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It’s Open Access Week! This week we are spotlighting some of our titles published through Open Access.
This year’s theme is ‘Who Owns Our Knowledge?’, asking questions about how, in times of uncertainty and disruption, communities can steer the narrative and assert control over the knowledge they produce. It invites us to reflect on where knowledge comes from, how it is shared, and how this sharing builds foundations on which we can understand more about our world, as well as what we can do to foster positive change.
Open Access at Peter Lang
At Peter Lang, we are passionate about the dissemination of knowledge and academic research, demonstrated through our long-standing dedication to Open Access (OA). We have published over 3500 Open Access titles to date. We remain committed to offering innovative and accessible OA models that empower both authors and the academic community.
Open Access allows knowledge to break down barriers, creating a broader audience and reaching those who can advance their research more efficiently. It fosters greater visibility for work and its authors, more engagement, and collaboration across the global academic landscape, allowing all of us to connect and share knowledge.
Studies show that OA publications receive higher viewership, citation rates, and downloads compared to traditional, restricted access titles. Peter Lang offers a number of OA models for authors to allow research to reach uncharted corners. We know that to make Open Access work, we need to facilitate constructive communication between researchers, libraries, funding bodies, and publishers, and to experiment with new approaches and business models. At Peter Lang, titles published through OA will benefit from the same rigorous peer review and editorial assessment process as non-OA titles, as well as receive the same level of marketing and distribution services.
Read more about Open Access at Peter Lang, as well as the models offered, where to enquire, initiatives and funding opportunities, and our Open Access Partners here.
Commitment to the Future of Open Access
Ongoing innovation is important to us, and we are always thinking of new ways to push the boundaries of academic research. Our Open Evidence-Based Acquisition (Open EBA) model has enabled libraries to access our entire catalogue through a successful library acquisition approach with a streamlined method for funding OA monographs. This has been a vital step toward helping more institutions adopt OA publishing.
Peter Lang’s Open Access initiatives go beyond simply offering publication models – they reflect our commitment to fostering constructive dialogue between researchers, libraries, funders, and publishers. We are continuously exploring new approaches and business models to ensure that Open Access evolves in a way that benefits the entire academic ecosystem.
By focusing on accessibility, discoverability, and compliance with funder mandates, we aim to make high-quality research freely available to everyone, ensuring that the academic community can continue to grow and thrive.
Knowledge Unlatched
Peter Lang is once again participating in the Knowledge Unlatched (KU) 2025 pledging program, including the flagship KU Select and Focus collections as well as two new subject-specific Partner Collections. These initiatives support collective funding models and help broaden access to scholarly books in key disciplines.
FID Erziehungswissenschaft und Bildungsforschung
Three Peter Lang titles were recently selected for funding through the Open Access programme of the Fachinformationsdienst (FID) Erziehungswissenschaft und Bildungsforschung. These titles will be published with the support of a coordinated funding model involving academic libraries, the FID, and public sources. Find out more here.
Open Access Journals
Peter Lang publishes several Diamond Open Access journals, which means they are free for readers and authors. This allows authors to publish their work openly without financial barriers, while benefiting from professional editorial processes and distribution services.
Browse our OA journals here.
Emerging Scholars Competition
Peter Lang’s annual Emerging Scholars Competition also fosters a commitment to OA, supporting early career researchers in selected fields. Beginning with the 2023 competition in Indigenous Studies, we have been proud to offer Gold Open Access contracts to our winners as part of our efforts to support a more equitable Open Access publishing environment. Visit our Queer Studies competition page to find the 2025 winners and read about this year’s competition in Disability Studies here.
For more information on the Emerging Scholars Competition, please contact editorial@peterlang.com.
To learn more about Open Access at Peter Lang, visit our Open Access page or contact our team at openaccess@peterlang.com.
Explore our latest Open Access books by visiting our recent Open Access book list.
