International Consortium Calls for Enhanced Open Access in Higher Education Funding
cOAlition S, an international consortium of research funding and performing organizations, has provided crucial feedback on the draft open access (OA) policy for the UK’s next Research Excellence Framework (REF) in 2029. The consortium suggests revisions to align more closely with Plan S and global initiatives aimed at making publicly funded research outputs freely available.
Evolving Open Access Landscape and Global Recognition
In its response, cOAlition S highlights the significant changes in the open access landscape since REF 2021. The benefits of open access, such as increased research efficiency, greater impact, better value for money, and the removal of financial barriers for researchers globally, have gained wider recognition. However, the consortium believes that the proposed REF requirements lag behind the OA policies developed by most funders in Europe and the United States. They suggest several key areas for improvement:
Key Areas for Consideration:
1. Eliminating Embargoes: cOAlition S recommends eliminating all embargoes for in-scope research outputs, such as journal articles and conference proceedings.
2. Mandatory Open Licences and Institutional Repositories: They advocate for all in-scope research outputs to use open licenses (in line with the UKRI open access policy) and be deposited in institutional repositories to enable full and easy re-use.
3. Recognizing Peer-Reviewed Preprints: The consortium suggests recognizing peer-reviewed preprints as meeting the 2029 REF OA requirements to accelerate the dissemination of research, as outlined in their "Towards Responsible Publishing" proposal.
4. Reducing Embargo for Long-Form Publications: cOAlition S proposes reducing the maximum embargo period for long-form publications from 24 months to 12 months, consistent with the approach of UKRI and Plan S.
5. Ensuring Open Access for Long-Form Publications: They emphasize the importance of making long-form publications Open Access, even if third-party material licensing cannot be granted.
Conclusion
cOAlition S's recommendations aim to strengthen the UK’s open access policy, promoting greater transparency, accessibility, and impact for publicly funded research. Adopting these suggestions would align the UK's REF 2029 more closely with international standards and ensure that research outputs are freely available to the global community.
