Design/methodology/approach : The educational environment cannot continue to be fixed, closed and isolated, where students – assuming a basically passive role – receive standardised teaching. It must consequently experience a fast and decisive transformation which allows it, amongst other things, to respond to the new challenge posed by society: the need for all of us to share the knowledge we generate, so that further progress can be made.

Findings : The Institutional Repository (RUA) and the OpenCourseWare of the University of Alicante (OCW-UA) were conceived from the very beginning as related projects that could constitute consecutive phases in the open publication of knowledge. In this way the aim of presenting the promotion of open knowledge not as a series of discrete projects but as a global strategic gamble of the institution was achieved. In addition to the most visible educational benefits, this policy has had the virtue of favouring the assumption by the University of its role as an online provider of quality (scientific and teaching) content.

Originality/value : RUA is the storage place of all the teaching materials published by the University of Alicante’s teaching staff, which are retrieved from OCW-UA, while OCW-UA serves as an organisational model of teaching content self-archived by the teaching staff in RUA. The connection between the projects has allowed the presentation of the promotion of open knowledge as a global strategic gamble of the University, which has contributed to a greater acceptance by the teaching staff. This work is original in that it shows a successful experience of involvement by one university and its members in the promotion of open knowledge. »

URL : http://rua.ua.es/dspace/handle/10045/14319

The report draws on two studies:
1. Activities, costs and funding flows in the scholarly communications system in the UK, Research information Network, London, 2008 (referred to as the ‘CEPA Report), and
2. Review of the Costs and Benefits of Single Payment Arrangements for JISC/NESLi2 Licences, JISC collections, London, 2009, referred to as the ‘Single Payment Report’

Both reports point to the benefits of moving to a digital journal environment in which online-only journal lists are licensed from publishers (and print versions discontinued) and paid for in a single payment transaction and in which significant reductions in library operating costs are achievable. »

URL : http://www.jisc-collections.ac.uk/Reports/Bloc-Payment-for-online-journals/

The project benefits from European and LAC experiences and take into account different socio-cultural scenarios. The health information needs of the areas involved contribute to stress the importance of creating awareness on document and data diffusion at different levels.

A network of institutions is being creating to collaborate in ad hoc training programmes in information production and dissemination, including technical and ethical issues. NECOBELAC promotes the coordination and effectiveness of the existing health-related information infrastructures in Europe and LAC countries to achieve a wider scale uptake of community engagement, embedding the use of open access methods within accepted working practices. »

URL : http://www.necobelac.eu/en/overview.php
The publications of the project : http://www.necobelac.eu/en/documents.php

This project is not new (it started in 2009), but I just discovered it