October 22 - 28, is Open Access Week. Like most researchers, whether you’re an aspiring undergrad, a tenured faculty, or a curious community member, you have probably used scholarly works in your research - does JSTOR, for example, ring a bell? This is the world of open access, but what does “Open Access” actually mean? Open access simply refers to “free and open” scholarly content. Essentially, it is because of open access that we are able to use/re-use scholarly research and do so for free without worry of violating the ‘all rights reserved’ barrier. Open access plays an important role in the advancement of research.
The Kathryn Martin Library is institutional repository for UMD, and has merged with the University of Minnesota Twin Cities University Digital Conservancy (UDC) which provides free public access and long-term preservation to works created at the University. The Martin Library is also home to Scholarly Communications which assists with copyright, open access, publishing and digital scholarship.
To find out more about International Open Access Week you can check out their website.
You can also check out the free film, Paywall, to learn more about open access.
For questions about Open Access, the UDC, or Scholarly Communications, please contact Jodi Carlson Grebinoski.