The Open Access conversation – more than just advocating for a mandate

Abstract: Open access is recognized as a sound concept for scholarly communication but not yet rooted in the hearts and minds of most researchers. Many evangelists who try to sell the idea at their universities have been disappointed by the lack of commitment in spite of enthusiasm while newcomers dread the possibility of failure. This need not be the case. Worldwide there are examples of open access success which can be followed. Furthermore the impact of open access on scholarly communication and related issues provides us the opportunity to introduce it as part of a much needed campus-wide discourse on scholarly communication. Ownership, copyright, cost, new developments, OA publishing, e-research, data curation, research funding and institutional repositories can all be linked to open access. In this context it makes more sense, can play a bigger role and eventually become a feature of local scholarship practice. The talk will introduce the role players and discuss strategies to create value propositions that will speak to their needs.