Announcements

We are pleased to announce that Prof. Dr. Eugenia (Éva) Valsami-Jones has been appointed Associate Editor-in-Chief in Nanomaterials (ISSN: 2079-4991). With an extensive background in scientific research and publishing, she will bring a wealth of knowledge and expertise to this role.

Name: Prof. Dr. Eugenia (Éva) Valsami-Jones
Affiliation: School of Geography, Earth and Environmental Science, University of Birmingham, Birmingham B15 2TT, UK
Interests: nanomaterial properties; reactivity; toxicity; solubility; bio-nano interactions
Website: https://www.birmingham.ac.uk/staff/profiles/gees/valsami-jones-eva

The following is a short Q&A with Prof. Dr. Eugenia (Éva) Valsami-Jones, who shared her vision for the journal with us, as well as her views on the research area:

1. What appealed to you about the journal that made you want to become its Associate Editor-in-Chief?
I first crossed paths with Nanomaterials as an author—a number of times—and this was always a positive experience. More recently, I took on a guest editorial role, which is ongoing and gave me a glimpse of the running of the journal, and those involved with it on a daily basis—this also felt very positive and a good omen for working closer with the in-house team.
The role of Associate Editor-in-Chief is a great responsibility but also an opportunity to contribute and influence my field of science in ways that are not possible through simply publishing papers or in short-term guest editorial activities. I feel ready to take on such a major role, one that offers an opportunity to support and shape a much broader area of research than my own. I look forward to making this happen!

2. What is your vision for Nanomaterials?

Nanomaterials is already a well-respected and influential journal in nanoscience and nanotechnology, so what can I do to make it even better?
On a day-to-day basis, I will ensure responsiveness from my side and fast turnaround of editorial decisions. As an author, I know how important this is to all of us. But this is something pretty much already happening with Nanomaterials, and my task here is to maintain, if not slightly improve, an already very high standard.

On a visionary note, I hope to make Nanomaterials special and the “go-to” journal for all major discoveries in nanomaterials research. Here are some ideas I have:

• Nanomaterials already publishes Special Issues, but these are selected on an ad-hoc basis and are not strategically chosen. A way to target Special Issues is to link them to important global activities, such as international conferences. Also, to partner up with workshops and support opportunities for authors to produce their abstracts (or even full papers) whilst at the workshop;
• We already publicise Editor’s Choice Articles, but I would like to strengthen this in two ways: publish an editorial when major developments in the field of nanomaterials take place and fast-track manuscripts on such ground-breaking developments, with the aim to publish within a week of receipt and showcase them in the ECA section;
• The journal’s awards are important, to us and you. They deserve more attention, and I shall aim to work on this to ensure that our winners are celebrated more visibly and broadly.

I also want to hear from anyone reading this! Do you like these ideas? What else would you like to see our journal doing that would make it more precious and a top target for your best papers?

A final note here is that if I succeed in making the journal more attractive to our readership, with popularity also, inevitably, will come an increased rate of rejection. Here, I will aim to make this as pain-free and transparent as possible and offer our authors alternatives (companion journals) for their rejected papers, so they can stay with the journal family and hopefully make it into Nanomaterials with their next submission. I will always aspire to give as much feedback as possible, especially when rejections happen before papers go to peer review so that we work with our authors to improve our standards. Ultimately, this is a win-win for everyone since, by raising the journal’s standards and impact, we raise the visibility of all our papers.

3. What does the future of this field of research look like?
There is a slight bias here as I am a nanomaterials scientist, but I see nanoscience and nanotechnology as a field of endeavor that will continue to go from strength to strength. Some of the greatest scientific discoveries, from graphene to vaccines, have nanoscience and nanotechnology at their core. The source of unique size-related properties found at the nanoscale will not dry up soon. Take, for example, the recent discovery of goldene (https://www.nature.com/articles/s44160-024-00518-4) or the newly described non-metal organic frameworks (https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-024-07353-9). Trust me on this, there is plenty more where these came from!

4. What do you think of the development of open access in the publishing field?
Open access creates a level playing field for all, regardless of location, status, or affiliation. It can only be a good thing. It removes limitations and bias from the intellectual development of parts of the academic world and allows everyone to keep up to date with scientific progress, regardless of their ability to pay for learning. It can be a tricky balance from the publishers’ point of view, but to me, it is the right direction of travel.

We warmly welcome Prof. Dr. Eugenia (Éva) Valsami-Jones as the Associate Editor-in-Chief of Nanomaterials, and we wish her every success in her new position.