Intro Open Access in 60 Sekunden Quelle: Brinken, H., Hauss, J. & Rücknagel, J. (2021). Open Access in 60 Sekunden, open-access.network. https://doi.org/10.5446/50831 ( CC BY 3.0 DE ) The key takeaways from this article are 1 The introduction of open access should be strategically and jointly implemented by the management and the library. 2 Institutions that implement open access should clearly demonstrate their commitment to open access with an open access policy. 3 Infrastructure offerings to scholars and scientists for the practical implementation of open access are essential. Implementing Open Access Open access improves access to scholarly information and enhances the visibility of scholarly institutions. Although the principles of open access are fully accepted and valued by researchers ( Dallmeier-Tiessen et al., 2011; Ross-Hellauer et al., 2017 ), concrete measures are needed to implement open access in practice. What Political Standpoints are There on Open Access? Find an introduction here. Open Access Policies Find an introduction here. Source: based on Brinken, H. (2021). 10 Gründe für Open Access. Zenodo. https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.4643859 ( CC BY 4.0 International ) Practical Tip In the practical tip Open Access unterstützen - Praxistipps für Hochschulen (German only) you will find tips on how Open Access can be supported by universities. Role of University Management Support by management is an important prerequisite for the successful introduction and implementation of open access at an institution. The adoption of a clear position, for example in the form of an open access policy , underscores the fact that providing open access to research results is valued and supported by the institution. In this way, the sustainable use of available resources, and if necessary their redeployment, can be centrally promoted. In the practical implementation of open access at an institution, it is crucial that management cooperate with the library and the data centre, because, as a rule, it is there that the measures are implemented and the services provided. Role of Libraries Libraries are important players in the area of open access. They are reliable intermediaries in the supply of literature and information, and they handle the acquisition and provision of both print and electronic media. At many institutions, together with the data centre, they take on a large part of the practical implementation of open access offerings, for example as operators of theses servers and repositories , by supporting the establishment of open access journals , or by establishing university presses themselves. In most cases, they are also responsible for administering open access publication funds . As a rule, libraries are also the ones that create an awareness about and drive the transition to open access. They are in close contact with the departments and know their interest in and needs for open access offerings. In addition, they are familiar with the range of discipline-specific offerings and requirements in the area of open access. In what follows, we outline concrete measures for the introduction and implementation of open access. Here, intensive cooperation between the institution’s library, researchers, data centre, and management is expedient. The implementation of open access involves not only the provision of a technical infrastructure but also comprehensive, target-group-specific marketing activities relating to open access. Practical Tip In the practical tip Open Access unterstützen - Praxistipps für Hochschulbibliotheken (in German) you will find tips on how Open Access can be supported by universities. The following measures have proved effective in implementing open access: Signing the Berlin Declaration on Open Access to Knowledge in the Sciences and Humanities The Berlin Declaration on Open Access to Knowledge in the Sciences and Humanities can be signed by research performing and research funding organisations , as well as cultural institutions (e.g., libraries or museums). If interested, institution managers should contact the President of the Max Planck Society . By signing the Declaration, an institution commits to promoting scientific discourse through the consistent use of electronic channels of communication and to making scholarly knowledge accessible to the widest possible public. Adopting an Open Access Policy An institutional commitment, for example in the form of an official policy on open access or open science, is the most sustainable way of implementing the open access idea at an institution. In addition to expressing the institution’s commitment to open access/open science, this policy usually calls on the members of the institution to make their publications available in open access. This can be done either by publishing the works open access ( gold open access ) or by self-archiving the publications in an institutional repository. An exemplary structure and core content of a policy document are summarised on our webpage Open Access Policies . ROARMAP lists the open access mandates and policies of universities, research institutions, and research funders throughout the world. Institutions can also create their own systems of incentives for open access. For example, open access can also be included as a criterion for the performance-oriented allocation of funds. Appointing an Open Access Officer Besides drafting an institutional open access policy, the appointment of an open access officer as a central contact person for open access topics is recommended. Open access officers act as intermediaries between the library and the interests of the researchers; they play an advisory role, and are comprehensively informed about trends in scholarly publishing behaviour across disciplinary boundaries. The National Open Access Contact Point, OA2020-DE, has compiled a list of the open access officers at German universities and research institutions . The Train-the-Trainer Workshops offered by the project open-access.network provide information materials and training courses for open access officers. Conducting Information Events An institutional commitment to open access alone is not enough. It is also important to make it clear to all members what this commitment means for them in concrete terms. The topic of open access should therefore also be discussed at the level of departments, institutes, and working groups. When marketing open access, it is thus important that information transfer be broad and take place at all levels. International Open Access Week takes place every year in the third week of October. During Open Access Week, the topic of open access is addressed at many different locations worldwide in order to promote open access to knowledge and information resulting from publicly funded research and to provide information on site. Open Access Week provides institutions with a good opportunity to inform their members about open access. A range of reusable information materials can be found on our Materials page and in the Zenodo Community of the project open-access.network . Information videos about open access can be found in the open-access.network series on the TIB AV Portal . Building and Integrating a Repository When implementing open access, besides strategic and communicative measures, concrete infrastructure services that enable open access documents to be appropriately archived and showcased are also necessary. Theses and document servers, operated