Open Access Week reminds us to thank a librarian and get up to speed on changes to policy impacting public access to research data

October 25, 2022

International Open Access Week, which runs Oct. 24 to 30, is an opportunity for the research community at UW­–Madison and its peer institutions to learn about the potential benefits of open access, including helping to inspire wider participation in more equitable knowledge sharing.

That includes recent news that effective for applications starting Jan. 25, 2023, and after, all NIH-supported researchers producing scientific data will be expected to submit a data management & sharing plan as part of their proposals under the Data Management and Sharing (DMS) Policy.

Another new federal policy that will take effect in 2025, known as the Nelson memo, is an update to the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy’s (OSTP) 2013 public access to publications memorandum (2013 OSTP Memorandum on Increasing Access to the Results of Federally Funded Research) and is meant to help address roadblocks to access and ensure free, immediate and equitable access to results from federally-funded research.

But Open Access Week is also a reminder of the important work research librarians do by providing researchers with tools and resources that support their scholarly efforts, along with creating innovative ways to streamline the public access compliance process.

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