Reimagining the Future of Scholarly Publishing at the Intersection of Value and Values

May 28–30, 2025 | Hilton Baltimore | Baltimore, MD, USA

Although every year in the scholarly publishing ecosystem is a balancing act of innovation, optimization, and value creation, 2025 is shaping up to be particularly challenging as the pace and scale of change is accelerating more than we’ve ever seen before. There is increasing pressure to provide value to and to meet the incredibly diverse needs of the global research community while maintaining financial health for our own organizations, living our values, and continuing to protect the scholarly record. With AI, open access, integrity, and mistrust frequently dominating the conversation, we are in the midst of an unprecedented shift in both our industry and society as a whole.  

As always, the SSP community continues to focus on bringing together academics, funders, librarians, publishers, service providers, technologists, researchers and countless others with a communal interest and stake in disseminating scholarly information. We look to the 47th Annual Meeting as an opportunity to continue this tradition and welcome all colleagues and community stakeholders. 

Registration will open in February. All individual members and staff of organizational members will receive the member discount to attend the Annual Meeting.

REGISTER NOW >>

PROGRAM

HOTEL & TRAVEL

SPONSORS

EPIC AWARDS DINNER

CANCELLATION POLICY 

  

Meeting Highlights

Educational Sessions
Thirty educational sessions over 2 days led by top industry experts complementing four plenary sessions that are the heart of the SSP Annual Meeting. 

Networking
Attendees will enjoy ample opportunities for meeting colleagues and sharing ideas at evening receptions, interactive lunches, facilitated networking sessions, and other events.

Poster Sessions
Posters will be available for viewing throughout the meeting. During the Poster Session, you can chat with presenters as you browse the various posters in the Exhibitors Marketplace.  

Industry Breakout Sessions
Industry thought-leaders share advice, case studies, expertise and the latest market solutions in these 30-minute sessions starting at noon on Wednesday.  

Exhibitors Marketplace 
Meet with exhibitors and sponsors and see what new innovations are being offered by industry service providers. The Marketplace is accessible throughout the duration of the meeting, but exhibitors will be available during breaks and nightly receptions. 

Previews Session
This "lightning round" plenary offers the chance to learn more about the latest innovations from across our community, including products, platforms, and content, in 5-minute, back to back presentations. Attendees will leave with exposure to a wide breadth of content on new and updated products of interest to the scholarly publishing community.

Keynote Address | Wednesday, May 28

David Shiffman, Marine conservation biologist and science communicator 

"How Lessons Learned from Shark Research, Conservation, and Education Can Help Advance Scholarly Communications"

Conservation scientists know that academic research is necessary, but not sufficient, to save endangered species. We need to change public attitudes and laws, and publishing our research in scientific journals is only one element of modern scholarly communications needed to drive that change. We need to break out of the ivory tower and talk to people to articulate our value, facilitate engagement, and gather support—but how can we do that effectively at scale on a polarizing topic? In this lecture, marine conservation biologist and award-winning public educator Dr. David Shiffman will share stories and lessons learned from a career studying sharks and educating the public about how to protect them as a framework for communicating the value of research in a challenging environment.

Plenary Session: Moderated Discussion | Thursday, May 29

Preserving Our Value(s): Scholarly Publishing in a Changing World

In an increasingly chaotic landscape, scholarly publishers must remain committed to their values while adapting to emerging issues. This candid plenary session brings together C-level leaders—from a commercial publisher, a society publisher, a university press, and a library—to explore the critical role of scholarly communication in today’s world. Panelists will tackle questions around research integrity, business models, government mandates, AI, and the role of disruptors. Together, they’ll examine whether the values that underpin our work continue to benefit society—and what we can do if they don't. Attendees will leave with a realistic view of the challenges ahead, but also a renewed sense of possibility and purpose for how scholarly publishers can adapt, lead, and continue to deliver value in a shifting landscape.

 

Moderator:
Andromeda Yelton, Lead Software Engineer, ITHAKA 
Speakers: 
Dr. Chhavi Chauhan, Director of Scientific Outreach, American Society for Investigative Pathology 
Dave Flanagan, Senior Director, Generative AI Product Strategy, Wiley 
Xiao-Li Meng, Editor-in-Chief of the Harvard Data Science Review 

Closing Plenary | Friday, May 30

Oxford-Style Debate: AI is Fair Use

Over the last two years we have seen explosive growth in the use of Artificial Intelligence in research and research dissemination, and AI tools and technologies are fundamentally changing our industry on a seemingly daily basis. One foundational challenge with AI is balancing the speed of innovation with the constant need for high volumes of content and proper licensing and remuneration of publishers, authors, and other rights holders for their works. There is a growing body of litigation around copyright and AI in the US and we are starting to see some early decisions (see Thomson Reuters & Ross Intelligence), but for many in community, the question remains: is AI Fair Use? 

This Oxford-Style debate will see two leaders in our industry debating the resolution “AI is Fair Use” with the winner based on audience votes before vs. after the debate. Don’t miss this exciting final session for the conference where your participation will decide the outcome!

Etzer Botes (Senior Director of Enterprise Strategy at Wiley) will moderate the debate.

 

 

 

 

Debaters: 

David Atkinson, Lecturer, University of Texas at Austin

Adam Eisgrau, Senior Director of AI, Creativity and Copyright Policy, Chamber of Progress

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SSP Originals Auction

SSP members and supporters are donating their creativity to the Generations Fund. During the 2025 Annual Meeting in Baltimore, MD, you can bid on their original creations, and your purchase will help support our Fellowship, Mentoring and DEIA programs long-term. The pieces will be on display in the Exhibit Hall at the SSP booth.

View the SSP Originals Auction >>

Exhibit and Sponsorship Opportunities

Partner with SSP and put your organization on display at the SSP Annual Meeting. This dynamic event will provide exhibitors and sponsors with opportunities to present sessions, network with attendees, build brand awareness and more! See the full 2025 Exhibitor and Sponsor Prospectus. All opportunities are available on a first-come, first-served basis. Exhibitors and sponsors can make valuable contacts though our targeted audience.

SECURE YOUR PLACE >>
Contact Christen Pruitt 
at [email protected].

SHARE YOUR PARTICIPATION ON SOCIAL MEDIA #SSP2025

 

Annual Meeting Buddy Program

For the second year, SSP is organizing a Buddy Program—pairing first-time attendees with seasoned Meeting attendees to answer questions and facilitate networking. If you are a first-time attendee and would like a Buddy, or if you are a frequent SSP Annual Meeting attendee and would like to volunteer as a Buddy, please indicate when you register.

Please sign up to participate in the program, either as a first-time attendee or as a buddy, by Thursday, May 8, 2025. Participants will receive their match(es) in advance of the meeting.