Abstract
For open access (OA) to become a reality, all stakeholders will need to engage positively with each other to rise to the substantial practical challenges it brings. This means moving beyond advocacy and resistance towards a more mature, evidence-based dialogue that seeks to understand all perspectives and find workable solutions. For research funders, scholarly publication delivers crucial public benefits; funders' OA mandates should be seen as tools for maximizing these benefits. The Higher Education Funding Council for England's (HEFCE) policy for open access in the next Research Excellence Framework (REF) has been put together by listening to all sides of the debate, and its success depends on continuing positive, sensitive and engaged discussions between everyone involved.
Highlights
In spite of the indisputable economic, social and ethical case for granting open access (OA) to our research findings[1,2,3,4,5,6,7], the journey towards OA feels painfully slow[8,9]
The authors of this article are most concerned, for obvious reasons, with the implications of OA for funders like The Higher Education Funding Council for England (HEFCE) and the other three UK HE funding bodies, with whom HEFCE has developed its forthcoming open access policy. It is from this perspective of research funder that we write this article
Though, and we must understand the issues from all sides before we implement any policy that could have profound effects on the research community. This is why HEFCE and the other funders undertook a double consultation on open access in relation to the research assessment exercise that follows the current REF10
Summary
In spite of the indisputable economic, social and ethical case for granting open access (OA) to our research findings[1,2,3,4,5,6,7], the journey towards OA feels painfully slow[8,9]. The authors of this article are most concerned, for obvious reasons, with the implications of OA for funders like The Higher Education Funding Council for England (HEFCE) and the other three UK HE funding bodies, with whom HEFCE has developed its forthcoming open access policy It is from this perspective of research funder that we write this article. HEFCE funds research as a public good: the creation and dissemination of knowledge and insights has the power to transform our world for the better For this reason, it is our long-standing position that the research we fund should reach the widest possible audience to maximize its chances of having a positive economic, social and cultural impact[12,13]. For OA publication to truly take hold, a number of important practical questions will need to be answered
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