FUP – Firenze University Press: excellence in Open Access for knowledge dissemination

By Giulia Di Stefano of Firenze University Press

In 2003, FUP became the University of Florence University Press, backed by a specialized team expert in every aspect of publishing and upholding high standards. Embracing open access (OA) from the start to promote knowledge as a common good, FUP follows open science principles for barrier-free dissemination, building on the University of Florence’s early digital experiments that enabled global exchange and high research impact via Creative Commons licenses. As a non-profit guided by peer review, civil knowledge, environmental sustainability, gender equality, and well-being, it reinvests all surplus revenues into its public mission, advancing knowledge dissemination and public debate through initiatives on vital cultural topics and autonomous scientific, educational and cultural projects that empower individuals and strengthen democracy.

All FUP publications undergo rigorous single- or double-blind peer-review by external experts, managed by editorial and series scientific boards, with initial in-house checks ensuring compliance before external validation to maintain scientific and ethical standards. While academic publishing often ties prestige to traditional metrics like impact factors, FUP prioritizes OA over paywalls for broader reach and long-term visibility, shifting authors’ focus from existing prestige hierarchies to real impact via downloads and citations—especially benefiting early-career researchers seeking wider audiences.

FUP measures success through dissemination, usage metrics (e.g., downloads), citations, and societal impact rather than sales, as evidenced by its catalog of over 1,470 OA books across architecture, arts, library and information science, law, philosophy, geography, anthropology, physics, chemistry, earth sciences, biology, medicine, agriculture, civil engineering, economics, political and social sciences, history, pedagogy, psychology, and literary studies—plus around 100 new titles annually and 61 active journals indexed in DOAB, DOAJ, SCOPUS, Web of Science, MLOL, ScienceOpen, and OAPEN for exponential global reach and boosted citations. Authors praise FUP’s efficient peer review, supportive editorial process, rapid publication, high download rates, and collaborative non-profit environment that fosters quality without prestige barriers.

For OA publishing with FUP, authors should propose works with strong peer-review potential that align with our series, prepare detailed abstracts, ensure data openness, and leverage our infrastructure (FUP Scientific Cloud) for maximum impact.

FUP firmly believes that “unity makes strength” and has positioned itself as a catalyst for synergy among Italian university presses, launching a trailblazing partnership with USiena Press, Perugia Stranieri University Press, and UdA University Press grounded in a shared commitment to Open Access. Participating presses retain full independence over their brand, catalogue, and editorial choices, while benefiting from FUP’s publishing tools and services to maximize dissemination and impact.

We invite you to browse our book catalogue and our journal catalogue to see the work we publish.