This October 20 – 26 is International Open Access Week 2025, organized by SPARC in partnership with the Open Access Week Advisory Committee.
Who Owns Our Knowledge ?
This year’s theme asks a pointed question about the present moment and how, in a time of disruption, communities can reassert control over the knowledge they produce. It also challenges us to reflect on not only who has access to education and research but on how knowledge is created and shared, where it has come from, and whose voices are recognized and valued.
→ From Closed to Open Infrastructures for Research Assessment and Metascience
This bilingual hybrid event features Dr. Stefanie Haustein and Dr. Juan Pablo Alperin (PKP Co-Scientific Director), who will examine the evolution of research assessment infrastructure and its implications for equity, transparency, and inclusivity in scholarly communication.
Dr. Haustein will trace the history of closed bibliometric infrastructures and their lasting influence, while Dr. Alperin will outline the opportunities presented by open infrastructures—systems designed to be community-driven, transparent, and inclusive of diverse types of research outputs. Together, they will consider how today’s choices shape who is recognized, rewarded, and included in the scholarly record of tomorrow.
The session will take place on October 23 at the University of Ottawa and online via Zoom.
→ Owning Our Knowledge: Non-Commercial Pathways for Open Access Publishing
The International Science Council (ISC) hosted an online session exploring community-led and scholar-driven approaches to scholarly publishing. This session showcased non-commercial, open-access platforms that empower researchers and communities to share knowledge equitably and sustainably.
Jessica Dallaire-Clark, Senior Coordinator of Open Access Development at Érudit, joined members of the Academy of Science of South Africa (ASSAf), the International Society for Porous Media (InterPore), CLACSO and The Royal Society.
→ The Lasting Impact of Open Access for Journals on Érudit: More Views and a More Diversified Readership
Érudit recently shared a study conducted on the effects of immediate open access for journals published on the erudit.org platform. For readers, the benefits of this type of access are undeniable, but what about for the journals themselves? Simon van Bellen, Érudit’s Senior Research Advisor, therefore looked at various impacts for journals, particularly on the visibility of articles and the diversity in origin of article views.
The results are conclusive:
- In the first year an article is published, open access increases the number of views by a factor of 3.2 compared to articles published behind a moving wall.
- Open access also led to greater geographical diversity in the readership, with a median of 23 different countries of origin for articles published in open access.
- The effect is lasting: five years after publication, immediate open access led to 25% more views than articles published behind a moving wall.
Consult the more detailed results of this study.
→ Who Owns Our Knowledge? How Communities Power the Future of Open Publishing with PKP
In their recent blog post, the Public Knowledge Project (PKP) considers the question of how communities can reassert control over their knowledge production. In a time of growing concern about sovereignty and control of scholarly infrastructure — especially in politically unstable contexts — PKP provides a distributed, quality open-source alternative that keeps ownership and control in the hands of the academic community.
PKP’s actions are guided by the belief that scholars and communities should control how their knowledge is created, shared, and preserved. Their free, open-source software — like Open Journal Systems (OJS)— empowers thousands of journals worldwide to publish independently and openly. Join them as they celebrate the global community of contributors who make this possible.
Social Media Sharing
If you’ve been involved in activities with PKP, Érudit, or Coalition Publica, or have community events coming up, take a moment to celebrate and raise awareness by sharing your story on social media!
PKP: Facebook |Twitter |LinkedIn |YouTube |Mastodon
Érudit: Facebook |Instagram |LinkedIn
Hashtags to use: #OAWeek #OpenAccess #CoalitionPublica
