Farewell to PLOS Climate Editor-in-Chief Emma Archer

 
On 21st April 2025, we will say a fond farewell to Prof. Emma Archer as Editor-in-Chief of PLOS Climate. In this post, Emma and Executive Editor Dr Jamie Males chat about their work together since the launch of the journal.

Jamie

Early 2021 feels like a lifetime ago in many ways- and I suppose that’s literally true from the point of view of PLOS Climate, which PLOS launched alongside four other new journals that year. I joined PLOS Climate as Executive Editor in April of that year, moving across from a previous role on PLOS One, and we opened the new journal for submissions the following month. Those first few weeks were an exceptionally busy period, as we put together an editorial board, finalised the scope and aims of the journal, and made sure everything was ready for us to hit the ground running. One thing that made the part I had to play in all of this so much easier was how lucky I was to have you as our inaugural Editor-in-Chief! From our first meeting, it was clear that we were going to get along famously and that you were going to be a great champion for the journal. What do you remember about those early days?

Emma

It does feel like a lifetime ago, but it also feels literally just the other day. In our current meetings, I still look with astonishment at our submissions spreadsheet – the tab starts at 2021, and I have to page all the way over to 2025.  I can’t believe it’s gone so fast. It was 2020, in deep lockdown, when I first joined a chat (online, naturally) about the ideas for the three ‘sister’ environmental journals. As usual, I had way too much to say, but was shortly afterwards approached regarding the EiC role. I was quite surprised! It has, quite simply, been an utter pleasure – in large part due to the pleasure of working with you and our amazing editorial board. I am so proud of how this journal has grown – not just how much, but also in what ways. 

Jamie

Since we launched the journal, you and I have met online almost every week to discuss the journal’s strategy and performance- more recently with Niklas Boers, who joined PLOS Climate as Co-EiC in October 2024. I’ve always looked forward to our conversations, knowing that you’d be there with a smile, ready to put up with my complaints about the British weather and to share with me the latest news on the climate research grapevine. Importantly, you’ve never been afraid to ask hard questions and hold us to account for making progress on the journal’s mission. Why do you think our mission remains as relevant now as ever?

Emma

Well, really, not just for PLOS Climate, but also for the environmental journals more broadly, the mission has never, ever been more critical. Now, more than ever, we face a crisis for the scientific community, as we try to uphold the standards of rigorous and accessible research, including helping to make sure that our work helps to support better decision-making, and a better world. PLOS Climate plays a key role here – for example, as we approach the IPCC AR7 process, I believe our journal has and will showcase some of the material that will underlie chapters. 

Jamie

Some of the best memories of working with you include the times we’ve been able to meet in person when representing the journal. This first happened in September 2022, when we both attended the International Mountain Conference in sunny Innsbruck. And the following month, we met again in Cape Town for the SOLAS Open Science Conference, where your company meant I had the privilege of being shown around the city by a local! In 2023, we enjoyed a week of posters and pizzas at the WCRP Open Science Conference in Kigali, and last year we spent several days visiting universities and research institutes in the Netherlands with Gui Wright, Executive Editor of PLOS Water. Do you have any particularly fond memories of getting out on the road to represent PLOS Climate?

Emma

Well, firstly, I think it’s unique, probably, to work with someone closely online for more than a year, and then get to meet them! We’ve been incredibly lucky to have been able to get on the road, talking about not just PLOS Climate directly, but also ‘Everything you wanted to know about publishing but was too afraid to ask’; principles of Open Science; and seminars and side events for Early Career Researchers. I have wonderful memories of you coming to Cape Town, and finding the time to climb (part of) Table Mountain in the Western Cape spring.  And it was a real treat also to do some outreach with Gui in the Netherlands – the three of us found plenty in common amongst the journals, and I hope there will be more ‘crossover’ outreach events in future.

Jamie

Throughout your time with PLOS Climate, you’ve been tireless in your promotion of our core principles of inclusivity and transparency, helping us to think about how to widen participation in the journal in terms of authors, editors and readers. You’ve also been a real advocate for Early Career Researchers, and have been involved in online and in-person workshops and conference sessions aimed at building capacity among ECRs, as well as supporting collaborative projects with ECR networks. Can you tell our readers a little about why you feel it’s so important for our journal to support ECRs?

Emma

One of the inspirations as I took on the EiC role was the published Reuters list of the world’s top climate scientists. I don’t even have to say much about the list – other editors, including the team from Climate and Development, have provided a robust critique. The timing was useful, because it reminded me so strongly about the need to support ECRs, and also to diversify the voices of climate scientists, including those from the Global South. I’ve been so proud of the work that we’ve been able to do on PLOS Climate in this regard.  

Jamie

You’ve also worked closely with our editorial board- particularly our team of Section Editors– written several Editorials, and yourself been a PLOS Climate corresponding author, which no doubt helped you to view the workings of the journal from a different perspective and to make acute observations about opportunities for improvement! You’ve also supported our work to expand our range of article types to include Essays and to help bridge the gap between academics, practitioners and decision-makers. Are there any particular initiatives or publications that you’ve been proud to be involved in during your time with PLOS Climate?

Emma

I am extremely excited about our Essay article type; and was so happy that it kicked off with Valérie Masson-Delmotte’s inaugural Essay, reflecting on IPCC AR6 and discussing “a climate research agenda grounded in ethics”. How timely and impactful this piece has been – doing precisely, I think, what we hoped that the Essay type pieces would accomplish. Brava, Valérie !

Jamie

I’d like to finish by offering my sincere personal thanks for everything you’ve given to PLOS Climate during your time with us. Your positivity and creativity- and sometimes your patience!- have been exactly what’s been needed to set the journal up for success in its first few years. You’ve made the time to do this alongside all your research, teaching and professional commitments, including as Science-Policy Interface Co-Lead for the UNCCD. Whilst I’m sad to be saying goodbye to you in your role with PLOS Climate, I’m so glad that you’ll remain a part of the wider PLOS family as a member of our Scientific Advisory Council; I know that we will all continue to benefit from your insights right across PLOS’s work.

Emma

And my thanks to you, Jamie – I know we’ll continue to work together as part of the broader PLOS family, but working directly with you on PLOS Climate has literally been a joy. I am so excited for the road ahead for the journal. May it continue to grow as a community and to be a light in what often feels like a dark world, for science, for science based decision-making; and for Open Science.