Open Science is changing the way research is produced, accessed and utilised, and new and diversified ways of scientific exchange and cooperation are emerging. This movement is paving the way to enhanced cross-fertilisation of interdisciplinary research activities, which is critical to tackle complex research issues and societal challenges.
EUA is on the forefront of supporting this movement and demonstrating how Open Science holds great promise in strengthening the competitiveness of the overall European science and research system. It has the potential to speed up knowledge transfer among scientists and scientific disciplines, to foster the growth of new types of scientific cooperation and to stimulate collaborative research. However, the great potential of Open Science for scientific development and knowledge transfer comes with big challenges, such as legal constraints, confidentiality issues, intellectual property rights, scientific recognition systems and quality assurance of non-traditional research outputs.
EUA actively supports universities in the transition to Open Science. For more than a decade, the Association has promoted a series of initiatives related to the implementation of institutional policies on Open Access to research publications. EUA also has an Expert Group on Science 2.0/Open Science that closely follows developments in this area. It addresses a broad range of issues including Open Access to research publications and data, text and data mining and big data.
The Association’s focus on Open Science is also seen in its extensive efforts in providing input to the EU’s research and innovation programmes.
The publication of research outcomes in digital formats is providing scientists and other stakeholders in research and innovation with enhanced opportunities to increase the visibility of, and widen access to, scientific articles and research data. This facilitates developments towards Open Access, a phenomenon that has received increased attention from the academic community, publishers, research funders, governments and even the general public over the past years.
EUA has become a leading voice in the debate on Open Access as it has been monitoring developments in the field from an institutional perspective for more than a decade. Through dedicated activities, EUA has shaped the debate and worked with its many university members to accelerate the transition towards a more open, transparent and collaborative research system. EUA’s efforts are in line with those of the European Union, namely the EU policies for Open Access to research publications and data in the current and future Framework Programmes, the FAIR data principles (Findable, Accessible, Interoperable and Reusable) and the creation of the European Open Science Cloud.
Large contract negotiations between universities and scientific publishers, the so-called “Big Deals”, are becoming increasingly important for universities. This is due to the changes brought by Open Access and Open Science and the need for greater transparency, especially in what concerns the use of public funds. The EUA High-Level Group on Big Deals, comprising university leaders and scientific publishing specialists, monitors the evolution of negotiation mechanisms between universities and publishers and how these affect the content and financial conditions given to academic institutions.
EUA conducts a mapping of major scientific publishing contracts in Europe from the perspective of universities. This original initiate has revealed, for the first time on a European scale, the magnitude of spending and the stark differences across countries in big deal contracts with scientific publishers.
EUA provides a platform for dialogue about Big Deal negotiations and for sharing good practices and information about the development of the Big Deal landscape in Europe to increase the efficiency and transparency of scientific publishing.
EUA is part of a broad alliance of more than 100 organisations that has voiced concerns over recent proposals for a Directive on copyright in the Digital Single Market. The alliance seeks a balanced compromise that fosters openness in education, research, innovation and competitiveness.
A Europe at the forefront of a prosperous and growing digital society is the vision set out by the European Commission in its strategy for a Digital Single Market. To get there, EUA recommends three broad mandatory exceptions for research based on text and data mining; for cross-border off-site education; and for the preservation of cultural heritage. These measures will enable universities, their libraries, researchers and educators to generate new insights based on analysing large datasets; to provide innovative learning and teaching opportunities; and, to preserve cultural heritage objects in the Digital Era.
The European University Association (EUA) would like to draw attention to the impact the Directive on Copyright in the Digital Single Market will have on European higher education and research.
EUA has presented a comprehensive response to the “Plan S” consultation launched by Science Europe. Plan S is aninitiative for Open Access publishing launched in 2018 by an international group of research funders (Coalition S).