as a rule by the institution’s library, are now the norm at most institutions. Institutional repositories offer university members professionally comprehensive publication services. These services range from the publication of dissertations and series, through the self-archiving of articles and monographs, to the archiving of video recordings, posters, and presentation slides. Detailed information on building and operating repositories can be found on our Repositories page. In the focus group Zweitveröffentlichung [Self-Archiving] , providers of self-archiving services have the opportunity to exchange information and experiences on practical and legal issues. Examples of institutional publication services include KOPS , the institutional repository at the University of Konstanz; GRO.publications / GRO.data for text and data publications of the research institutions in Göttingen; and the TIB AV-Portal for scientific videos at the German National Library of Science and Technology (TIB). Supporting the Establishment of Scholarly Presses and Journals at the Institution University presses are primarily devoted to the publications of their own institutions. When distributing traditional books, they aim to offer high quality at fair prices. Besides print publications, university presses also publish online editions, thereby supporting the principle of open access. As a rule, responsibility for operating these scholarly presses lies with the university libraries, which thus not only acquire scholarly content but also offer publication opportunities themselves. The majority of German-language university presses have joined together in the Arbeitsgemeinschaft der Universitätsverlage (working group of the German-language university presses), which has produced, among other things, useful information materials and guidelines on various aspects of open access publishing . In addition, institutions can support their researchers in establishing their own open access journals . Many libraries offer advisory services on or provide assistance with matters relating to the concrete implementation of open access journals. Detailed information on establishing and operating open access journals can be found on our Publishing Open Access Journals page. The focus group scholar-led.network offers a forum for independently published journals and editors collectives whose free-of-charge publications are produced independently of major publishers. Setting Up an Open Access Publication Fund Dealing with open access publication charges is crucial for the further strategic and organisational development of the scholarly information supply. A dedicated budget for publication charges, as well as fundamental decisions concerning the handling of open access publication charges, are expedient and can be an effective instrument for reorganising economic relationships between the scholarly institution and publishers. Many institutions provide an institutional open access publication fund for this purpose; it is often administered by the institution’s library. From this fund, the institution pays the open access article processing charges (APCs) or book processing charges (BPCs) incurred by its researchers. Libraries lend themselves to the role of publication fund administrator because they have years of experience in working with publishers, and thus have the necessary contacts. The specific challenges involved in setting up and operating open access monograph funds are addressed by the focus group Open-Access-Monographiefonds [Open Access Monograph Funds] . Anchoring Open Access in the Entire Institution To implement open access in a sustainable and comprehensive way, it is important to raise open access awareness beyond the levels of the management and the library. Researchers, doctoral candidates, students, and research support staff should therefore be included in PR and marketing measures. This applies especially to those areas of the administration that deal with the requirements of research funding agencies and the measurement of scholarly output. In addition, the open access idea can be spread sustainably if it is suggested to young scholars and scientists at an early stage, for example at study seminars or in graduate programmes. References Dallmeier-Tiessen, S., Darby, R., Goerner, B., Hyppoelae, J., Igo-Kemenes, P., Kahn, D., Lambert, S., Lengenfelder, A., Leonard, C., Mele, S., Nowicka, M., Polydoratou, P., Ross, D., Ruiz-Perez, S., Schimmer, R., Swaisland, M., & van der Stelt, W. (2011). Highlights from the SOAP project survey. What Scientists Think about Open Access Publishing . ArXiv. https://arxiv.org/abs/1101.5260 Ross-Hellauer, T., Deppe, A., & Schmidt, B. (2017). Survey on open peer review: Attitudes and experience amongst editors, authors and reviewers. PLOS ONE, 12 (12). https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0189311 Further Reading Canadian Association of Research Libraries. (2020). CARL Institutional Open Access Policy Template and Toolkit . Version 1.0. https://www.carl-abrc.ca/oa-policy-template-and-toolkit/ European Commission. (2012). Online survey on scientific information in the digital age . http://dx.doi.org/10.2777/36123 Fournier, J., Klages, T., & Pampel, H. (2012). Open-Access-Strategien für wissenschaftliche Einrichtungen: Bausteine und Beispiele . Arbeitsgruppe Open Access der Schwerpunktinitiative Digitale Information der Allianz der deutschen Wissenschaftsorganisationen. https://doi.org/10.2312/allianzoa.005 Harvard Open Access Project (HOAP). (2021). Good practices for university open-access policies . Cyber.Harvard.edu. https://cyber.harvard.edu/hoap/Good_practices_for_university_open-access_policies Jacobs, N. (2019). Implementing open access. Practical steps your institution can take to make progress on the open access journey . Jisc. https://www.jisc.ac.uk/guides/implementing-open-access Jisc. (2019, October 21). Managing your open access costs . Jisc. https://www.jisc.ac.uk/guides/managing-your-open-access-costs Pieper, D. (2020). Kostenmonitoring von Open-Access-Publikationen: Chancen und Herausforderung für Bibliotheken . Zenodo. https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.4118210 Rösch, H., Geschuhn, K., Barbers, I., Bove, K., Pohlmann, T., & Satzinger, L. (2022). Open Access ermöglichen: Open Access-Transformation und Erwerbung in wissenschaftlichen Bibliotheken – ein praktischer Leitfaden . https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.6090208 Wissenschaftsrat (2022). Empfehlungen zur Transformation des Wissenschaftlichen Publizierens zu Open Access; Köln. https://doi.org/10.57674/fyrc-vb61 ....
