eLife, the new open-access journal for outstanding scientific advancements, has published its first four research articles.

First announced in summer 2011, eLife is a researcher-led initiative for the best in science and science communication. Backed by the Howard Hughes Medical Institute, the Max Planck Society, and the Wellcome Trust, the initiative’s first aim is to launch an open-access journal for outstanding advances in life science and biomedicine, which is also a platform for experimentation and showcasing innovation in research communication.

The eLife journal Web site is set for launch by the end of 2012, but the first collection of articles was released today – listed at the eLife Web site with the full content available at the online archive of the U.S. National Library of Medicine, PubMed Central (PMC), and its mirror sites including UKPMC. 

According to Randy Schekman, the journal’s Editor-in-chief, “We see no reason to delay the availability of these discoveries. Our editors have identified them as important, inspiring contributions of the high caliber expected for eLife. So, while the launch of our own journal Web site isn’t expected until December, we will best serve our authors, and science, by just getting them out there.” 

To read the full announcement, visit http://www.elifesciences.org/12-1015/

P.S. on the following: Mark Patterson (eLife Managing Executive Editor), Ian Mulvany (our head of technology), and I will also be on hand. We look forward to having you!

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eLife is holding an online Open House to share news on the development of its anticipated open-access journal for the very best in life science and biomedical research. Join us.
 
eLife is the new researcher-driven initiative to reshape science communication launched in collaboration by three prestigious biomedical research funders: the Howard Hughes Medical Institute (USA), Max Planck Society (Germany), and the Wellcome Trust (UK). Announced in June 2011, the first aim of the initiative is to launch an open-access journal for the most important advances in the life sciences and biomedicine. The eLife journal will showcase papers identified through a new rapid, fair, and constructive review process, and serve as a platform for innovation in the presentation and use of research content.
 
While eLife presses toward launch of the journal by the end of 2012, interest in how this unique funder-researcher collaboration could change science and scientific publishing grows. Media coverage has been extensive and has included detailed stories on one of eLife’s first accepted papers – just weeks after we opened for submissions.
 
On September 12, please join us for an online Open House to learn more about what the initiative aims to do, the scope of the journal, how the review process is different, the papers that have been accepted, the status of launch, and more. eLife Editor-in-chief Randy Schekman – Professor of Molecular and Cell Biology at the University of California (Berkeley), and an Investigator at the Howard Hughes Medical Institute – will host. Scientists, students, potential reviewers, members of the eLife community, librarians, research funders, publishers, open-access advocates – all – are welcome.
 
The eLife online Open House will be held:
 
Wednesday, September 12, 2012
9:00 – 10:00AM U.S. Pacific time
(12:00 – 1:00PM U.S. Eastern | 5:00 – 6:00PM UK)
 
To determine the time in another world region, visit http://www.worldtimeserver.com/convert_time_in_US-CA.aspx?y=2012&mo=9&d=12&h=9&mn=0
 
Please register to attend by September 10 at http://www.elifesciences.org/crm/civicrm/event/info?id=7&reset=1. (Phone and Web access will be required to participate).
 
To share your questions in advance, post to the eLife Web site (http://www.elifesciences.org/open-house), Tweet #eLifeopen, or email d.clarke@elifesciences.org.
 
To learn more about eLife and the growing momentum behind the initiative, visit elifesciences.org.

To receive news directly from eLife, feel free to sign up at http://www.elifesciences.org/crm/civicrm/profile/create?reset=1&gid=11. 
 
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About eLife
eLife is a unique collaboration between the funders and practitioners of research to communicate ground-breaking discoveries in the life and biomedical sciences in the most effective way. Set for launch in late 2012, the eLife journal will be a platform for maximising the reach and influence of new discoveries and to showcase new approaches to the presentation, use, and assessment of research. As an open-access journal, eLife will deliver access to content for free, online, immediately on publication, and will encourage maximum possible reach and utility of the content by publishing under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which is emerging as the gold standard for open-access publishing. Learn more at elifesciences.org.
 

