The inaugural year of operations of Helsinki University Press (HUP), a scholarly open-access publisher operating under Helsinki University Library, was successful.
In 2020, HUP published six books, one of which was released in the Pro et Contra. Books from the Finnish Political Science Association series. In addition, HUP published three international scientific journals, which have dedicated editorial teams independent of the publisher. In 2020, the journals published 44 peer-reviewed articles.
The goals, publications, and results of HUP’s first year are presented in more detail in its annual report.
HUP’s publications reach a global audience, including readers in the Global South
The publisher’s goal is to make publicly funded research-based knowledge available to wider audiences. This is why the primary publication language is English, and all publications are openly available online.
In the first year of operations, HUP reached a wide international audience: HUP’s books or chapters/articles thereof were downloaded or viewed nearly 12,500 times in more than 130 countries, from over 1,500 universities or institutes. While the publications were mostly accessed in the Global North, the books also reached audiences in the Global South.
“We’ve been immensely pleased by the dissemination of our publications around the world, since HUP has, from the very beginning, wanted to make research-based knowledge available also to universities and decision-makers in developing countries," Leena Kaakinen, Publishing Director of HUP, states.
Kaakinen is also pleased with the thematic diversity of the books and journals published during the first operational year, as well as with the quality of their content. The publications represent several research fields in the humanities and social sciences, and all publications have undergone rigorous peer-review and editorial processes to guarantee high quality.
From the start, HUP’s aim has been to publish scientific literature of a high international standard. Based on the feedback received on the releases so far, this ambitious goal has been achieved, with the outputs integrated into current scientific discussion: altogether seven reviews appeared in Finnish and international journals in 2020 on the three first books published by HUP.
Towards a new year of publishing
According to Publishing Director Kaakinen, a successful first year lays a solid groundwork for HUP’s future.
“Our publication processes and editorial policies have proven to be viable, and I believe we have managed to serve not only our readers but also the researchers who have published their work with us. Of course, one of our goals has been to establish a publishing house that both authors and readers can trust, and that researchers find easy to approach," says Kaakinen.
At the moment, there are already seven books at different stages of the publishing process. And, as expected, the number of HUP’s publications will increase in 2021, with interesting new releases in the pipeline.
“We have a diverse selection of scholarly publications coming up, with topics including militarism and patriotism in Russia, adaptation to climate change, military history, as well as Nokia and its impact on Finnish society," Kaakinen offers a preview.
The first publication by HUP in 2021 is Kant’s Transcendental Deduction of the Categories: Critical Re-Examination, Elucidation and Corroboration, by the internationally renowned Kant scholar Kenneth R. Westphal.
Access the Helsinki University Press 2020 annual report here.
Further information:
Anna-Mari Vesterinen, Communications and Publishing Manager, Helsinki University Press
phone: +358 50 406 2824
anna-mari.vesterinen@helsinki.fi