Open Access Week

The University Library proudly invites you to participate in our International Open Access Week 2018 calendar of events. This year’s theme is “designing equitable foundations for open knowledge”. This timely topic reflects a scholarly communication system in transition as, currently, governments, funders, universities, publishers, and academics are increasingly adopting open policies and practices.

Please contact library@kaust.edu.sa, for more details.

These two learning events are designed to bring together existing Wikipedia/Wikidata users and contributors within the KAUST community with those interested in exploring these tools, with the intention of participating in the improvement of these essential, global resources.

Both sessions will open with an introductory presentation. Following this, participants will work on hands-on activities in small groups. These groups will be organized based on the specific topics of interest participants enter on their registration forms. Participants are encouraged to bring their own laptops and to sign up for a Wikipedia account before attending. Attendees can participate in either one or both sessions. Please click for more details.

The schedule is as follows:

Wikipedia

Monday, 15^th October from 10:00 AM -12:00 noon

Wikidata

Wednesday, 17^th October from 10:00 AM -12:00 noon

Venue: University Library, Level 3, Sea View Room

Instructor: Daryl Grenz, Lead Repository Services, KAUST Library

Lunch, for registered participants, will be provided after both sessions.

There is limited availability: registration will close once the maximum number of attendees is reached.

Click here to register . We recommend that you register early.

This 65 minutes long documentary, produced and directed by Jason Schmitt (Chair of the Communication & Media Department at Clarkson University in Potsdam, NY), explores how essential open access is to the future of scientific education and research. It questions the rationale behind the $25.2 billion a year cash flow generated by for-profit academic publishers, examines the 35-40% profit margin associated with the top academic publisher, Elsevier, and shows how that profit margin is often greater than some of the most profitable tech companies like Apple, Facebook, and Google. It is an essential viewing for anyone involved in the future of scientific research.

Paywall: The Business of Scholarship will be screened for the first time in the region on;

Tuesday, 16^th October from 4.30-6.00 PM

Venue:  Building 1 (Desert side), Level 2, Core Labs Multi Purpose Room (MPR).

There will be a short Q&A session after the screening.

Refreshments will be available from 4:15 PM

No registration is required.