Intro Open Research Europe Graphic: Open Research Europe in Action. Source: Open Research Europe (2021). faster-h2020.eu The key takeaways from this article are 1 The main players in the policy area of open access in Europe and Germany, respectively, are the European Commission, the German Federal Ministry of Research, Technology and Space (BMFTR; until 2025 called the Federal Ministry of Education and Research, BMBF), and the governments of the federal states. 2 Through various policy measures, these players promote and expect open access to knowledge. 3 At the level of the German federal states, different trends in the areas of open access and open science are emerging. Practical tip The presentation “ Open Access unterstützen – Praxistipps für Landesregierungen ” lists measures with which the governments of the German federal states can practise and support open access. Object of Governance, Subject of Policy Discussion The topic of open access and the formulation and implementation of open access policies are the subject of policy discussions and negotiation processes. Who are the driving forces, and what are their positions? Open access policies are driven both from the top down – especially from the European level to the level of the national states and federal states – and from the bottom up, by committed scholars and scientists, scientific institutions, and open access initiatives. Important milestones in the debate on open access to information are (see also the History of the Open Access Movement ) are : the Declaration of the Budapest Open Access Initiative (2002) , the Berlin Declaration on Open Access to Knowledge in the Sciences and Humanities (2003) . Further milestones include: the Bethesda Statement on Open Access Publishing (2003) the Amsterdam Call for Action on Open Science (2016) , The Vienna Principles: A Vision for Scholarly Communication in the 21st Century (2016) , the Jussieu Call for Open Science and Bibliodiversity (2017) , Plan S (2018) the Action Plan for Diamond Open Access (2022) . Many national and supranational institutions, for example the European Union (EU), the German Federal Ministry of Research, Technology and Space (BMFTR; until May 2025 called the Federal Ministry of Education and Research, BMBF), federal state ministries, the German Research Foundation (Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft, DFG), and to some extent also universities and non-university research institutions, play a dual role in this regard. As political actors, they participate through various interventions and measures in negotiation processes on open access; at the same time, they are also research funders , and in that capacity, they directly set standards and framework conditions. In what follows, we provide an overview of the main state actors in the policy area of open access. In each case, we briefly explain how free access to scientific knowledge is enabled or promoted by policy regulations in the respective contexts. Kindling, M., Martin, L., Neufend, M., & Wenninger, A. (2022). Open Access Atlas Deutschland: Status Quo in Bund und Ländern (1.0). Zenodo. https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.6472672 Supranational Level At the supranational level, the European Commission (EC) and the European Research Council (ERC) provide important stimuli for the implementation of open access and open science. In 2021, UNESCO also adopted a Recommendation on Open Science . Governance of Open Access in Europe As early as 2012, the European Commission issued a Recommendation on access to and preservation of scientific information, in which it called on Member States to implement clear and binding open access policies. According to the recommendation, it should be mandatory to provide open access to publications resulting from publicly funded research, preferably immediately but no later than 6 months after the date of publication in the case of the natural sciences and 12 months in the case of the humanities and social sciences. Although European Commission recommendations are not binding, the majority of the 27 EU Member States (inter alia Belgium , Greece , Italy , Croatia , Latvia , Malta , Poland , Portugal , Slovakia , Slovenia , Spain , Czech Republic , Hungary ) and three non-member States ( Norway , Serbia, and Switzerland ) have by now adopted open access and open science strategies. In the area of research funding , the European Commission requires funding recipients to provide open access to research publications resulting from funded projects (see also Horizon Europe ). [MG1] Error 404 bei Slovenia. [PSM2] Danke – das hier scheint der richtige Link zu sein: https://www.openaire.eu/community/blogs/slovenia-open-science-in-the-recently-adopted-resolution-on-the-slovenian-scientific-research-and-innovation-strategy-2030 Open Access in Germany In contrast to many other European countries, Germany does not have a uniform national open access policy. In its coalition agreement for the legislative period 2021–2025 , the previous German Federal Government undertook to strengthen open access and open science and to establish open access as a common scientific standard. This was duly taken into account with the adoption in 2023 of Joint Guidelines of the Federal Government and the Länder for the implementation of open access in Germany (Federal Ministry of Education and Research, 2023 ). In the coalition agreement of the current federal government in 2025 , open access is not explicitly mentioned; however, access to scientific research is to be facilitated by a research data act. Federal Ministry of Education and Research At federal level in Germany, the amendment of the Copyright Act (UrhG) in 2013 created the legal framework for green open access by implementing an inalienable secondary publication right ( Pflüger, 2016 , p. 14). In 2016, the then German Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF; renamed the Federal Ministry for Research, Technology and Space, BMFTR, in May 2025) published a strategy for open access in Germany , which was updated in 2018. The aim of the updated strategy is to further establish open access as the standard for scholarly publishing and to close the gap between the scientific community’s desire for more open access publications and current publishing practice ( Federal Ministry of Education and Research, 2018 , p. 7). According to the strategy, various ways of providing open access should be allowed in principle, and academic freedom should remain untouched. Furthermore, publications resulting from publicly funded research should be openly accessible, and established quality assurance procedures should be ensured. Whereas the transposition into concrete policies is the responsibility of the individual federal states, the BMBF, in its capacity as a funding agency, set guidelines: Research projects funded by the BMBF – or its successor, the BMFTR – are expected to publish their results and their research data in open access . Besides scientific and scholarly institutions and libraries, funding recipients also include private sector actors, such as publishers and other service providers, that are establishing themselves in the open access landscape. Open Access at Federal State Level Because of the sovereignty of the federal states in the area of education and higher education policy, the adoption and implementation of open access and open science policies in Germany takes place mainly at federal state level (Kindling et al., 2022). These federal state policies are thus central elements of the open access transformation in the Federal Republic of Germany (Kindling et al., 2021). Some states, for example Baden-Württemberg , Berlin , Brandenburg , Hamburg , and Schleswig-Holstein have state strategies, which in some cases define concrete objectives. These objectives include, for example, an open access quota for journal articles, as well as open access officers and open access policies at all institutions ( Berlin ); the monitoring of open access publication figures ( Thuringia ); the adoption of a clear position on open access by university managers ( Brandenburg ); and a uniform technical infrastructure ( Hamburg ). Some federal state governments support open access through other instruments of higher education governance. For example, support for open access