It has recently come to our attention that some journals may not be honoring name change requests from authors in electronic publications, including trans authors who have newly shared their identities with the scientific community. This is unnecessary and harmful in the modern era of digital publishing, DOIs, and ORCID IDs. The Committee on Publishing Ethics, an industry organization dedicated to setting best practices guides for scholarly publishing, is currently drafting guidance that member journals should explicitly allow post-publication name changes without an erratum..
As members of the American Astronomical Society (AAS) Committee on the Status of Women in Astronomy (CSWA), we are charged with recommending to the AAS Board of Trustees measures to improve the status of women in astronomy and encourage their entry and retention in our field. Our goal is to build an inclusive and self-sustaining community that supports gender equity and the success of women in astronomy (as defined in our 2020 Strategic Plan). The CSWA interprets “women” to mean people who identify as female, including trans women, genderqueer women, and nonbinary people who are significantly female-identified, and includes women with multiple, intersectional identities, including race, ethnicity, class, disability, and more.
The ability to change names is a fundamental right of authors. In order to remove barriers and build an inclusive community, the CSWA requests that journals allow authors to change their names. The AAS recently adopted a new policy allowing authors to change their names on any previously published research in all the AAS publications. This new policy has been well received by the community, and we would be glad to provide additional information to any journal interested in implementing such changes. Please contact us at cswa_at_lists.aas.org.
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