A key problem with open access information is that we require a new locus of trust, says STM’s Eefke Smit. We need to know which information can be trusted or cannot be trusted.

Eefke SmitIn the scholarly publishing world, spring brings the annual return of STM Trends, a future-forward look at the entire ecosystem from members of the STM Association.

Each year, STM Trends fixes the latest innovations in research and publishing in a single image. The latest shows a field of sunflowers on a bright summer’s day. Farmers, bees, butterflies, and birds are busy going about their businesses.

Entitled, The Beauty of Open at Scale, the infographic reflects an expectation in in the STM world that Open access will make a big jump in the next three to five years with a significant impact on the ecosystem of scholarly publications.

Eefke Smit, STM’s director of standards and technology, decodes the scene and tells CCC’s Chris Kenneally why there are scarecrows, too.

“The scarecrows actually warn us against fake information, fake science, misinformation,” she explains.

“A key problem with open access information is that we require a new locus of trust. If there are so many platforms around, and if there’s so much information in many different versions available on all these platforms, then we need to know which information can be trusted or cannot be trusted.”

On Tuesday, April 26, the STM Association presents a free webinar launching STM Trends with Eefke Smit, followed by a panel discussion.

STM Tech Trends 2026
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