[okfn-br] Fwd: Is Open Access still relevant? | invitation to a discussion

Quarta Janeiro 23 17:05:47 UTC 2013

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: sumandro <sumandro at gmail.com>
Date: 2013/1/23
Subject: [open-science] Is Open Access still relevant? | invitation to
a discussion
To: open-humanities em lists.okfn.org, open-science em lists.okfn.org

Is Open Access still relevant?

The last years have been both satisfying and challenging for the Open
Access community worldwide. On one hand, we have experienced numerous
'victories' of the OA agenda, such as the OA policy of Research
Council UK, the Finch Committee report, and the OA policy of World
Bank. Various agreeable arguments have been made forcefully to
highlight the need for a transition to OA models of publication --
from betterment of academic practices, to economic growth to human
development. On the other hand, the OA agenda seems like only one, and
not a major one at that, 'openness' movement among a crowd of
similarly prefixed movements. Further, the OA agenda increasingly
appears to be a rather limited, rigid, and old one. Many other
'openness' movements such as Open Data and Open Educational Resources,
one may argue, are more effectively designed to better academic
practices, drive economic growth and influence human development.

In a powerful critique of the existing OA agenda, Peter Murray-Rust
asks: 'Is "Open Access" the same sort of beast [as the modern ideology
and practice of "Open"]?'
<http://blog.okfn.org/2012/10/26/is-open-access-open/>. He goes on to
list out the features of this 'modern ideology and practice of
"Open"': meritocracy, universality of participation, a willingness to
listen, openness of process, openness of results, and a mechanism to
change current practices (please see his blog post for clarification
of these features). Instead of having 'open' self-reflections about
the changing context and the need for revised strategies, as Eve Gray
explains, the OA agenda has often remained haunted by the Budapest
Open Access Initiative past and failed to interact with emerging
allies such as OA scholarly publications and grey literatures.

To ask the looming question bluntly, is there a need to envision a
new, more contemporary if nothing else, version of the OA agenda?

In the face of increasing acceptance of OA for journal-based research
publications by national and super-national bodies, what are the next
frontiers of the OA agenda? Does the journal-centric strategy of the
existing OA agenda needs revisiting? The last question is especially
pertinent in the context of developing countries, where policy-making
is often influenced by privately-funded research. Access to such
documents (and their underlying datasets) are significant in such
cases for ensuring government accountability, or simply to induce a
broad, informed discussion regarding making of national policies. At
the same time, the diversity of national policy frameworks across the
world poses a critical challenge to any global movement that aims to
address global concerns while engaging with local specificities and
demands. Similarly for OA agenda, it is crucial to discuss the
possibility of a more participatory, flexible and open process of
setting strategic agendas at national and regional scales. In this
context, it might be useful to revisit the BOAI definition of OA, and
question whether this definition is sufficient for a global OA agenda,
and also whether the existing OA models (such as Gold and Green OA)
are sufficient for delivering the promise of that definition.

To return to the context of various 'openness' movements unfolding
worldwide, one may ask, if the OA agenda is now best pursued by
dissolving it within other 'openness' movements? Should we talk more
of an alliance between various 'openness' movements, or an expansion
of some to incorporate the others?

To take part in this fascinating debate which is hosted on the WSIS
Knowledge Communities, click the following link here
[http://www.wsis-community.org/pg/forum/topic/586392/is-open-access-only-for-rich-countries-participate-now-in-an-online-dialogue-on-open-access-and-the-developing-world/].
Please note that you will need to go to the last page of the
discussion as posts are ordered from first to last.

*Register here*

[http://www.wsis-community.org/pg/forum/topic/586392/is-open-access-only-for-rich-countries-participate-now-in-an-online-dialogue-on-open-access-and-the-developing-world/]

[http://cvs2.uwc.ac.za/trac/chisimba/browser/branding/Chisimba_Newsletter/Chisimba_edition_3.pdf]
[http://cvs2.uwc.ac.za/trac/chisimba/browser/branding/Chisimba_Newsletter/Chisimba_edition_3.pdf]

[https://www.facebook.com/pages/Open-Access-debates/356010021156418]

*Tweet using #developOA*

Partners

Institute for Development studies [http://www.ids.ac.uk/]

[http://www.ids.ac.uk/]

The Centre for Internet and Society [http://cis-india.org/]

The African Commons Project [http://www.africancommons.org/]

Resources [http://www.gray-area.co.za/]

Open Access and and Development- Journals

and Beyond [http://www.africancommons.org/wp-content/uploads/2012/11/Open-Access-and-Development-Journals-and-Beyond.pdf]

[http://www.africancommons.org/wp-content/uploads/2012/11/Open-Access-and-Development-Journals-and-Beyond.pdf]

[http://www.gray-area.co.za/]

Gray Area -A blog which focuses on Access to Knowledge and Open Access
[http://www.gray-area.co.za/]

UNESCO Human Rights declaration
[http://www.unesco.org/new/en/social-and-human-sciences/themes/human-rights-based-approach/60th-anniversary-of-udhr/unesco-and-the-declaration/]

WSIS Knowledge Communities

Open Access platform
[http://www.wsis-community.org/pg/forum/topic/586392/is-open-access-only-for-rich-countries-participate-now-in-an-online-dialogue-on-open-access-and-the-developing-world/]

Openuct initiative - opening scholarship [http://openuct.uct.ac.za/]

Please send this email to someone you think may be interested.

Funded by DFID [http://www.dfid.gov.uk/], through the Mobilising
Knowledge for Development (MK4D)
[http://www.dfid.gov.uk/R4D/Project/60700/Default.aspx]programme in

the Institute for Development Studies [http://www.ids.ac.uk/]
[http://www.ids.ac.uk]

Emailer compiled by The African Commons Project [http://africancommons.org/]

sumandro
ajantriks.net

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-- 
Everton Zanella Alvarenga (also Tom)
Open Knowledge Foundation Brasil
Rede pelo Conhecimento Livre
http://br.okfn.org