[BOAI] Ontario Genomics Institute Launches Fund to Support Open Access to Genomics Publications

[Peter Suber]

[Forwarding from the Ontario Genomics Institute.  --Peter Suber.]


PRESS RELEASE
*For Immediate Release*

*
OGI Launches Fund to Support Open Access to Genomics Publications*

* *

*Toronto, May 19, 2010* - The Ontario Genomics Institute (OGI) has announced
the launch of a new fund to support free and unrestricted access to
scholarly research papers on genomics published in high impact journals.
The *OGI Genomics Publication Fund (GPF) *will contribute up to $3,000 per
publication to genomics researchers in Ontario wishing to make their papers
available as Open Access from the earliest date of publication.



Open Access publication means providing access to material via the Internet
in such a way that the material is free for all users to read and use.



The GPF, open to researchers at Ontario-based academic, industry or
government institutions, has two aims:   to maximize facile, timely access
to key genomics publications by all stakeholders (funders, the scientific
community, students, teachers and other interested parties); and to increase
the profile, visibility and citations of genomics research conducted in the
province and published in top international journals.  OGI anticipates
supporting up to 35 Open Access publications over the next 12 months, either
reimbursing special fees charged by traditional publishers to make
individual manuscripts Open Access from the earliest date of publication, or
defraying publication costs for manuscripts published in Open Access
journals.



"This fund is the first of its kind in targeting potential high impact
publications," commented Dr. James Till, University Professor Emeritus at
the University of Toronto, winner of the Lasker Prize for his co-discovery
of stem cells, and an advocate of long standing for Open Access to
peer-reviewed research publications.  "OGI's program is targeting those
publications with the greatest potential reach.  Open sharing of knowledge
should help to foster cross-disciplinary collaborations and  to catalyze
further research."



Examples of high impact journals on which the OGI GPF is focused include the
*Public Library of Science* journals, *Cell*, *The Lancet*, *Nature*, *New
England Journal of Medicine, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences
USA,*, *Genome Research* and *Science*, among others.    Several leading
life science research funders, such as the National Institutes of Health,
Howard Hughes Medical Institute and the Wellcome Trust, require that
publications resulting from research funded by them be made available Open
Access.  Many journals, including *Nature* and *Cell*, have agreements with
one or more of these funders to make any required publication Open Access
within a defined time frame, either free of charge after a longer period or
for a nominal fee beforehand.  Currently, though some Canadian funders have
policies requiring Open Access availability for publications reporting
research they have supported --  the Canadian Institutes of Health Research
(CIHR), for example, expects Open Access availability of such papers within
six months of earliest date of publication --  no Canadian funders have
announced securing such agreements with the publishers of these journals.



"We hope that the launch of this fund will act as a catalyst for others to
follow suit, and encourage funders, publishers and researchers to establish
Open Access publication as the default practice," commented Dr. Christian
Burks, President and CEO of OGI.  "We will be monitoring this program, and
looking for opportunities to enhance the rate of Open Access publication
from Ontario researchers and other Canadian researchers."



Applications for the GPF can be submitted any time and support will be given
on a first come, first served basis.



"An awful lot of people in the scientific community as well as the public
have really been disenfranchised in their ability to access scientific
literature," commented Dr. Richard Roberts, Chief Scientific Officer of New
England Biolabs, and winner of the 1993 Nobel Prize in Physiology or
Medicine for his discovery of split genes, and a champion of Open Access.
"Many high schools, colleges, universities and small businesses simply don't
have the funds to access the totality of the world's literature.  This has
significant repercussions in terms of encouraging the future generation of
scientists and supporting entrepreneurs, often integral in moving science
forward."



"The general public also doesn't have easy access to publications, which is
incredibly unjust considering it's their tax dollars that are often funding
research and indirectly paying for the literature through grants," continued
Dr. Roberts.  "Access will help the public understand what the current
treatments are, what trials are taking place and what new medicines might be
available to them.  OGI's new program is one more step towards making open
access the norm."



For more information on OGI's GPF and application details, visit:
http://www.ontariogenomics.ca/research/ogi-genomics-publication-fund-gpf



For a more detailed description of Open Access literature and links to
related information and sites, see:

http://www.earlham.edu/~peters/fos/brief.htm

-30-



*About OGI*

The Ontario Genomics Institute (OGI) is a private, not-for-profit
corporation focused on using world-class research to create strategic
genomics resources and accelerate Ontario's development of a
globally-competitive life sciences sector.  Through its relationship with
Genome Canada, the Ontario Ministry of Research and Innovation (MRI), and
other private and public sector partners, OGI works to: identify, attract
and support investment in Ontario-led genomics research; catalyze access to
and the impact of genomics resources; and, raise the visibility of genomics
as well as its impact and associated issues.

For more information on OGI, please visit www.OntarioGenomics.ca



*OGI media enquiries:*

Alastair Harris-Cartwright

Corporate Communications Manager

T: +1 (416) 673-6582

E: aharriscartwright at OntarioGenomics.ca
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