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<font face="Verdana" size=2>[Forwarding from SURF. --Peter
Suber.]<br>
<i> <br><br>
</i>PRESS RELEASE<br><br>
<b>Netherlands active in Open Access Week 2009<br><br>
</b><i>Local events link up with international Open Access Week<br><br>
Utrecht, 9 October 2009 </i>– Open Access Week 2009 (19 to 23 October)
will focus special attention worldwide on Open Access to research
results. The Netherlands will be taking an active part. Many
universities, for example, will be organising special lectures,
discussions, and symposia to inform researchers, teachers, and students
about the advantages of Open Access and about how they can benefit and
contribute. The higher education sector hopes that by providing examples
and practical help, it can inspire present and future researchers. SURF
is coordinating the programme in the Netherlands.<br><br>
<b>Events<br><br>
</b>On 20 October, VU University Amsterdam will be conferring an honorary
doctorate on Tim Berners Lee, the inventor of the World Wide Web. In
Utrecht, there will be a symposium on 23 October entitled “Read me, Cite
me, Count me”, at which the focus will be on publication strategy and
research marketing for academics. Data Archiving and Networked Services
(DANS), one of the institutes of the Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts
and Sciences (KNAW), will be hosting a virtual Open Data Speakers’ Corner
throughout the week. This online forum will give decision-makers and
opinion-formers from politics, science, higher education and publishing
the opportunity to engage in a wide-ranging discussion regarding open
data. On Monday 19 October, SURF will be launching the national Open
Access website, which will provide information on this topic. <br><br>
Prof. Lex Bouter, the <i>rector magnificus</i> of VU University
Amsterdam, believes it is important that publicly financed research
should be publicly accessible: “It is the task of universities to make
clear to the public what the value is of the research they have carried
out with the taxpayer’s money. You can’t do that by just publishing in
journals that are not open to everyone.”<br><br>
The idea is a very simple one: research that has been financed with
public funds should be accessible to the public and not only to groups
that can pay for increasingly expensive subscriptions. An economics study
recently revealed that Open Access publishing could save the Netherlands
EUR 133 million a year, without affecting the quality of research. There
are many routes to Open Access, and all those possibilities, varieties,
and benefits will be locally explained, demonstrated and clarified during
Open Access Week 2009. <br><br>
In recent years, Dutch research universities and universities of applied
sciences have worked hard to set up a knowledge infrastructure that will
make Open Access possible. A network of repositories has been created
that is easy to consult via NARCIS or the Knowledge Bank for Universities
of Applied Sciences.<br><br>
<b>Links<br><br>
</b>* National programme for Open Access Week:
<a href="http://www.surffoundation.nl/openaccess">
www.surffoundation.nl/openaccess</a><br><br>
* International programme for Open Access week:
</font><a href="http://www.openaccessweek.org/">
<font face="Verdana" size=2 color="#800080">www.openaccessweek.org</a>
</font><font face="Verdana" size=2> <br><br>
* Open statement by SURF:
<a href="http://www.surf.nl/open">www.surf.nl/open</a><br><br>
* Economics study ‘Costs and Benefits of Research Communication: The
Dutch Situation’:
</font>
<a href="http://www.surffoundation.nl/en/publicaties/Pages/CostsandBenefitsofOpenAccessPublicationlTheDutchSituation.aspx">
<font face="Verdana" size=2 color="#800080">
www.surffoundation.nl/en/publicaties/Pages/CostsandBenefitsofOpenAccessPublicationlTheDutchSituation.aspx</a>
</font><font face="Verdana" size=2> <br><br>
* NARCIS: <a href="http://www.narcis.nl/">www.narcis.nl</a><br><br>
* Knowledge Bank for Universities of Applied Sciences. [<i>HBO
Kennisbank</i>:
</font><a href="http://www.hbo-kennisbank.nl/">
<font face="Verdana" size=2 color="#800080">www.hbo-kennisbank.nl</a><br>
<br>
</font><font face="Verdana" size=2> <br>
––––––––<br><br>
<br>
<b>About SURF<br><br>
</b>SURF unites the Dutch research universities, universities of applied
sciences, and research institutions in creating pioneering ICT
innovations, thereby enabling them to make the best possible use of the
opportunities afforded by ICT and to excel in their education and
research efforts. SURF consists of three organisations: SURFfoundation,
SURFnet and SURFdiensten.<br>
</font><font size=3> <br>
</font><font face="Verdana" size=2>Kind regards,<br>
Annemiek van der Kuil<br>
</font><font size=3> <br>
</font><font face="Verdana" size=1>Annemiek van der Kuil | projectmanager
SURFshare | ICT & Research | SURFfoundation | Graadt van Roggenweg
340 | PO Box 2290 | 3500 GG Utrecht, the Netherlands| T +31 30 234 66 42
| E <a href="mailto:vanderkuil@surf.nl">vanderkuil@surf.nl</a> W
</font><a href="http://www.surffoundation.nl/SURFshare">
<font face="Verdana" size=3><u>www.surffoundation.nl/SURFshare</a><br>
</u></font> </body>
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