The pandemic united us in ways we'd never experienced. It blurred the lines between silos and helped us realize shared experiences where we may have thought "disparate" was a better descriptor of roles in the publishing community. We realized that we all want best-in-class in collaboration, problem-solving, and inclusion, even though our environment sometimes makes it difficult for us to imagine seeing eye-to-eye. || Speakers: Michele Avissar-Whiting; Dominque J. Moore; Ben Mudrak; Jennifer Regala; Alexa Colella; Willa Liburd Tavernier

Responsible and rigorous peer review is critical to the academic publishing process. Over the past two years, researchers have not only faced a global pandemic but have also had to manage an overwhelming flood of requests to review manuscripts. The pandemic has left the already-strained peer review system in a state of burnout. Editors, publishers, and researchers continuously ask themselves: How can we improve and yet simplify this essential process? What can we do to support researchers and peer reviewers in sustainable and equitable ways? Join us in this dynamic conversation as speakers discuss how all stakeholders can strike the right balance between streamlining peer review to deal with increasing research output and ensuring that it is thorough enough to uncover critical issues and ethical problems. Strategies for how the academic publishing community can protect and support this essential workflow will also be explored.