White paper on open access for academic research

"Open Doors and Open Minds: What faculty authors can do to ensure open access to their work through their institution."

Released by SPARC (Scholarly Publishing and Academic Resources Coalition) and Science Commons, the new white paper assists institutions in adopting policies that ensure the widest practical exposure for scholarly works produced, such as that adopted by the Harvard Faculty of Arts and Sciences in February.

The white paper details the motivations behind the Harvard policy, offers a concise explanation of U.S. Copyright Law and how it relates to the scholarly publishing process, and makes specific suggestions for faculty and advocates to pursue a campus-wide policy. The guide offers a detailed plan of action, a series of institutional license options, and a 10-point list of actions for realizing a policy and adopting the right University License to meet the institution's particular needs.

"Open Doors and Open Minds" and the 10-step action list is openly
available on the SPARC Web site.