Open Access at UCT the Social Justice agenda
- Slides: 9
Open Access at UCT: the Social Justice agenda
Knowledge production is for the public good Access to information is a basic human right Access to knowledge is needed to create new knowledge Restricted access to knowledge and research is due to university budgets and journal subscription costs Restricted access prevents researchers, specifically on the African continent, from current debates
If KNOWLEDGE PRODUCTION = public good then ACCESS = public good
Free and unrestricted access Distribution to knowledge and research can occur world-wide Visible and discoverable to all, without payment needed for access Results in upliftment and empowerment for the marginalised Berlin Declaration (2003): “ ”…the willingness of scientists and scholars to publish the fruits of their research in scholarly journals without payment, for the sake of inquiry and knowledge … will accelerate research, enrich education, share the learning of the rich with the poor and the poor with the rich, [which] makes this literature as useful as it can be, and lays the foundation for uniting humanity in a common intellectual conversation and quest for knowledge”
Open Access facilitates the creation of knowledge
Universities role in knowledge creation African universities should be agents for economic growth and development on the continent 80% of knowledge created occurs in Egypt, South Africa and Nigeria UCT has the highest research output on the continent, therefore should share its research for the public good Sharing demonstrates UCT’s moral obligation locally, to the continent and globally, through access to its knowledge
UCT Libraries advances public good free access to UCT’s scholarly output is available via the University’s open access institutional repository open access publishing service has a social justice agenda Library-as publisher is implemented for the African reader and the African author Libraries publishes local knowledge to contribute to providing African solutions
Open Access Week 2018 The theme “Designing Equitable Foundations for Open Knowledge” ensures that open systems are inclusive, equitable, and serve the needs of a diverse global community Social justice extends the concept of equity by promoting fairness and access to the same opportunities The Libraries is currently investigating software so that the text can be read to the reader Thus: Open access in Africa must be driven by a social justice agenda. It provides access for the development and empowerment for all those who have been marginalised.
Equitable Access means we as Africans are striving for African solutions for the entire continent