The SDG Publishers Compact Fellows: A Conversation with Debra Rowe and Jo Wixon on Sustainability, Action, and the Indirect Lobby of Science Editors for Change-Making

Debra Rowe is President of the U.S. Partnership for Education for Sustainable Development. She works with the Higher Education Sustainability Initiative, a collaboration of 10 UN agencies, chairing groups on Education for Green Jobs and Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) Publishers Compact Fellows. Rowe taught renewable energies and sustainable development at Oakland Community College and University of Vermont. She facilitates higher education networks and has played a key role in shaping sustainability education and policy. Dr Jo Wixon is a seasoned scientist-publisher and strategist with 25 years of experience in scholarly publishing. Having developed many journals, portfolios, and society partnerships, and provided strategic insights and planning to editors, societies, and Wiley’s portfolio, she is currently Director of External Analysis for Wiley’s journals. As a Higher Education Sustainability Initiative (HESI) SDG Publishers Compact Fellow, Wixon champions increasing the impact of research beyond academia and sustainability in journal publishing, working with Association of Learned and Professional Society Publishers (ALPSP), European Association of Science Editors (EASE), and STM. She is also an ALPSP Director and EASE Council member, supporting strategic planning and implementation. Eleonora Colangelo (EC): What first inspired your interest in sustainability in scholarly publishing, and how did that lead you to join the SDG Publishers Compact Fellows? Debra Rowe (DR): This initiative began when I participated in meetings with the International Publishers Association (IPA), its president at the time, and the Head of Publications at the UN Publications Office—the two entities that launched the SDG Publishers Compact. We discussed how Compact’s 10 […]