is mentioned in the science plan ( Bremen ), in the higher education development plan ( Saxony ), or in the digital strategy ( Rhineland-Palatinate , Saxony-Anhalt , Hesse ) of the respective federal states. Other federal state governments support the scientific institutions in their states through targeted measures, for example openaccess.nrw in North Rhine-Westphalia; through an open access publication fund ( Thuringia , Lower Saxony ); through open access networking units ( Berlin , Brandenburg ); or by funding openness as a cross-sectional topic ( Bremen ). Although other federal states have not yet adopted an explicit science policy position, many institutions already have well-established open access service offerings (e.g. Saarland, Saxony, Saxony-Anhalt, Bavaria, Hesse, Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, Rhineland-Palatinate) (Kindling et al., 2021).The Bundesländer-Atlas (Kindling et al., 2021), the oa.atlas federal state dossiers (2024), and the Open4DE Landscape-Report ( Bärwolf et al. 2023 ) also provide an overview of current and past open access and open science activities of the German federal states. Open Access in Austria and Switzerland Open Access in Austria In Austria, various open access initiatives emerged at a national level at an early stage (see the History of the Open Access Movement ). For example, in 2014, in cooperation with the Austrian Science Fund ( FWF ), the Austrian Academic Library Consortium ( KEMÖ) , as one of the first national library consortia worldwide to do so, concluded an open access agreement with a publisher (see Mayer 2022, p. 47). The FWF had already introduced its own open access policy in 2004, with a strong recommendation to publish works open access. In 2012, Open Access Network Austria (OANA; since 2022: OSA – Open Science Austria ) was founded as a joint national networking initiative on the part of the FWF and Universities Austria ( uniko ). OANA subsequently drew up a number of recommendations, inter alia for a national open access strategy (2016) and a national open science strategy (2020). Following the publication of the 2016 recommendations paper , many research institutions published open access policies. The 2020 recommendations served as a basis for the national Open Science Policy Austria , which was adopted in 2022. A secondary publication right was incorporated into law in 2015 (see also Legal Issues in Austria ). In 2019, the national funding initiative “Digital and Social Transformation in Higher Education” of the then Austrian Federal Ministry of Education, Science and Research enabled the launch of several digitalization projects with a focus on open access, for example AT2OA2 . In its Government Programme 2020–2024 , the Austrian Federal Government gave a clear commitment to open access and actively supported Plan S for the implementation of open access. The current Government Programme 2025–2029 does not focus explicitly on open access or open science. Open Access in Switzerland According to the strategic vision of the Swiss Higher Education Policy Coordination 2025–2028 (Gesamtschweizerische Hochschulpolitischen Koordination 2025–2028 ), 100% of scholarly publications from Swiss universities will be made available in open access. In particular, swissuniversities , the umbrella organisation of universities in Switzerland, plays the role of a superordinate actor for the promotion of open access. As a funding institution, swissuniversities supports various open access projects . The Swiss National Open Access Strategy published in 2017 was updated in 2024. In the updated strategy, swissuniversities and the Swiss National Science Foundation (SNSF) set the framework conditions for the country’s open access transformation. The Open Science Delegation coordinates cooperation between the stakeholders. Besides this national strategy, the Swiss Library Network for Education and Research ( SLiNER ) published National Open Access Policy Guidelines in 2019, which serve as recommendations for the institutional open access policies of Swiss universities. In 2023, 86% of universities in Switzerland had an open access policy (see swissuniversities, 2023). Eleven partner institutions are collaborating to create a national diamond open access consortium ( CoDOA ) to enable the long-term and sustainable funding of diamond open access journals. The groundwork for enshrining a secondary publication right in law is currently in progress. References Bärwolff, T., Benz, M., Dreyer, M., Neufend, M., Kindling, M., Kirchner, A., & Schmidt, B. (2023). Open4DE landscape report . Open-Access-Büro Berlin. https://doi.org/10.21428/986c5d43.bab38f02 Federal Ministry of Education and Research. (2023). Open access in Germany. Joint guidelines of the Federal Government and the Länder . https://www.bmftr.bund.de/SharedDocs/Publikationen/DE/FS/772970_Open_Access_in_Deutschland_en.pdf?__blob=publicationFile&v=4 Federal Ministry of Education and Research. (2018). Open Access in Deutschland. Die Strategie des Bundesministeriums für Bildung und Forschung [Open access in Germany. The strategy of the Federal Ministry of Education and Research]. https://www.bildung-forschung.digital/files/2018-08-Open_Access_neu_barrierefrei.pdf Kindling, M., Neufend, M., & Wenninger, A. (2021). Bundesländer-Atlas Open Access . Zenodo. https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.5761153 Kindling, M., Martin, L., Neufend, M., & Wenninger, A. (2022). Open Access Atlas Deutschland: Status Quo in Bund und Ländern (1.0). Zenodo. https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.6472672 Kindling, M., Martin, L., & Neufend, M. (2024). oa.atlas: Konzept . Open-Access-Büro Berlin. https://doi.org/10.21428/986c5d43.54fbd167 Mayer, K. (2022). Open Access im Wandel. Infrastrukturen, Monitoring und Governance als zentrale Elemente einer erfolgreichen Transformation. Baseline Report zur Open Access Transformation in der Wissenschaft . Centre for Social Innovation (ZSI), Vienna. https://doi.org/10.22163/fteval.2022.533 Pflüger, T. (2016). Open Access-Regulierung im internationalen Vergleich. In T. Dreier, V. Fischer, A. van Raay, & I. Spiecker [known as Döhmann] (Eds.), Informationen der öffentlichen Hand: Zugang und Nutzung (1st ed., Vol. 3, pp. 537–562). Nomos. https://kops.uni-konstanz.de/bitstream/handle/123456789/37572/Pflueger_0-395438.pdf?sequence=1&isAllowed=y swissuniversities. (2023). Open access strategy review. Background report . https://www.swissuniversities.ch/fileadmin/swissuniversities/Dokumente/Hochschulpolitik/Open_Access/OA_Strategie/OA_Strategy_Review_Background_Report.pdf UNESCO. (2021). UNESCO recommendation on open science . https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.5741832 Further Reading Fuhrer, C., & Schurte, R. (2018). Nationale Open Access-Strategie in der Schweiz: Herausforderungen für die Hochschulen und ihre Bibliotheken. In Zentralbibliothek Zürich, A. Keller, & S. Uhl (Eds.), Bibliotheken der Schweiz: Innovation durch Kooperation: Festschrift für Susanna Bliggenstorfer anlässlich ihres Rücktrittes als Direktorin der Zentralbibliothek Zürich (pp. 97–118). De Gruyter Saur. https://doi.org/10.1515/9783110553796-004 German Science and Humanities Council. (2022). Recommendations on the transformation of academic publishing: Towards open access . https://www.wissenschaftsrat.de/download/2022/9477-22_en.pdf?__blob=publicationFile&v=0 Taşkın, Z., Melinščak Zlodi, I., Laakso, M., Torny, D., Arasteh, S., Bargheer, M., Klaus, T., Schima, J., Agnoloni, T., Peruginelli, G., Davidson, A., Franczak, M., María Ángeles, C. B., de Pablo Llorente, V., Dobson, H., & Heyman, J. (2024). D5.2 National overviews on sustaining institutional publishing in Europe . Zenodo. https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.13683953 Verdicchio, D., Kissling-Näf, I. (2020). Digitale Transformation und Open Access von Forschungsresultaten in der Schweiz. In J. Schellinger, K. Tokarski, & I. Kissling-Näf (Eds.), Digitale Transformation und Unternehmensführung (pp. 11–27). Springer. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-658-26960-9_2...
