Australian and New Zealand universities are uniting to ensure their taxpayer-funded research is available more freely and not locked behind publisher paywalls.
Led by the Council of Australasian University Librarians (CAUL), Universities Australia and Universities New Zealand – Te Pōkai Tara, the sector plans to take a unified position in upcoming negotiations with publishers such as Elsevier, Springer Nature, Wiley, and Taylor & Francis.
Universities Australia Chief Executive Luke Sheehy said the move reflected the sector’s broader commitment to collaboration and reform.
“Universities are stepping up to find smarter, more sustainable ways to support open access,” Mr Sheehy said.
“By negotiating together, we’re giving ourselves the best shot at securing a fairer deal for our researchers – and better value for public investment,” he said.
Universities New Zealand – Te Pōkai Tara Deputy Chief Executive Bronwen Kelly said much of the research done by universities in Australia and New Zealand was funded by taxpayers.
“We have obligations to make sure that the knowledge we generate is widely and freely available and not hidden behind paywalls,” Dr Kelly said.
“Where making the knowledge we generate widely available is best done by working through global publishers, we have obligations to make sure that we do this in a way that ensures the best value for taxpayers.”
Deakin University Vice Chancellor, and Chair of the sector’s new oversight committee, Iain Martin said the moves come amid mounting pressure on university budgets and growing concern about the rising cost of open access publishing.
Professor Martin said the sector was now pursuing new agreements that were more sustainable, transparent and equitable, and deliver better value for the public investment in research.
“These are crucial negotiations for the future of research in our regions,” he said.
“Our universities are committed to making research openly accessible to maximise its impact for the communities we serve.
“The negotiations offer an important opportunity to establish new models that align more closely with the needs of our sector and the public who fund and benefit from our work.”
Professor Martin said the cross-Tasman initiative would be overseen by a senior academic advisory group, comprising university leaders and university librarians from both countries.
