Research funded by the Canadian government’s three major funding agencies will now be made widely available online under a new policy announced February 27.
The Tri-Agency Open Access Policy on Publications will require that researchers funded by the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC), the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada (SSHRC) and the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR) make the results of their research freely available online within 12 months of publication.
Researchers can do this either by publishing in an Open Access journal or depositing their work in an online archive/repository.
“This will maximize the impact and accessibility of Canadian scholarship, including the results of research conducted at Brock University,” says Gary Libben, Vice-President, Research.
The policy will require NSERC and SSHRC funded researchers to comply with the policy for all grants awarded May 1, 2015 and onward. Researchers holding grants awarded before May 1, 2015 are also encouraged to follow the policy. CIHR recipients already adhere to an Open Access policy.
“The University library and Office of Research Services are collaborating to ensure that Brock is well positioned to support and inform Brock researchers about the policy and assist them in complying with its requirements,” says Barbara McDonald, Interim University Librarian.
Resources available to researchers include:
• Brock’s Digital Repository, an open, online archive where researchers can deposit their published research and make it accessible to the world
• the Library Open Access Publishing Fund, which supports authors who may be required to pay article processing charges to publish in an Open Access journal
• scholarly communication librarian Elizabeth Yates, who is happy to assist researchers in selecting appropriate venues to make their research openly accessible, whether via an Open Access journal or by archiving it online
• upcoming information sessions about the new policy
• grant application workshops
Details of Minister Holder’s announcement are available here.
For further information or assistance, contact: Elizabeth Yates, Liaison/Scholarly Communication Librarian, at eyates@brocku.ca or x4469.