Intro Ten Reasons for Open Access Source: based on Brinken, H. (2021). 10 Gründe für Open Access. Zenodo. https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.4643859 ( CC BY 4.0 International ) The key takeaways from this article are 1 Open access and open science policies have been adopted at the science policy level and at the level of research institutions and research funders. 2 Research institutions can create their own open access policies in a modular way. 3 Central elements of an open access policy are: preamble, self-description, declarations of intent and rationale, recommendations for action, and references to technical and advisory services. Goals Among the measures to establish open access , open access policies are a much-used instrument, especially at the level of higher education institutions and non-university research institutions. Specifically, open access policies pursue the following objectives: to express support for the open access movement, to position the institution in the discourse on open access, and to encourage members of the institution to publish open access or deposit their publications in open access repositories. Activities and measures in the area of open access are increasingly embedded in the broader open science context. The present text first provides an overview of the main players in the research landscape and their guidelines. This is followed by concrete suggestions for drafting institutional open access policies. Policies of Important Players "Digital Information" Initiative by the Alliance of Science Organisations in Germany At the science policy level in Germany, the major non-university research organisations, the German Rectors’ Conference , the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD) , and the German Research Foundation (DFG) jointly established the "Digital Information" Initiative , also known as the Alliance Initiative. According to its mission statement , the initiative aims "to equip scientists with the best possible information infrastructure they need for their research" ( Steering Committee for the "Digital Information" Initiative of the Alliance of Science Organisations in Germany, 2017, p. 2 ). Furthermore, it is actively committed to the further expansion of open access to scholarly knowledge. Moreover, within the framework of Projekt Deal , the Alliance Initiative has concluded joint nationwide licensing agreements with two major scholarly publishers to date, namely with Springer Nature in 2020 and with Wiley in 2019. Universities and Other Higher Education Institutions Numerous universities and other higher education institutions (HEIs) have adopted open access policies in the form of guidelines or recommendations. Many HEIs employ open access officers , who act as contact persons for all topics relating to open access, and who organise the implementation of open access at the institution ( Hübner & Riesenweber, 2018 ). HEIs are largely autonomous. Within the framework of their higher education policies (digitalisation strategies, agreements on objectives, science plans, higher education legislation, etc.), many German federal states link financial support to open access. However, HEIs’ possibilities for imposing binding requirements on researchers are limited. Many HEIs therefore take the approach of promoting open access though information events and services, thereby encouraging researchers to publish open access or deposit their publications in open access repositories. Moreover, via publication funds for open access articles and open access monographs and edited collections, libraries can link the promotion of open access to certain conditions and thus establish quality standards ( Open-Access-Büro Berlin, 2020 ). Non-University Research Institutions Many non-university research institutions, such as the Max Planck Society, the Leibniz Association, the Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft, and the Helmholtz Association, take a very concrete approach to the transition to open access ( Pampel, 2021, pp. 33 ff. ): The Max Planck Society describes itself as a "co-founder of the international Open Access movement". In 2003, it published the Berlin Declaration on Open Access to Knowledge in the Sciences and Humanities , thereby initiating a process of follow-up conferences on open access and open science. The society also plays an important role in the global OA2020 Initiative . The Max Planck Society has anchored the commitment to open access in its Rules of Good Scientific Practice , which include the binding requirement that research results achieved with public funds should be made freely available wherever possible ( Max Planck Society, 2009, p. 2 ). Moreover, with the Max Planck Digital Library , the Max Planck Society operates an extensive information portal and supports its researchers’ open access publications with a publication fund. The Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft pursues a binding Fraunhofer Open Access Strategy 2020 , which states that "the goal for 2020 is to ensure that at least one half of all scientific papers in a year are published open access, with at least one third of these via the gold road where papers are first published in an open access journal" ( Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft, 2015, p. 2 ). The Leibniz Association has also adopted a far-reaching open access policy , in which it not only expresses its commitment to open science but also sees itself as an active player in the further development of open research. Leibniz Association researchers are expected to publish open access and to play an active role in open access journals . When doing so, they are advised and supported by their respective Leibniz institutions. With the Helmholtz Open Science Office , the Helmholtz Association embeds the topic of open access in the broader open science context. In 2004, it became the first research association in Germany to adopt its own open access policy , which stated that: "Publications from the Helmholtz Association shall in future, without exception, be available free of charge as far as no conflicting agreement with publishers or others exist" ( Helmholtz-Association, 2004 ). Since 2013, this provision applies also to beneficiaries of funding from the Initiative and Networking Fund of the Helmholtz Association. In 2016, the Helmholtz Association formulated its Open Access Policy in concrete terms and set a target of 100% open access publications with effect from 2025. DFG as a Central Funding Institution The German Research Foundation (DFG) requests all funding recipients to publish their project results directly in open access. It has implemented various funding lines to strengthen open access. By supporting researchers, libraries, institutions, and organisations, the DFG is the key player as far as the