OA in Italy | NOADS

In Italy research is performed mainly by higher education institutions (mainly public and few private universities, polytechnics, research centres) also  other types of public institutions, business enterprises, private not for profit organizations carry out research in different fields. The public funding comes mainly from central government and in smaller scale from  regional governaments. A relevant role is also played by EU framework programme funding ... The main public funder in Italy is the Ministero dell’Istruzione Università e Ricerca (MIUR, Ministry of Education, Universities and Research), but other ministries (e.g Ministry for the Economic Development, Health, etc) other central administration agencies and  regional governaments also play a role in funding research in specific areas (high-tech; nanotechnologies; environmental sciences and health, space research; etc.) and creating synergies among universities, research organizations and small-medium sized enterprises (as part of the EC Field Programs) ... The  research policy makers, administrators and the research communities have not reached yet a full level of awareness of Open Access and its benefits for researchers, institutions and for society; however several actions and initiatives to implement OA  policies are taking place in Italy. The awareness of research open data is still at early stage; in general the OA landscape is still quite fragmentary due to the lack of a national strategic vision on the needs and prospects of Italian research. The recent  central governament actions and the institutional commitment on OA give hope to a brighter future ..."