The improved communication and distribution of information would help more Chinese research papers to be published in international academic journals, according to a US expert.

International cooperation in the academic field can only be good for science, Adrian Stanley, CEO of the Charlesworth Group which has offices in China to help Chinese researchers publish their papers abroad, told Xinhua in an interview.

He said there are certain fields where Chinese authors really excel, such as physics and chemistry, and newer areas like renewable energy and sustainability.

Charlesworth has helped make international journal contents available to the Chinese academic community, by putting them online or in print.

The company has also been engaged in helping Western publishers, societies and associations understand how to work with Chinese authors and institutions.

"We act as a key bridge and facilitator bringing together scientific communities closer together," he said.

"What we have seen is a positive ripple effect, when we have introduced publishers and societies to China, there have been many positive effects. A good case study is that in 2006 we helped the Ecological Society of America (ESA) sign a National Online agreement for their content to be available to Chinese academic researchers in over 500 universities," said Stanley.

Since then, the ESA has regularly visited China, giving educational seminars and training to Chinese members and researchers, helping them understand how to publish in international journals, how to write and structure papers, he said.

A paper jointly published by Stanley and Chinese researcher Yan Shuai said the Chinese language is too difficult to be widely understood by the international scientific community. In Chinese researchers' efforts to seek international influence, two measures can be considered.

Firstly, the quality of the existing 179 English-language journals in China should be improved and more comprehensible English abstracts should be provided in Chinese language journals. There is a strong wish in China to make these improvements and to receive further training in this respect, especially by well-known professional organizations, the paper said.

Secondly, organizations, either foreign or Chinese, should republish Chinese papers in English-language journals.

English-language journals in China should have international editorial boards to help attract contributions from both home and abroad, establish international peer-review systems, and, finally, aim for a higher international impact, according to the paper.

One specific way to do this is to encourage Chinese researchers and communities working abroad to be part of a more active and open journal editorial board. This is crucial for attracting international coverage and creating greater interest in and involvement with the journals, the paper said.

According to the paper, many opportunities exist for foreign partners to assist the internationalization of Chinese journals. For example, editing training, co-publishing, and information exchange can all be extremely beneficial.

The Charlesworth Group, Association of Learned and Professional Society Publishers (ALPSP), and some of the large commercial publishers such as Elsevier, Springer, and Blackwell are examples of organizations which are actively working in this area in the local Chinese market.

The paper said China is a growing source of journal contents and will become very important for their journals in the future. They see it vitally important to reach out to Chinese authors and work closely with Chinese partners.

(Xinhua News Agency February 21, 2010)