implementation and acceleration of the transition to open access in Germany is concerned. The DFG signed the Berlin Declaration on Open Access to Knowledge in the Sciences and Humanities in 2003, and requests funding recipients to publish their project results open access for the purpose of scientifically adequate communication. Specifically, the contributions should either be published in peer-reviewed and/or renowned open access journals or on open access platforms, or deposited, if possible without delay, in repositories in addition to traditional publication with a publisher ( German Research Foundation, 2021, pp. 42–43 ). The DFG rejects a general open access mandate such as that pursued in Plan S because it fears that this could lead to higher article processing charges (APCs). Moreover, it considers that a move away from the Journal Impact Factor , which is called for in Plan S, would involve fundamental changes to the system by which research outputs are assessed, which would not be possible without major upheavals ( German Research Foundation, 2018 ). For these reasons, the DFG is not participating in cOAlition S, although it supports the efforts of the initiative in principle. Professional Associations A number of professional associations also endorsed open access and open science at an early stage. Especially worthy of mention is the Initiative for Electronic Information and Communication (IuK-Initiative), which was established in Germany in 1994. In the early stage of digital transformation, the IuK-Initiative promoted the building of a virtual and digital library and advocated a science-friendly amendment of German copyright law ( Weisel, 2012 ). Several professional associations can also be found among the signatories of the Berlin Declaration: the German Mathematical Society (DMV) (2005), the German Informatics Society (GI) (2007), the German Society for Pre- and Protohistory (DGUF) (2016), and the German Psychological Society (DGPs) (2017). As early as 1998, the German Physical Society (DPG) founded an open access journal, the New Journal of Physics . The DPG is thus one of the pioneers of open access publishing in Germany. However, the majority of professional associations are only slowly engaging with open access, and they are doing so under pressure from international developments (especially Plan S ). Only a few professional societies have adopted open access policies of their own. In the course of the further development of the transition to open access, the discussion within the professional associations will possibly increase in importance – not least because many of them are considering converting their own journals to open access ( Pampel & Strecker, 2020 ). Creating a Policy Implementing Open Access Find an introduction here. Policy Frameworks Find an introduction here. Open Access Policy Making The purpose of open access policy-making is to initiate a process of self-awareness that will ideally result in the adoption of a policy. During this process, players in an institution take a position on open access, and then develop a common position. With the help of dedicated policies, institutions can document the fact that they are taking a position in the current transformation of science communication. The prerequisite for the success of a policy-making process is therefore the participation of all relevant actors in the institution based on an effective concept of internal communication. open-access.network ( CC BY 4.0 International ) Policy-Making Process A model proposed by Howlett and Ramesh (2009, p. 91 et seq.) distinguishes five stages of policy-making: agenda setting, policy formulation, decision making, implementation, and evaluation. For the process of creating an open access policy, the following steps can be derived from this model: Problem identification The introduction of a new policy, or the amendment or expansion of an existing policy, occurs in response to needs, problems, conflicts, or current developments in the institutional environment. It is helpful to analyse these context factors in order to formulate arguments for setting the agenda and to anticipate opposition to the policy-making process. Even at this early stage, thought can be given to the organisation of the process. Agenda setting The support of persons in executive positions is enlisted for the project. The steering and coordination of the process can be taken on by a body, a working group, or an individual. Further relevant groups of actors are informed, and arguments for a policy-making process put forward. The planned process is transparently presented. Formulation and decision making A policy document is formulated (see below) and repeatedly reviewed, supplemented, and/or amended in consultation with the competent institutional bodies and other stakeholders. Once all desired changes have been accepted, or rejected with proper justification, the version of the document that is ready for adoption makes its way through the competent bodies. After the incorporation of the resulting amendments, the policy is finally adopted. Communication and evaluation The policy will produce effective results only if the recommendations and requests for action are disseminated via numerous other channels after the official publication of the policy document. Attention should be drawn to the revised or newly created policy in newsletters, on websites, on appropriate occasions, and at meetings. A transparent presentation of the policy process is desirable, including the provision of a "clean" version of the policy document in which changes have been implemented, and a link to the final version (i.e. the version that is ready for adoption) on the web pages of the competent organisational unit (e.g. open access office, university library). The impact of an open access policy can be quantified with the help of suitable monitoring tools, for example in research information systems or on publication data management platforms. Although this linear presentation of the policy-making process diverges considerably from the discontinuous and conflict-ridden processes in the real world of academia, it may be helpful for planning purposes. Provisos Recommendations for action may be made subject to provisos. Justifications cited may include freedom of science or discipline-specific publishing cultures. Example Wording "With due regard to the constitutionally protected freedom of research and teaching and the freedom to choose the publication medium and venue that results therefrom, and taking into account the different statuses of open access in the various disciplinary cultures, the JGU makes the following recommendations for the transition to open access." - Open Access Policy of Johannes Gutenberg University (JGU) Mainz Technical services Mention of technical infrastructures for open access publishing provided by the institution or by third parties. These include inter alia repositories for publications, research data, and code; systems for publication data management; metadata services; controlling instruments; research information systems; open journal platforms; research data management systems, etc. Example Wording "The university supports the findability and dissemination, and thus the visibility, of scholarly texts through the following measures: download option and statistics on the university’s research portal download option on the institution’s web pages via Pure Plugins provision of bibliographic data for