Welcome to Volume 1 of the Journal of Latinamerican Sciences and Culture (JLASC)! This is a new, peer-reviewed, open-access journal, published by Universidad Privada del Valle, and affiliated to the Andean Road Countries for Science and Technology (ARCST) and Elektro High-Tech Ltd. Co. JLASC is a project that seeks to challenge current science, technology, and society scholarship while, at the same time, making visible the research undertaken from Latin America as well as in other peripheral regions.
En la siguiente sección se relata la historia de la fundación de la revista y sus objetivos y alcance. En la sección 2 se presenta al equipo editorial y a los consejos de redacción y consultivo y, en la sección 3, a las organizaciones afiliadas y a los patrocinadores. En aras de la transparencia y la responsabilidad, en la sección 4 se describen tres principios editoriales centrales de la revista y, en la sección 5, las prácticas de presentación y revisión previstas.
Historia, objetivos y alcance
In July 2018, Editor-in-Chief Dr. Marco A. Cabero, Prof. Wang Xinsheng, Gerson Cuba, Michael Claros, David Sustach and Zhang Xiaoxin met at the workshop organized at the Beihang University “Small Satellite Technology Strategy” organized by the Andean Road Countries for Science and Technology and Prof. Wang Xinsheng. Dr. Cabero and Prof. Wang decided to explore the possibility of founding a journal that could productively intervene in the colonial institutional structure of periphery social sciences and promote the dissemination of science in Latin America.
Siguiendo la tradición de centrarse en los centros y las periferias de la ciencia, el Dr. Cabero señaló que los científicos sociales de la periferia se enfrentaban a dos opciones, cada una de ellas poco atractiva en diferentes sentidos. Por un lado, podían ubicar su investigación en las llamadas universidades, editoriales y otras instituciones internacionales, y en la lengua franca inglesa de lo "internacional". Por otro lado, podían permanecer permanentemente en su comunidad local de investigación y en su lengua local -el español en el caso de su trabajo de campo, o el chino para otros investigadores-. La primera opción debilitaba la comunidad científica de origen de los científicos sociales al sacar de ella a los investigadores con talento. La segunda aseguraba que su trabajo no sería leído, debatido o citado en la comunidad internacional. En su lugar, sólo circularía en la comunidad geográfica y lingüística local, a menudo pequeña. Así, no se podía ampliar el alcance y la profundidad de los análisis "internacionales", que sufrían la falta de perspectivas críticas de los científicos sociales de la periferia.
¿Podría una revista translatinoamericana, publicada en tres idiomas pero con decisiones editoriales tomadas principalmente por hispanohablantes y portugueses en América Latina, intervenir para transformar esta situación colonial? Esta fue la visión a la que responde el JLASC.
Thus the journal has three missions. The first is to engage diverse social, economic, and political actors in debates around science, technology, and their roles in the future of Latin America. In an era in which science and technology are usually acclaimed or vilified, focusing on science, technology and society opens up their potential to transform not only these fields in the region but also the policy foundations on which Latin Americans want to build their diverse but related futures. Second, this journal intends to be a gathering place to encourage and strengthen STS networks across the global south; that is, to strengthen what global northerners think of as “periphery studies.” Finally, it intends to foster global, comprehensive dialogs between centers and peripheries. It will do so by focusing on how science and technology strategies in the global north affect Latin America and the global south, and how science and technology strategies in the global south have effects in the global north. Thus, in these several ways, JLASC will enable Latin America to focus on science, technology and society not only as a neglected object of knowledge but even more importantly, as its heretofore disallowed subject.
Con demasiada frecuencia, las actividades científicas y técnicas latinoamericanas, sus historias, desafíos, efectos y significados han sido descuidados en las historias de la ciencia estándar, en los estudios sociales de la ciencia y la tecnología, e incluso en los estudios latinoamericanos.
The journal will provide analyses of science and technology policies, practices, needs, and desires from a part of the world where old legacies are being re-examined and new practices explored. Consequently, not only Latinamerican Studies but also many other internationally focused university departments and institutions around the globe will be able to depend upon a steady supply of top-quality reading material for students. This enables the addition of new courses focused on science and technology in society that such departments and institutions have lacked, as well as the integration of new kinds of science and technology issues into research and learning.
