The Open Library of Humanities (OLH) is a gold open access (OA), peer-reviewed, internationally-supported, academic-led, not-for-profit, mega-journal, multi-journal and books platform for the humanities. It is funded by an international library consortium and so has no author-facing charges.
The OLH works with a small contribution from a large number of libraries covering the costs of publication, crowd-funding for OA content. The OLH thereby offers an extremely cost-effective solution for open access that means that no single institution bears a disproportionate cost. Participating libraries not only invest in a community shared service that would not otherwise be feasible but are also given a governance stake in the project.
The OLH has been internationally recognized as an important development in open access for the humanities and for its innovative business model. There are three components in the platform. The
Open Library of Humanities megajournal is a trans-humanities journal, focusing on rigorous peer review and fast publication. Additionally,
OLH Journals are existing publications that can join the model subject to approval by the academic and library boards. When journals with other subscription-based or fee-based publishers opt to leave their current providers and join OLH, libraries will see direct savings and a transition to OA. Finally, should OLH achieve the requisite levels of support and if participating libraries wish, OLH has a preliminary agreement to publish a series of
open-access books in partnership with Cambridge University Press, Harvard University Press, Open Book Publishers and Oxford University Press.
- Gold open access, peer-reviewed, internationally-supported, academic-led, not-for-profit, journal and books platform for the humanities
- Initial funding support from the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation and the Arcadia Fund
- Funded by library supporters, no author-facing charges
- Supporting libraries have a governance stake in the project
- Content will be released under a Creative Commons license
- Low annual cost to academic libraries, based on FTE
- Multi-year pledges accepted, payable in a lump sum at the start of the term
The OLH is working with Lyrasis as the exclusive billing partner for North America. Annual costs based on 4-year college, university, and graduate institutional FTE are as follows for new pledging institutions:
- 0-4,999 FTE: $1,048 (also is annual fee for community colleges and any other type of library)
- 5,000-9,999 FTE: $1,680
- 10,000+ FTE: $2,660
Libraries may pledge for a multi-year term, payable in a lump sum at the beginning of the term, and may elect to increase the contribution amount listed above. To support OLH,
register an institutional pledge.
