There is some misinformation floating around, and the Council suggested I share some facts with you:

Membership numbers are ahead of previous years.
Member and institutional subscriptions are above 2001 levels at this time. 
Manuscript submissions for most journals are above last year's levels and overall are approximately 11% higher through June 2002 (see www.agu.org/pubs/stats).

Also, in a recent biennial benchmarking survey, you ranked AGU higher in value of continued membership than any of the other large engineering or scientific societies ranked by their members. 

In a first-quarter survey of those who had final decisions made on their papers, authors who have used GEMS, the AGU electronic submission and review system, ranked this system in ease of use above that of other journals in which they have published recently. 

In another survey of authors whose papers have been published in the first half of 2002, those reporting a good or excellent experience greatly outweigh the number displeased. (Of course, any displeased is too many.)

Right now, publication delays are the critical problem we-the staff, committees, and authors-must resolve. The delays began in late fall 2001, when staff was trying to clear out the camera-ready material in preparation for electronic publication. They worsened through March. Eliminating the delays and reaching a new standard of timeliness is our top priority this year. Prompt publication has been a quality for which AGU journals are known. The staff is committed to regaining that reputation quickly.

The staff, with enormous member support, has broken the back of the problem in Geophysical Research Letters, which is now ahead of the budget for published pages. We expect to end the year way ahead of budget and meeting the aggressive timeliness goals for GRL adopted with the long-range plan. With GRL under control, staff resources are beginning to shift to the other journals. 

Some have asked how these delays could possibly have occurred in the first place.

AGU's entry into electronic publication followed a very different course from that of all other societies and commercial publishers of which I am aware. We had no choice, because in the early 1970s, we opted to allow author-prepared camera copy for publication in lieu of a high publication charge. About 30,000 of the pages published annually came in that way. Changing overnight from camera copy to archivable electronic files was a difficult task. I have not heard of another organization attempting anything like this. The enormity of the shift dictated moving all at once both for production efficiency and for equity. Our previous experience told us that we could not successfully publish a journal that was half electronic and half print. Working in two modes introduced significant inefficiencies and confusion for staff, vendors, and authors. Furthermore, how could we distribute half a journal to subscribers who prefer electronic access? 

Costs are higher to produce the requisite electronic formats that will permit a long-term archive to be maintained and upgraded. We are trying to control the added costs and that has led to a few practices that some members abhor. All involved recognize that this transition is painful. The patience and cooperation of thousands of authors and member subscribers is greatly appreciated. When the removal of backlogs is complete, publication will be faster and content more accessible. Already, you are enjoying the chance to subscribe to a cross-section of articles from all AGU journals, something possible only because all journals are electronic.

As a reminder, I should note that we did not enter the transition of the print journals without experience. In 1996, AGU, with the American Meteorological Society, introduced the first only-electronic journal in our fields, Earth Interactions. In 1999, AGU began publication of Geochemistry, Geophysics and Geosystems (G-Cubed), another electronic-only journal. Much of the form and function of the electronic versions of the journals converted this year were tested in these electronic-only journals.

Increasing the speed of publication is the top priority. Most other publication concerns that members have raised have been considered and some changes have been made; e.g., placement of color and type size. Others are being worked on and still others have been shelved for future consideration or rejected, at least for now. The headquarters staff is concentrating on timeliness because this problem must be solved or others become moot. 

This section will be used to keep you informed about progress, to attempt to counter rumors and misinformation, and to clarify some of the details of AGU's electronic publication practices.

As in everything AGU does, the Union is relying on its supportive and involved membership to help work through the publication delays and to keep officers, editors, committee members, and staff alerted to opportunities for improvement.

Fred Spilhaus, Executive Director, AGU

© 2002 AGU