[BOAI] A new voice for Australian open access celebrates Open Access Week 2012

[Peter Suber]

[Forwarding from Judy Stokker.  --Peter Suber.]

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*PRESS RELEASE*

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*A new voice for Australian open access celebrates Open Access Week 2012****
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The new Australian Open Access Support Group (AOASG) was launched this week
to coincide with international Open Access Week 2012. Open Access makes the
results of publicly funded research freely available on the web to the
world. Open Access helps to increase the speed and visibility of research
and improves community awareness of the results.****

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AOASG aims to be a concerted and coordinated Australian voice in support of
open access. The group will lobby government, have a media presence, and
provide advice and support to both research funding agencies and research
institutions on how to best implement open access policy, practices and
supporting infrastructure.****

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The AOASG is being founded by six Australian universities which already
have an open access policy requiring published research outputs to be made
available: the Australian National University, Charles Sturt University,
Macquarie University, University of Newcastle, Queensland University of
Technology and Victoria University.****

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Support for the open access movement has been increasing steadily. This
year marks the sixth international Open Access Week – designed to raise
awareness of and celebrate open access around the world – with the call to
‘set the default to open access’. Many Australian universities are marking
the week with events and giveaways.****

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Developments in open access have attracted significant attention in the
media in recent months. One of Australia’s two main funding bodies, the
National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC) has a new open access
policy requiring that the results of any research funded by NHMRC research
grants are made available open access within 12 months of the publication
date. The Australian Research Council (ARC) is considering a similar policy.
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Every university in Australia has a digital database, called a repository,
in which research outputs can be made freely available to the world. There
are already more than 200,000 Australian research outputs feely available
in these Australian repositories.****

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The AOASG is developing resources and advocacy materials which will be
available on an open access website early 2013.****

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*Ms Judy Stokker, Director, Library Services QUT and Chair AOASG*

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