© 2003 by ICES/CIEM International Council for the Exploration of the Sea/Conseil International pour l'Exploration de la Mer
Editorial |
Sixty volumes of the Journal du Conseil / ICES Journal of Marine Science
*Correspondence to J. Ramster: 3 Woodside Avenue, Bridge of Weir PA11 3PQ, UK; tel: +44 1502 615402. e-mail: jramster{at}lineone.net.
Article 1 of the ICES Convention of 1964 sets out the fundamental purposes of the Council and includes as the third and final point: "to publish or otherwise disseminate the results of research and investigations carried out under its auspices or to encourage the publication thereof". Publication and dissemination of information about the living resources and their environment have been at the heart of ICES from the first then, but not until the early 1920s was it mooted that a platform was needed solely for the publication of formal scientific papers. The decision to establish the Journal du Conseil was taken at the Council Meeting of 1925, and the first volume appeared between February and November 1926 as four issues, with a total of 383 pages. In 2002, six issues as well as a supplement were published as the 59th volume, with a total of 1732 pages, six issues a year having become the norm in 1995 when ICES Symposium papers became part of the Journal's remit. Accordingly, the current issue signals the completion of the 60th volume in this series.
The intrinsic interest of ICES scientists in getting papers published in the Journal was always apparent, but it was not every year that a full volume appeared. Beginning in the 1980s, and particularly since 1991 when Academic Press became ICES' formal publication partner for the Journal du Conseil and its name was changed to the ICES Journal of Marine Science, this interest has grown prodigiously. In 1983, for example, 28 papers were submitted for publication, but by 1993 this had risen to 88, and to 155 in 2002 (excluding symposium proceedings).
Photographs of the seven principal Editors of the Journal from 1926 through 2003 appear on the facing page. They were assisted, in turn, by Robert Dickson (book reviews; 1978–1982), and by John Ramster (1983–), Stephen Smith (1992–1997), John Hislop (1998–2001), Michael Chadwick (1998–2001), Andrew Payne (2000–2003), Pierre Pepin (2001–), Bernard Megrey (2001–), and Chris Frid (2002–). Søren Lund of ICES became the hub of the initial processing system in January 2002.
Judith Rosenmeier has been the overseeing editorial presence at ICES Headquarters for a range of publications since 1977 and has played an important role, particularly during the Journal du Conseil–ICES Journal of Marine Science transition phase. She has also seen the acquisition of the Academic Press imprint by Elsevier in 2001 and, above all perhaps in long-term future importance to the Journal, the initiation of accepted papers being placed on the Web by Academic/Elsevier. This latter development generates funding for both partners that has proved most useful as the Journal has expanded and economic support has become more important. In all these later developments she was greatly helped by the business acumen and innate sympathy for every scientific author of Andrew Richford, executive editor for Academic Press and, subsequently, Elsevier.
As the current Editorial Team, we thank not only all the authors who have sent us texts for consideration over the years but also the referees who have helped us to process them. The continued support of both these parties is, of course, essential. We also acknowledge, at this signal moment in the history of the Journal, the efforts and dedication of earlier Editors and their assistants.
Since 1983 the overall aim of successive Editorial Teams has been to get into print within a year of receipt any paper that gets a fair wind from referees. This has been achieved many times and will continue to be our main target in practical terms. In a wider context we will seek to maintain, and if possible increase, the good standing of the Journal that has been achieved and to further its development in every way to the advantage of, first, the ICES community, and second, marine and fisheries science worldwide.
E. S. Russell (1926–1939)
J. R. Lumby (1940–1957)
A. Fridriksson (1958–1959)
F. R. Harden Jones (1960–1983)
R. J. H. Beverton (1983–1991)
J. H. S. Blaxter (1992–1997)
N. Daan (1998–2003)
Left to right: Pierre Pepin, John Ramster, Niels Daan, Chris Frid, Bernard Megrey, and Andy Payne. ICES, Copenhagen, 2002.
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