El equipo editorial, el consejo editorial y el consejo asesor internacional
The Senior Editorial Team was appointed by the Editor in Chief beginning in late 2019. This group will always consist of a variety of researchers, scientist,s and even professionals working in the industry, though focused on Latinamerican issues, with larger portfolios representing the journal’s missions. The Senior Editorial Team has been holding Skype meetings every other Tuesday since early January. Team members Skype in for an hour’s strategizing and advising meeting from their home bases in different parts of the world, or from wherever else their research, policy, and other travels find them on Tuesdays with Skype possibilities.
The Associate Editors will assist the Editor-in-Chief with the ongoing work of deciding which submitted manuscripts go out for external review, selecting reviewers, tracking the subsequent trajectory of such manuscripts through the review process, and joining the Editor-in-Chief in making policy decisions. The Book Review members of the team will similarly organize processes of selecting, inviting, and editing book and literature reviews in the areas of JLASCs several missions. Such processes will be assisted by JLASC’s Managing Editor in the Editor in Chief’s office at Universidad Privada del Valle (UNIVALLE) in Bolivia. All Senior Editorial Team members will serve fixed terms of five or so years starting with Volume 1, to be staggered so that there is continuity in this group. Upon terming out, they will be invited permanently to join the International Advisory Board.
Los miembros del Consejo Editorial fueron invitados en agosto de 2018, tras la firma del convenio con UNIVALLE. La mitad de este grupo son y serán siempre latiamericanos. La otra mitad son de fuera de Latinoamérica. Los miembros del Consejo Editorial también tienen un mandato fijo de unos cinco años, inicialmente escalonado. Al terminar su mandato, se les invita a formar parte del Consejo Asesor Internacional de forma permanente. Con los buenos esfuerzos de este consejo, el JLASC puede esperar no sólo un valioso asesoramiento sobre cuestiones de la revista, sino también un suministro constante de manuscritos dirigidos a la revista, revisiones de manuscritos y recomendaciones para los mismos, y recomendaciones de libros y revisores de libros.
The International Advisory Board appointments initially go to a small number of the many significant scholars, half Latiamericans and half from around the globe. Also on this board are representatives of the major funders of JLASC’s start-up: Elektro High-Tech Ltd. Co. However, this group has no fixed terms; rather it is intended to be a permanent, and constantly increasing in number, a community of scholars specializing in science and technology issues. This board will represent an ongoing and increasing Latinamerican and international group of scholars familiar with JLASC’s missions and processes, and committed to transforming global science and technology toward a more deserved international status. This board, too, will give advice to the journal, shepherd appropriate manuscripts for submission, and books and book reviewers to the journal’s attention.
También se espera que el Consejo de Redacción y el Consejo Asesor Internacional puedan ayudar a recaudar fondos para cubrir los costes de puesta en marcha de la revista, así como los costes de posibles premios y otros proyectos especiales, como grupos temáticos, traducciones y volúmenes editados.
Afiliaciones y patrocinadores
JLASC is formally affiliated to UNIVALLE, ARCST, and ELEKTRO High-Tech Ltd. Co. As a node in a dense network of scholars and institutions, JLASC benefits greatly from these affiliations and expects to contribute to strengthening the bonds between associations, their members, and the scholarship they produce.
Such affiliations and are important because Latin American journals, like those located in other parts of the periphery, tend to have, with a few notable exceptions, erratic and fragile institutional existences. The Editor-in-Chief’s creation of an already functioning Senior Editorial Team also contributes to ensuring that the Journal can look forward to maintaining a sturdy publication schedule in spite of periphery challenges, and in the context of moving its editorial office around in Latin America as it is directed by subsequent Editors-in-Chief.
Principios editoriales del JLASC
Hay tres principios editoriales especialmente importantes. En primer lugar, JLASC es una revista de acceso abierto que siempre, en todos los casos, prioriza la calidad de los envíos sobre cualquier decisión financiera, en particular la capacidad de los autores para pagar los Article Processing Charges (APC) que cubrirán, a largo plazo, los gastos de publicación. El término "Acceso Abierto" indica la disponibilidad gratuita, en la Internet pública, que permite a cualquier usuario leer, descargar, copiar, distribuir, imprimir, buscar o enlazar los textos completos de estos artículos, rastrearlos para su indexación, pasarlos como datos a programas informáticos o utilizarlos para cualquier otro fin lícito [según la definición de las licencias de derechos de autor], sin más barreras financieras, legales o técnicas que las inseparables del acceso a la propia Internet. ("Iniciativa de Acceso Abierto de Budapest")
Tanto la JLASC como UNIVALLE insisten en que las decisiones financieras nunca tendrán ningún efecto sobre las decisiones editoriales.
