The Island of Madagascar, home of lemurs and famous as a hotspot for biodiversity, is hosting the ‘Circulation des zoonoses et des parasitoses dans l’océan Indien‘ between 9th and 11th November. The meeting focusses on the parasitological and veterinary research undertaken in the region.

Open access offers many opportunities for scientists in the developing world – not only improved access to international scientific literature, but also the opportunity to develop (or re-develop) their own national and regional journals. Such journals have a pivotal role to play in creating the environment and infrastructure needed for research to flourish.

Marcel Hommel and Michel Bremont, Editors-in-Chief of Malaria Journal and Veterinary Research respectively, will be attending the meeting, to be held in French, to discuss their experiences of open access in the parasitological and veterinary fields. In addition, Sandra Le, Senior Editor at BioMed Central, will be attending the meeting to talk about BioMed Central and its open access policies, with particular emphasis on open access in Africa. The conference, organized by the Académie Nationale des Arts, des Lettres et des Sciences de Madagascar, will bring together librarians, editors and scientists from the region to promote African research and publications. It is fitting that this meeting on open access will take place on 10 November, the World Science Day for Peace and Development.

Marcel Hommel       Michel Brémont