Association Statements

The ACA employs a strategic approach that combines innovative solutions, community engagement, and collaboration with like-minded partners in pursuit of our mission and goals. At the core of our organization is a commitment to diversity, recognizing the strength that comes from embracing different perspectives, backgrounds, and ideas. Upholding the highest ethical standards, we ensure transparency, integrity, and accountability in all our endeavors. 

Mission Statement

The American Crystallographic Association (ACA) advances, promotes and preserves crystallography, structural science, and allied disciplines for the benefit of humankind. The ACA provides students, young scientists and experienced crystallographers with opportunities to exhibit their achievements in research, creative and scholarly activities, and leadership. The ACA contributes to the intellectual, economic and scientific advancement of the communities and individuals it serves though conferences, publications and public outreach.

Vision Statement

The American Crystallographic Association (ACA) is committed to serving students and young scientists through education, and embraces its role as a leader and collaborative partner to meet the educational and research aspirations of structural scientists in North America and around the world. Our dynamic environment shapes the association to realize our shared future. The ACA informs every dimension of its activities - cultivating learning, discovery of knowledge and encouraging shared leadership - to position the ACA as a model scientific interdisciplinary society.

Strategy Statement

The American Crystallographic Association (ACA) will actively respond to the needs and opportunities of structural scientists in North America by pursuing innovative partnerships, by adhering to our fundamental commitment to provide educational and research experiences to students and young scientists, and by supporting life-long learning and career development

Diversity Statement

The American Crystallographic Association is committed to diversity and inclusiveness in our membership, as well as in all activities, events, and programs, and services. Scientific innovation requires bringing together both diverse ideas and people from varied backgrounds who may have different world views and ways of solving problems. The ACA seeks to include and engage members across age, gender identity and expression, race, nationality, ethnicity, physical ability, marital status, sexual orientation, socioeconomic status, military or veteran status, or any other facet of social diversity in our society and seeks to remove obstacles to their professional growth and advancement. Through our actions at the international, national, and local levels, we strive to promote inclusion in academic, industrial, and government institutions for both current and future members of our organization.

Statement on Ethics

[Adopted by ACA Council on April 28, 1996]

Members are expected to follow the highest ethical standards in their scientific activities and in their interactions with other colleagues. The scientific results of research should be made available to the community in an appropriate manner. It is the responsibility of all members to guard against misconduct. Special attention should be paid to the following:

1. All papers for which crystallographic structural results are part of the scientific content must have as one of the authors the crystallographer who did the work.

2. Every publication should list, as authors, all participants in that research who are able to defend part or all of the new scientific results. Authors must give proper credit to previous work done by others that is germane to the topic.

3. Crystallographic papers should contain atomic coordinates or an indication where they were deposited and how copies may be obtained. Because original data serve as the basis for the correctness of the scientific conclusions it is recommended that measured intensities or F(obs) values and their estimated standard deviations be deposited in an appropriate archive easily accessible to the community. Where a structure determination is not reported in a publication, the authors should arrange for the numerical information to be deposited in an appropriate database.

4. When reference is made to a coordinate set taken from a data bank, credit should be given to the original depositors. However it is sufficient to cite the data bank if the data are only being used for statistical purposes. When structural information that is not published in the open literature or is not deposited in a public data bank is to be used in a publication, permission for such use should be sought from the originator of the structural information.

5. Senior scientists should use the laboratory setting to ensure that those whom they supervise understand the values, ethical prescriptions, and institutional guidelines governing research.

6. Scientists must guard against conscious or unpremeditated lapses in ethics when reviewing papers and grant proposals.

7. Authors should not present the same paper, either orally or as a poster, if the paper has already been accepted and/or presented at another national or international scientific meeting.

8. None of the ACA ethical guidelines excludes or replaces ethical guidelines promulgated by other scientific organizations.