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Jennifer McLennan?Communications, eLife
+1-202-631-8854 (c)
http://elifesciences.org
eLife Sciences Publications, Ltd is a limited liability non-profit non-stock corporation incorporated in the State of Delaware, USA, with company number 5030732, and is registered in the UK with company number FC030576 and branch number BR015634 at the address Suite 203, Sheraton House, Castle Park, Cambridge CB3 0AX.

October 22 – 28, 2012

http://www.openaccessweek.org/profiles/blogs/openaccess-week-2011-dates

The opportunity

As part of the process of fulfilling Section 103 of the 2010 America COMPETES Act, the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP) has issued a Request for Information (RFI), asking individuals and organizations to provide recommendations on approaches for broad public access and long-term stewardship to peer-reviewed scholarly publications that result from federally funded scientific research. The RFI poses eight multi-part questions.

The full text of the RFI may be found at: http://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/FR-2011-11-04/html/2011-28623.htm

NOTE: A second RFI has also been issued on the topic of public access to digital data. SPARC/ATA will coordinate with allied organizations including ARL and CNI to formulate a response.

Who should respond?

It is urgent that as many individuals and organizations as possible – at all levels – respond.

For reference, the RFI specifically calls for comments from “non-Federal stakeholders, including the public, universities, nonprofit and for-profit publishers, libraries, federally funded and non-federally funded research scientists, and other organizations and institutions with a stake in long-term preservation and access to the results of federally funded research.”

If you can’t answer all of the questions, answer as many as possible – and respond to questions as directly as possible.

Organizations beyond the U.S., with experience with openaccess policies, are also invited to contribute.

How the results will be used

The input provided through this RFI will inform the National Science and Technology Council’s Task Force on Public Access to Scholarly Publications, convened by OSTP.

OSTP will issue a report to Congress describing:

1. Priorities for the development of agency policies for ensuring broad public access to the results of federally funded, unclassified research;
2. The status of agency policies for public access to publications resulting from federally funded research;
3. Public input collected.

Taxpayers paid for the research. We deserve to be able to access the results.

The main point to emphasize is that taxpayers are entitled to access the results of the research our tax dollars fund. Taxpayers should be allowed to immediately access and fully reuse the results of publicly funded research.

To discuss talking points in further detail, don’t hesitate to contact us.

How to respond

The deadline for submissions is January 2, 2012. Submissions should be sent via email to publicaccess@ostp.gov. Please note: OSTP will publicly post all submissions after the deadline (along with names of submitters and their institutions) so please make sure not to include any confidential or proprietary information in your submission. Attachments may be included.

As ever, thanks for your commitment to public access and the advancement of these crucial policies.

If you have any questions or comments, don’t hesitate to contact:

Heather Joseph
Executive Director, SPARC and spokesperson for the Alliance for Taxpayer Access
heather [at] arl [dot] org

Jennifer McLennan
Director of Programs and Operations, SPARC & the Alliance for Taxpayer Access
jennifer [at] arl [dot] org

Tuesday, November 15, 2011
1:00 – 2:00PM Eastern
Registration is free, but required. RSVP by November 14 at http://sparc.arl.org/civicrm/event/info?reset=1&id=100.

Please join SPARC November 15 for a review of Open Access Week 2011. Participants worldwide will come together for an online discussion to share successes, challenges, and great ideas taken from this year’s celebration.  

Open Access Week, a global event just concluding its fifth year, is an opportunity for the academic and research community to learn about the potential benefits of Open Access to research and scholarship, to share ideas with colleagues, and to inspire wider participation in establishing Open Access as a new norm in scholarship and research. Universities, colleges, research institutes, funding agencies, libraries, and think tanks have used Open Access Week as a platform to host faculty votes on campus openaccess policies, to issue reports on the societal and economic benefits of Open Access, to commit new funds in support of openaccess publication, and more. Open Access Week is organized by SPARC (the Scholarly Publishing and Academic Resources Coalition).

Register to participate and learn more about what you can do at openaccessweek.org.  

On November 15, at 1:00pm Eastern, SPARC will host another online discussion through the openaccessweek.org network, to gather participants and talk through this year’s milestones, experiences, and goals for 2012. Please save the date and watch for more post-OA week news from SPARC, the official organizer, later this week.