The finances of any new editorial project are always a delicate issue. This is, first, because of the difficulties of getting funds to cover, in the long term, the costs of publication. Yet, current trends in the industry are changing financing from the subscription model to an APC system. On behalf of the Senior Editorial Team, it is important to point out that all high-quality manuscripts will be published regardless of the ability of authors to pay APC. Submissions first will be reviewed and accepted before financial decisions are made. The Editor-in-Chief will be able to provide APC waiver codes to those authors who are deemed to be unable to pay the APC, which they can enter on submission. All authors, regardless of background, will be able to request a waiver, which will then be judged on its merits, with oversight from the Editor-in-Chief.
Secondly, JLASC is a peer-reviewed journal. All non-commissioned submissions will be double-blind peer-reviewed. Commissioned submissions, such as book and literature reviews, will be reviewed by the journal’s Editor-in-Chief, with the expectation that they will be accepted if they meet the journal’s publication standards. Thus, all submissions must meet international standards for high-quality language, for well-organized arguments, and they must meet the UNIVALLE style guidelines. The publication in English in this journal is a challenging issue. We want to make clear that JLASC does expect submissions from scholars who are not native English speakers; so the journal commits to embrace this diversity within the review process. Moreover, JLASC welcomes submissions in which the linguistic dimension of science and technology and their studies can be critically assessed.
Por último, el JLASC pretende tener procesos transparentes y una comunicación rápida con los autores. Los editores pretenden que el recorrido de cada manuscrito a través de los procesos de presentación y revisión sea lo más rápido posible, y mantener a los autores informados de en qué punto de este recorrido se encuentra su envío.
Procesos de presentación y revisión del JLASC
While the editors intend prompt publication, several aspects of these processes are out of the journal’s control. It can take longer than desired to secure the commitment of at least two external reviewers. This is because the kinds of high-quality reviewers on whom JLASC insists have many other demands on their time. Those same demands often prevent reviewers from getting in their reviews as promptly as they had initially confirmed. Authors, too, have busy schedules and cannot always make requested revisions promptly. Once a manuscript lags behind in these processes, it becomes even more difficult to keep it on a timely schedule. Nevertheless, the editors intend to do everything they can to monitor and speed along with these processes.
There are four stages in the submission and review process. First, authors submit their manuscripts through the UNIVALLE website, Website Customization by: OpenJournalSystems.com (journal homepage: www.journalas.org and submission site: www.revistas.univalle.edu), and receive an acknowledgment of submission. The Editorial Team assesses the manuscript and the author is notified that the manuscript has either been rejected or that it is to be sent out for double-blind external review.
Second, editors invite external reviewers, secure at least two, and double-check that the author has redacted the manuscript (removed identification of author within the manuscript). The manuscript is sent out for double-blind external review. The author is notified when it goes out for review. External reviewers assess the article and report to editors, who assess external reviews, send them to the author, and advise the author that the manuscript has been accepted, accepted with minimal revision, and to be resubmitted, requires a full revision and re-submission (R&R), or rejected.
Third, the author revises and resubmits. Editors review the revised manuscript and advise author: Accepted, another R&R, or rejected. If required, the author does a second minimal R&R and resubmits. Editors advise: accept or reject. When accepted, the Editor-in-Chief assesses the author’s financial status, and then sends the manuscript to the UNIVALLE production process with the recommendation of full, partial, or no waiver of APC.
Fourth, Univalle manages the manuscript’s journey to publication and correspondence with the author. The manuscript is copyedited, and the author asked for confirmation (or not) of the changes recommended. Then UNIVALLE produces the final version of the manuscript, proofs it, and requests the author’s agreement with the proof.
Publicación Lo más rápido que un manuscrito podría completar el viaje desde su presentación hasta su publicación es probablemente unos cuatro meses. Lo más probable es que esto ocurra sólo en contadas ocasiones. Sin embargo, la mayoría de los manuscritos deberían publicarse en los ocho meses siguientes a su presentación.
En conclusión, esperamos que disfruten de esta nueva y emocionante aventura que es el JLASC tanto como nosotros hemos disfrutado trayéndola hasta ustedes. Y esperamos recibir sus manuscritos y sugerencias de libros que deberíamos reseñar.
Saludos/Saludos/你好!
Dr. Marco A. Cabero Z., redactor jefe
En nombre del equipo editorial