Open infrastructures in conflict zones: A case study of DOAJ and Ukrainian journals

Abstract

This case study explores the role of the Directory of Open Access Journals (DOAJ) in increasing the visibility and accessibility of Ukrainian academic journals. Ukrainian journals face numerous challenges due to economic constraints and the ongoing war. The article presents how open infrastructures play an important role in supporting journals during conflict, invasion or major disruption, using DOAJ as a case study. It analyzes what has worked and what could have been improved in DOAJ’s approach, including its collaborative efforts with the Supporting Ukrainian Editorial Staff (SUES) project, the Open Ukrainian Citation Index (OUCI) and Research4Life as initiatives to increase the visibility, transparency and impact of all digitized Ukrainian academic journals, despite the ongoing war with Russia. Recommendations are presented to increase the quality and visibility of Ukrainian journals and to guide open infrastructures in supporting journals from conflict areas.