What is XML markup? Available at: https://www.revistas.usp.br/wp/noticias/o-que-sao-arquivos-xml/Acesso on: April 08, 2024.

Data availability

Data citations

SCIELO Analytics. Base de dados da Scielo Available at: https://analytics.scielo.org/ Accessed on April 04, 2024

Publication Dates

• Publication in this collection
  01 July 2024
• Date of issue
  2024

History

• Received
  30 Mar 2024
• Accepted
  25 Apr 2024