Access to and preservation of scientific information in Europe

Abstract

This report provides an overview on access to and preservation of scientific information in the EU Member States as well as Norway and Turkey. Concerning open access to scientific peer-reviewed publications, most EU Member States reported a national preference for one or the other type of open access to publications, that is, either the Green or the Gold model. However, the expressed preferences for one or the other model are not pure models whereby only one route is followed. Overall, policies on open access to research data are less developed across EU countries than policies and strategies on open access to research publications. However, individual Member State feedback shows a general acknowledgement of the importance of open research data and of policies. As concerns the curation and preservation of scientific information, institutional repositories are very well developed in most Member States, although certification is sometimes lacking. Concerning participation in multi-stakeholder dialogues and activities, several countries have set up national coordination bodies or networks. Others rely on a university or a university library (or an association of libraries), their Research Promotion Agency/Research Councils or their Academy of Science. Specific events or dedicated EU fora and/or projects have also been identified as a way to galvanize stakeholder interaction