literature search engines and catalogues (LUX; BASE; GVK etc.) publication of theses (dissertations and habilitation theses)" - Open Access Strategy of Leuphana Universität Lüneburg Advisory services Mention of publishing advisory services for scholars and scientists, journal editors, and publishers, as well as other services to support open access publishing offered by the institution Example Wording "Information events, workshops, tutorials, and individual consultations on open access are conducted regularly by the Open Access Team." - Open Access Policy of Chemnitz University Library Final clause Example Wording "If individual provisions of this policy should be invalid or unfeasible after the policy comes into effect, the finality of the policy will be unaffected in all other respects." - Open Access Policy of the Helmholtz Association, 2016 Date, signatories, reference to the official policy document in the version put to the vote, PDF download option Footer Contact data, references, further links Rights Retention Strategy An explicit rights retention strategy can be a meaningful element of an open access policy. An overview of the landscape of rights-retention-strategy practices in Europe, including recommendations for institutional policymakers, research funders, legislators, and publishers can be found in Labastida et al. (2023) . Structure & Content Open access policies include the following elements: Header Seal of the institution; title of the document; if applicable, reference to the corresponding resolution in the official version Preamble Preliminary remarks that explain the societal, political, or scientific context of the open access policy and refer to the self-image of the institution Example Wording "Innovation is impossible unless researchers are able to share new knowledge as soon as it has been established. In its capacity as a publicly funded organization, the Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft has a duty to inform the general public about its research activities. At the same time, industrial partners have a need for information that will allow them to find appropriate partners for their projects. Consequently, the Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft pursues a publishing policy based on unrestricted access to information, as defined in the 2003 Berlin Declaration on Open Access to Knowledge in the Sciences and Humanities." - Open Access Policy der Fraunenhofer- Gesellschaft Self-description (if not included in the preamble) A characterisation of the institution from which the consonance of its goals and function with an open access culture is derived. The mission statement of the institution possibly contains statements from which wording can be taken. Example Wording "The University of Regensburg stands, among other things, for the exchange of knowledge and culture between the cultural regions of Eastern and Western Europe and North America, for dialogue with society, for a cosmopolitan university culture, and for long-term international relations in research, teaching, and study (Mission statement of the University of Regensburg, as of 5 Oct. 2007)." - Open Access Policy of the University of Regensburg Definitions Conceptual definition of open access and/or a brief overview of the historical context that demonstrates the importance of the topic for the activities of institution’s members Example Wording "Open Access stands for unlimited and free access to quality-controlled scholarly information on the internet. Thanks to the elimination of technical, financial, and legal barriers, Open Access has helped to accelerate academic innovation processes and to improve the visibility of research results. This supports scholars in their research and publishing and maximises the benefit of publicly funded research. As a member of the Leibniz Association, Technische Informationsbibliothek (TIB) – German National Library of Science and Technology is committed to Open Access." - Open Access Policy of the Technische Informationsbibliothek (TIB) References Reference to previous declarations and initiatives, commonalities, and, if applicable, obligations of the institution resulting therefrom Example Wording "Leibniz University Hannover supports the scientific and political request for open access to knowledge in the sciences and humanities, as determined in the ‘Berlin Declaration’ issued October 2003 and the “Berlin 3 Open Access” recommendation confirmed March 2005, in Southampton, UK." - Open Access Resolution of Leibniz University Hannover Rationale Rationale for the support for open access that the policy aims to achieve. The rationale is formulated from the perspective of the institution or from a superordinate perspective. Example Wording "In view of its responsibility for comprehensive access to academic knowledge, Heidelberg University is pressing ahead to expand open access." - Open Access Policy of the University of Heidelberg Declarations of intent Mention of the goals in the area of open access that the institution has set itself. These goals may include the provision of a suitable organisational, financial, and technical infrastructure for open access publishing; the achievement of a certain percentage of open access publications within a specified time limit; the implementation of further higher education policy measures; and participation in transition processes and other, trans-institutional developments. In addition, the equal consideration of peer-reviewed open access publications in agreements on objectives and in performance-related funding award procedures, and the implementation of measures for internal communication (tutorials, open access officers) can be laid down. Example Wording "When assessing scholarly performance, the University of Kassel will treat peer-reviewed contributions equally, irrespective of whether the contributions are fee-based or open access. […] Moreover, pursuant to its Research Data Guideline, the University of Kassel will offer to also make research data that arise or are collected in the context of scientific work openly accessible. The University of Kassel will seek to make publications produced at the university available on a large scale on the university’s publication server, KOBRA9, which will facilitate the optimal findability, authenticity, integrity, and persistent citability of these publications." - Open Access-Policy of the University of Kassel "The MLU supports and advises scholars and scientists on publishing scholarly works in open access formats, and also on making works available to the public via independent publishing channels. This requires regular training and information offerings for both researchers and staff. Adequate formats will be developed for this purpose and regularly implemented. The MLU will establish instruments to support researchers with publication costs within a certain financial framework. In particular, it will establish a publication fund and create the prerequisites for the acquisition of further funding for this purpose." - Open Access Policy of the Martin-Luther-Universität (MLU) Halle-Wittenberg Recommendations for action, requests, or mandates for publishing authors The levels of obligation of the wording may vary. They range from recommendations for action, through requests, to mandates. Options for action include among other things: Research and teaching in accordance with the aims of open science, open access, and open education The publication of research