Library Newsletter – January 2026
AFBI Repository
The AFBI Repository is AFBI’s digital platform for preserving, disseminating and making AFBI research openly available. It already contains over seven hundred peer-reviewed articles published by AFBI staff, making publicly funded research available to all. The benefits of depositing your research in the AFBI Repository include greater visibility of your work and potentially higher citation rates, compliance with funder mandates, as well as helping to develop a central repository of AFBI research which can attract other researchers who may wish to collaborate.
Members of library staff administer the repository, checking and uploading articles recorded on the AFBI outputs database, making sure we do so in compliance with publishers’ open access and copyright policies.
When research has been published fully open access in a journal (Gold OA route), we can usually upload the final published version to the repository without needing to contact the authors. When research has been published behind a paywall in a subscription journal (Green OA route), we email authors to request the ‘accepted manuscript’ version of the article for upload to the repository in line with the publisher’s policy.
AFBI researchers can help grow the repository by adding their research outputs to the AFBI Outputs database and providing accepted manuscripts when contacted by library staff.
Follow these links for more information about open access and the repository:
Open Access FAQs The AFBI Repoitory Open Access Resources
Library Training
The AFBI Library’s training programme runs from January to May and offers a mix of online and in-person sessions to build your research skills, from literature searching to reference management and open access support. Sessions are open to all AFBI staff and cover key tools and techniques that support your research workflow.
Introduction to the Library
Essential for new starters or as a refresher on Library resources and services. Multiple half-hour sessions are available from January to April, both in-person (VSD & Newforge) and via Teams.
Effective Search Strategies for Research
Learn how to build and refine search strategies to help you find the right literature (Teams & Newforge). Two one-hour sessions are available in February and March, delivered at Newforge and via Teams.
Finding Literature using Web of Science
Apply your search skills in this key database, explore cited references and export results to EndNote. Multiple one-hour sessions run from February to April, available at VSD, Newforge, and via Teams.
Introduction to EndNote
A 90-minute session suitable for new and returning users to support creating storing and managing your references and Cite While You Write. Multiple sessions are available from March to May, delivered both in person and online.
Open Access Tools and AFBI Institutional Repository
Learn about open access publishing options and how to use the AFBI Repository, at a half-hour session on Tuesday 28 April at 10.30am.
Registration:
All sessions require registration, and you can do so by clicking here. Contact afbilib@qub.ac.uk for more information.
Room Bookings
There are 5 rooms available for booking in Newforge Library:
- AFBI Newforge Library Meeting Room: Perfect for meetings of up to 7 people, with a large screen and webcam.
- AFBI Newforge Library Reading Room: Open-plan collaboration area for larger meetings of up to 18 people. Also features a large screen and webcam.
- AFBI Newforge Library Computer Rooms 1, 2 & 3: Room 1 has a PC, screen and webcam, and Rooms 2 and 3 have docking stations. All perfect for 1-2 people, as a quiet workspace.
You can book each space by inviting the room to a meeting from your calendar on Outlook.
If you have any issues, please contact the Library at afbilib@qub.ac.uk.