The European University Association (EUA) would like to draw attention to the impact the Directive on Copyright in the Digital Single Market will have on European higher education and research. On behalf of universities and national rectors’ conferences in 48 European countries, the EUA...
view moreEUA has presented a comprehensive response to the “Plan S” consultation launched by Science Europe. Plan S is an initiative for Open Access publishing launched in 2018 by an international group of research funders (Coalition S). EUA has a special interest in Plan S as it complements...
view moreEUA has published a preview of the results of the latest edition of its Big Deals survey. The large-scale initiative covers 31 consortia in Europe, representing universities and other organisations, responsible for the negotiation of Big Deal contracts with publishers. The preliminary results...
view moreThe EUA Council adopted a statement on 26 October 2018 expressing its concern about the lack of transparency and competition in the scholarly publishing business sector in Europe. The statement, addressed to the European Commission, asks for an investigation to clarify if competition rules...
view moreThe European Parliament approved the European Copyright Directive on 12 September 2018, paving the way for the final round of negotiations. EUA has followed the issue closely since the European Commission first tabled the proposal in 2016. The Association regrets that the European Parliament did...
view moreArtificial intelligence is a big topic in European and national politics, and it is an area in which universities must contribute with their unique qualities. It is a technology that – like the steam engine or electricity in the past – can be applied to many fields and disciplines, increasing...
view moreEUA signed an open letter to the Ambassadors of the Permanent Representations of the member states of the European Union on 26 April warning against rushing the debate on copyright reform in the Council of the EU. EUA joined a broad alliance of more than 100 organisations representing...
view moreOn 9 April EUA signed an open letter to the European Commission on maximising the benefits of artificial intelligence through future-proof rules on text and data mining. EUA joined an alliance of 23 organisations representing universities, technology companies, service...
view moreThe EUA Big Deals Survey Report: The first mapping of major scientific publishing contracts...
read moreEUA Open Access Survey Report 2016-2017 tracks European universities’ progress towards...
read moreThe EUA High-Level Group on ‘big deals’ with scientific publishers and the Expert Group on Science 2.0/Open Science met in Brussels on 10-12 January 2018 to discuss negotiations with publishers, research data management and open data. The groups also agreed on priorities for 2018. The...
view moreEUA has been monitoring developments in the area of Open Science, in particular Open Access to research publications, from an institutional perspective, since 2007. The questionnaire on Open Access 2015/2016 included 16 questions grouped into three main sections: data on...
read moreThe publication and dissemination of scientific outcomes is part of the backbone of scientific activities. In general, the conditions for publishing and publication usage in recent years have become more cumbersome, and prices have rocketed sky high. A more efficient use of public...
read moreThe European University Association (EUA) welcomes the European Commission's (EC) 14 September 2016 proposal for a Directive on copyright in the Digital Single Market. EUA views the proposed Directive as an important step towards more modern copyright laws for the digital age, fair remuneration of...
read moreThe European University Association (EUA) welcomes the European Commission's (EC) 14 September proposal for a Directive on copyright in the Digital Single Market. EUA views the proposed Directive as an important step towards more modern copyright laws for the digital age, fair remuneration of...
read moreThe European University Association (EUA) strongly supports the “Amsterdam Call for Action on Open Science” launched during the conference “Open Science – From Vision to Action”, organised by the Dutch EU Presidency from 4 to 5 April 2016.
read moreThe European University Association (EUA) welcomes the European Commission’s (EC) 9 December Communication outlining its intentions to move towards a modern, more European copyright framework. The reform of the current legislation is urgently needed as students, researchers, educators and...
read moreThe Open Access checklist is intended as a general guide to key matters that should be considered when institutions plan to develop a policy on Open Access to research publications. It is primarily addressed to higher education and research institutions that are developing, or planning...
read moreThe response to the European Commission public consultation on “Science 2.0: Science in Transition” has been prepared in coordination with the EUA Research Policy Working Group. EUA’s response highlighted a series of key issues on “Science 2.0” from EUA’s perspective including words of...
read moreThe present briefing report is another EUA initiative in the field of Open Access (OA) policies, aiming at providing its membership with an informative policy overview. Its overall purpose is to contribute to the further policy discussion at European level by raising awareness of...
read moreIn January 2007 EUA established a “Working Group on Open Access” for a one year period as a platform of expert opinion to provide both a voice for, and visibility to European universities as stakeholders in the policy debate. Its mission was dualfold: to raise awareness of the...
read moreSince the beginning of time scientific research has been based on exchanges between peers:...
read moreThe European University Association (EUA) and its Expert Group on ‘Science 2.0/Open Science’ are...
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