results and scholarly publications in an open access format The self-archiving of research results or scholarly publications on an institutional document server or in a repository either in parallel with publication or after expiry of an embargo period Publication under open licences , such as Creative Commons licences Inclusion of publication costs in applications for third-party funding Securing of a lasting right of exploitation vis-à-vis publishers Avoidance of granting publishers an exclusive right of use Involvement as a reviewer and editor in peer-reviewed open access journals or commitment to a progressive open access policy on the part of publishers For managers: a recommendation to staff that they explore the possibility of publishing research results in peer-reviewed open access formats Example Wording 1 "In order to anchor openness in teaching and research lastingly at the TUHH, we recommend all TUHH members to actively pursue the objectives of Open Science, Open Access and Open Education." - Hamburg University of Technology (TUHH) Policy of Openness in Research and Teaching 2 "Therefore, Humboldt-Universität recommends all scientists to submit their articles to Open Access journals and to publish monographs and collected works on Open Access platforms." - Open Access Declaration of the Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin 3 "Ruhr University Bochum requests its members to self-archive an electronic copy of all peer-reviewed published articles on an open access document server (green open access) insofar as there are no legal objections to doing so." - Open Access Resolution of Ruhr University Bochum 4 "TU Braunschweig recommends its authors to use open publication licences that promote dissemination in open access (preferably a Creative Commons CC BY licence)." - Guideline on Open Access at the Technische Universität (TU) Braunschweig 5 "The funding regulations of many third-party funders allow funds for article processing charges (APCs) to be included in the project budget when submitting a funding proposal. Moreover, the Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF) has established a Post-Grant Fund to support open access publications resulting from completed BMBF-funded projects. It is strongly advisable to make use of such possibilities when planning and conducting third-party-funded projects." - Open Access at the University of Greifswald 6 "When negotiating with publishers, researchers are encouraged to secure the right to self-archive electronic versions as provided for in the guidelines of the German Research Foundation (DFG) and other research funders." - Open Access Strategy of the Leuphana Universität Lüneburg 7 "When publishing in a closed-access publication, Reutlingen University recommends [its members] to forgo granting exclusive rights of use and to retain a non-exclusive right to make [their works] available to the public, so that they may self-archive [them] in Reutlingen University’s repository." - Open Access Policy of Reutlingen University 8 "As a scholarly author, you often work also as a reviewer or editor for scholarly journals. Please take note of publishers‘ pricing policies towards customers and, if applicable, work for better open access policies on the part of the publishers." - Open Access Policy of the University of Göttingen 9 "In their capacity as leaders, researchers at the Technische Universität München are specifically requested to also allow their employees to publish in accordance with open access." - Technische Universität München (TUM) Open Access Policy References Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft. (2015). Fraunhofer Open Access-Strategie 2020 . https://www.openaccess.fraunhofer.de/content/dam/openaccess/de/documents/Fraunhofer-Open-Access-Strategie-2020.pdf German Research Foundation (DFG). (2018). DFG statement on the establishment of “cOAlition S” to support open access . Information for Researchers No. 56. https://www.dfg.de/en/research_funding/announcements_proposals/2018/info_wissenschaft_18_56/index.html German Research Foundation (DFG). (2021). Verwendungsrichtlinien. Allgemeine Bedingungen für Förderverträge mit der Deutschen Forschungsgemeinschaft e.V. (DFG) . https://www.dfg.de/formulare/2_00/v/dfg_2_00_de_v0121.pdf Helmholtz Association. (2004). Decision on the implementation of the Berlin Declaration . https://os.helmholtz.de/en/open-science-in-the-helmholtz-association/eng-open-access/open-access-policies/ Howlett, M., Ramesh, M., & Perl, A. (2009). Studying public policy : policy cycles & policy subsystems (3rd edition). Oxford University Press. Hübner, A., & Riesenweber, C. (2018). Datentabelle Inhalte der Open-Access-Policies deutscher Hochschulen . Zenodo. https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.1291855 Labastida i Juan, I., Melinščak Zlodi, I., Proudman, V., & Treadway, J. (2023). Opening knowledge: retaining rights and open licensing in Europe . SPARC Europe. https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.8084051 Max Planck Society. (2009). Rules of good scientific practice . https://www.mpg.de/16404553/rules-scientific-practice.pdf Open-Access-Büro Berlin. (2020). Empfehlung: Förderbedingungen für die Publikationsfonds für Monografien und Sammelbände an den Berliner Universitäten . Zenodo. https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.4110229 Pampel, H. (2021). Strategische und operative Handlungsoptionen für wissenschaftliche Einrichtungen zur Gestaltung der Open-Access-Transformation . Philosophische Fakultät der Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin. https://doi.org/10.18452/22946 Pampel, H., & Strecker, D. (2020). Wissenschaftliche Fachgesellschaften und Open Access in Deutschland. Bericht . https://gfzpublic.gfz-potsdam.de/rest/items/item_5000001_1/component/file_5000002/content Steering Committee for the “Digital Information” Initiative of the Alliance of Science Organisations in Germany. (2017). S haping digital information in science. “Digital Information” Initiative by the Alliance of Science Organisations in Germany. Mission Statement 2018–2022 . https://gfzpublic.gfz-potsdam.de/pubman/faces/ViewItemOverviewPage.jsp?itemId=item_2829904 Weisel, L. (2012). Interview zur Auflösung der IuK-Initiative Wissenschaft. LIBREAS. Library Ideas , 20 . https://libreas.eu/ausgabe20/texte/01weisel.htm Further Reading Angelaki, M. (2021). Model Policy on Open Science for Research Performing Organisations (RPOs) . Zenodo. https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.4666050 Canadian Association of Research Libraries. (2020). CARL Institutional Open Access Policy Template and Toolkit . https://www.carl-abrc.ca/oa-policy-template-and-toolkit/ Harvard Open Access Project (HOAP). (2021). Good practices for university open-access policies . Cyber.Harvard.Edu. https://cyber.harvard.edu/hoap/Good_practices_for_university_open-access_policies Macquarie University. (n.d.). Resources for Writing, Reviewing, and Developing Policy Documents . https://policies.mq.edu.au/resources.php OpenAIRE. (n.d.). Toolkit for Policy Makers on Open Science and Open Access . OpenAIRE.Eu. https://www.openaire.eu/toolkit-for-policy-makers-on-open-science-and-open-access PASTEUR4OA (n.d.). OA Policy Alignment Checklist. http://www.pasteur4oa.eu/resources/154#.YR9wp44zY2y University rights-retention OA policies. (2023, December 21). In Open access directory (OAD) [wiki]. https://oad.simmons.edu/oadwiki/University_rights-retention_OA_policies...