SAVE THE DATE

Open Access Week 2011 wrap up
Another free SPARC online event
Tuesday, November 15, 2011
1:00 – 2:00PM Eastern
Registration will open Nov. 2.

More information about Open Access Week is available at openaccessweek.org.

Best wishes,

Jennifer

Open Access Week Program Director 

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Jennifer McLennan

Director of Programs & Operations

SPARC

jennifer@arl.org

(202) 296-2296 x121

Fax: (202) 872-0884

http://www.linkedin.com/in/jennifermclennan

http://www.arl.org/sparc

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Open Access Week 2011

October 24 – 30

http://www.openaccessweek.org

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The SPARC Open Access Meeting

March 11 – 13, 2012

Kansas City

http://www.arl.org/sparc/media/11-0726.shtml

Folks,

I’d like to offer special thanks to Donna Okubo from the Public Library of Science who has been monitoring this site continually for new members and new content, and releasing both from the moderation queue. We unfortunately still need to guard both from spam and spammers and it’s a big job to keep an eye on all of the amazing activity on this site. Donna, THANK YOU for keeping the OA Week site alive with news and new members from all corners of the globe. We couldn’t do this without you.

Jennifer

Program Director for Open Access Week

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Jennifer McLennan

Director of Programs & Operations

SPARC

jennifer@arl.org

(202) 296-2296 x121

Fax: (202) 872-0884

http://www.linkedin.com/in/jennifermclennan

http://www.arl.org/sparc

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Open Access Week 2011

October 24 – 30

http://www.openaccessweek.org

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The SPARC Open Access Meeting

March 11 – 13, 2012

Kansas City

http://www.arl.org/sparc/media/11-0726.shtml

 Fifth annual event draws broad global participation, highlights deep community commitment to Open Access

Washington, DC – Open Access Week, the annual event celebrating the global movement towards Open Access (OA) to research and scholarship, kicks off for the fifth time on Monday, October 24.  Coordinated by SPARC and organized by more than 2,000 advocates in countries around the world, the event provides an opportunity to learn about the benefits of Open Access, share new ideas and strategies, and inspire wider participation in establishing Open Access as the norm in scholarly communication.

Every year, research funders, academic institutions, libraries research organizations, non-profits, businesses, and others use Open Access Week as a valuable platform to convene community events as well as to announce significant action on Open Access.  The Week has served as a launching pad for new openaccess publication funds, openaccess policies, and papers reporting on the societal and economic benefits of OA.

This year, programs highlighting publishing and rights management choices for faculty authors, use of new media, and opportunities created by re-mixing and re-using scholarly materials are on tap. Open Educational Resources are another key topic, as is open-source technology. Campuses will be presenting a sweeping range of events, from the Harvard University-sponsored “Yana,” an open-source template for scholarly journals to develop mobile applications to the University of Utah event diving into new media, fair use, and pop culture.

Students will once again play a major role, hosting panel discussions, workshops, poster campaigns, Web casts and movie screenings to understand Open Access and its relevance to the everyday student. Event’s such as “SHOW (Share/OpenAccess/Worldwide),” at the university campus in Rijeka, Croatia, will introduce students to Creative Commons licensing, Open Projects, the Open Content movement, the Open Access movement, and the Right to Research Coalition.

Participation in this highly successful event continues to grow. This year, there are over 2,000 individuals in more than 110 countries registered in the Open Access Week social network at openaccessweek.org. Participation remains strong throughout Europe and North America and will be complemented by new activities in regions as diverse as Algeria, Gambia, Iceland, Iraq, and Sudan. The global nature of this event is captured nicely by the interactive Open Access Week member map, available on the Web site.

To help support local programming, SPARC provides a suite of resources, including a video series featuring leading voices in research and digital technology. This year’s feature is Brewster Kahle, founder and Chairman of the Internet Archive. Kahle suggests the time is ripe for Open Access; now that the “plumbing” of the Internet is in place, “We have to move beyond the mainframe model and the subscription or the license model,” he says. “It has to be so that things are… shared widely.” The video may be viewed and downloaded at http://blip.tv/sparc-north-america/sparc-2011-oaweek-guest-brewster-kahle-founder-of-the-internet-archive-5660098.

