Table 1 Recommendations for improving equity, diversity, and inclusion (EDI) journals

Adopt a journal diversity statement with clear, actionable steps to achieve it

Acknowledge the barriers within publishing which authors, editorial decision makers and reviewers from under-represented communities experience and take actions to address them.

“BMJ aims to support clinicians and researchers from all over the world to have good quality work published, regardless of their sex/gender, race/ethnicity, first language, sexual orientation, religion/beliefs, disability status, age/status, or nationality/citizenship. We are trying to help dismantle the barriers that have previously prevented underrepresented groups from seeing their work published and therefore help them to advance their careers.” [39]

Promote the use of inclusive and bias-free language

Ensure inclusion and diversity are integrated into publishing activities and strategic planning.

“We have reviewed internal initiatives, practices, and policies across the journal family that promote diversity and inclusion in our editorial content and within our teams. For example, we have updated our language and style guide to ensure consistent use of inclusive language.” [40]

Appoint a journal’s EDI director or lead

Define and communicate the specific responsibilities authors, editorial decision makers, reviewers and staff members have towards inclusion and diversity.

ElSEVIER have an Inclusion & Diversity Advisory Board aimed at driving initiatives for improving gender, race & ethnicity diversity in academic research and assist in setting standards for unbiased robust decisions. The members vary in gender, specializations with some members experienced in leading diversity working groups in academic spaces. [41]

Establish an EDI mentoring approach

Review and revise as appropriate the appointment process for editors and editorial boards to capture the widest pool of talent possible.

“Journal of Applied Ecology runs a mentoring opportunity for early career researchers who are interested in learning about the Associate Editor role and have little or no previous editorial experience. Participants work with the Senior Editors who provide guidance on handling papers during a two-year Associate Editor training post.” [42]

Monitor adherence to EDI principles

Work to understand the demographic diversity of authors, editorial decision makers and reviewers, such as gender, geographical location, and ethnicity data.

“The Workplace Equity Project (WE) conducted a global survey to capture data about workplace experiences, practices, and opportunities in the scholarly publishing industry. The WE survey was open to everyone who works in this sector as publishers, service providers, and across the spectrum of related organizations, companies, and consultancies.” [43]

“The survey was crowd-sourced and reviewed by a diverse team of industry professionals to ensure that the questions are oriented to a global audience, cover relevant areas, and do not contain inherent bias. To encourage widespread participation in the survey, we have secured endorsements from major industry organizations. The Society for Scholarly Publishing (SSP), International Association of Scientific, Technical, and Medical Publishers (STM), National Federation of Advanced Information Systems (NFAIS), and UN Women UK will assist in its promotion and distribution to their members and followers.” [43]

Publish reports on EDI

Publicly report on progress on inclusion and diversity in scholarly publishing at least once a year.

“In this annual report we are pleased to provide information on gender, race/ethnicity, and region of the world of authors and gender of peer reviewers. Findings allow the editor team to quantify under-representation and identify bias in peer review that might be impairing progress in science, and adversely affecting thrombosis and hemostasis research and representation among the science community.” [44]