[BOAI] OA mandate from the US National Center for Atmospheric Research

[Peter Suber]

[Forwarding from the US National Center for Atmospheric Research.  --Peter 
Suber.]


New Open Access Policy for NCAR Research

Boulder, Colorado - The National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR) has 
passed an Open Access policy that
requires that all peer-reviewed research published by its scientists and 
staff in scientific journals be made publicly available online through its 
institutional repository.  The new policy has been put in place by the 
University Corporation for Atmospheric Research (UCAR), the governing body 
that manages NCAR. A national lab, NCAR is sponsored by the National 
Science Foundation. It has conducted research into the atmospheric sciences 
since 1960.

UCAR last month formalized the new policy and is developing an 
institutional repository known as OpenSky, which will include all published 
studies by NCAR and UCAR researchers in scientific journals. The repository 
will be free and available to the public, but access to the works it 
contains will depend upon the policies of their publishers.  In support of 
copyright law and the health of the publishers that support NCAR and UCAR 
science, all publishing agreements will be honored. OpenSky will be managed 
by the NCAR Library and is expected to go live in 2010.

"This updated policy will support broader access to the cutting-edge 
research conducted at NCAR, covering climate, weather, air quality, and 
other areas vital to society and the environment," says Mary Marlino, the 
Director of the NCAR Library. "It is especially timely because it comes at 
a critical time for atmospheric science research. I can think of no better 
way to celebrate the 50th anniversary of NCAR than to formalize our 
longstanding commitment to open science, open access, and open 
data."  Marlino adds, "The policy that we have developed respects the 
policies that publishers self-set, and it is our intention to continue to 
honor publisher policy, while at the same time, to monitor developments in 
this fast evolving arena."

UCAR is a nonprofit corporation formed in 1959 by research institutions 
with doctoral programs in the atmospheric and related sciences. UCAR was 
formed to enhance the computing and observational capabilities of the 
universities and to focus on scientific problems that are beyond the scale 
of a single university.  NCAR supports the UCAR mission by providing the 
university science and teaching community with the tools, facilities, and 
support required to perform innovative research.

For more information, visit http://opensky.library.ucar.edu/policy, or 
contact Jamaica Jones, jamaica at ucar.edu.

The University Corporation for Atmospheric Research manages the National 
Center for Atmospheric Research under sponsorship by the National Science 
Foundation. Any opinions, findings and conclusions, or recommendations 
expressed in this publication are those of the author(s) and do not 
necessarily reflect the views of the National Science Foundation.