Polyglots need protection

A new initiative highlights the value of multilingual research publishing, say Emanuel Kulczycki and his colleagues.

Publishing in their own language remains vital for many researchers worldwide. It can be the best way to communicate with national colleagues, it maximises the chances of local impact and it is almost the only way to reach important audiences such as policymakers.

In the social sciences and humanities, there is a great deal of original research into locally relevant topics such as a specific language, heritage or culture. Research published in languages other than English can be international and meet standards of excellence.