The full collection of SPARC videos for Open Access Week, including Dr. Harold Varmus, Director of the U.S. National Cancer Institute, Dr. Cameron Neylon, a biophysicist and open research advocate; Dr. Mona Nemer, professor and vice-president for research at the University of Ottawa; students, librarians, teachers, research funders, and others are available on the openaccessweek.org Web site.

Open Access Week is organized by SPARC (the Scholarly Publishing and Academic Resources Coalition), with the generous support of our 2011 sponsors: the Public Library of Science, @mire, and Springer Open. Find activities on your campus, at your institution, or in your region – or join to participate – through the Web site at www.openaccessweek.org. 

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SPARC (the Scholarly Publishing and Academic Resources Coalition) is a library membership organization that promotes expanded sharing of scholarship. SPARC believes that faster and wider sharing of outputs of the research process increases the impact of research, fuels the advancement of knowledge, and increases the return on research investments. SPARC is supported by a membership of over 800 academic and research libraries worldwide. SPARC is on the Web at http://www.arl.org/sparc

For immediate release 
October 20, 2010

For information, contact:
Jennifer McLennan
(202) 296-2296 ext 121
jennifer [at] arl [dot] org

Make sure and post your events, videos, photos, and ideas for 2011!

Open Access Week Idea Swap

Another free SPARC online event

Monday, October 3, 2011

1:00 – 2:00PM Eastern

Registration is free, but required. RSVP by September 29 at http://sparc.arl.org/civicrm/event/register?reset=1&id=90

In 2010, Open Access Week (OAW) was the largest and most successful yet. With just under 900 participants in 94 countries, last year’s event was no less than three times larger than it was just a year before. Hundreds of videos, photos, blog posts, and more were released to promote and highlight the benefits of Open Access to research and take the conversation even more deeply into the research community – and they absolutely did.

Participants from the academy – including humanists, climate change scientists, provosts, research funders, Nobelists, and lawyers – really took advantage of the occasion to share their insights on how Open Access has had an impact on their work and lives. (Read more at http://www.arl.org/sparc/media/10-1026.shtml). OAW 2010 was also a great reminder to us of the work and opportunities that lie ahead.  We’ve isolated a need to dig deeper into the academy and find ways to meet faculty on their own terms – to find ways to bring Open Access Week, so to speak, to campus every day of the year.

OA advocates have been creative and committed in working to engage different communities in different ways throughout the year, and are planning great things for October 24 to 30. Please join us October 3 for an Open (Access Week) Idea Swap to get some great ideas on what you can do – especially with limited time and resources; come hear what others are doing and share your plans to advance Open Access in 2011. OA Week program director Jennifer McLennan will host.

Open Access Week Idea Swap

Another free SPARC online event

Monday, October 3, 2011

1:00 – 2:00PM Eastern

Registration is free, but required. RSVP by September 29 at http://sparc.arl.org/civicrm/event/register?reset=1&id=90

This online event is held in conjunction with Open Access Week 2011 (October 24 – 30). Open Access Week, a global event now entering its fifth year, is an opportunity for the academic and research community to learn about the potential benefits of Open Access (OA), to share ideas with colleagues, and to inspire wider participation in establishing Open Access as a new norm in scholarship and research. Universities, colleges, research institutes, funding agencies, libraries, and think tanks have used Open Access Week as a platform to host faculty votes on campus openaccess policies, to issue reports on the societal and economic benefits of Open Access, to commit new funds in support of openaccess publication, and more. Open Access Week is organized by SPARC (the Scholarly Publishing and Academic Resources Coalition). SPARC is online at http://www.arl.org/sparc.

Register to participate and learn more about what you can do at openaccessweek.org.  

In response to overwhelming demand, SPARC is now welcoming sponsors to the 2011 Open Access Week. Your financial contributions will help make this year’s event a huge hit — and it’s a great chance to highlight your company or organization’s work for a worldwide audience. Take a look at the benefits here: http://openaccessweek.org/pages/sponsorship

We’ll look forward to hearing from you!