U of T’s Open Access Week kicks off: values increased exchange
by Sabrina Persaud, special to OISE
The University of Toronto, including several other post-secondary institutions across the world celebrates Open Access Week this week. This event recognizes the importance of knowledge mobilization, community-building and equitable access to technology for and between academia and the general public. Now in its fifth year, Open Access Week features many great events across university campuses. This year, as part of U of T’s activities, the Ontario Institute for Studies in Education (OISE) will host U of T’s open access keynote speaker, Chad Gaffield, the president of the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council on Wednesday, October 26 at 12 noon in the OISE Library.
Julie Hannaford, director of the OISE Library and associate librarian, Humanities and Social Sciences, shared her excitement for the event: “Open access has many advantages for the OISE community. Open access means increasing access for scholars, educators, policymakers, and the public worldwide.” She also notes that “A guiding principle for OISE is equity and accessibility. Our faculty are internationally recognized for their outstanding contributions to education research and education policy. Open access opportunities help to ensure that academic work is readily and openly accessible so that knowledge can be extensively shared.”
T-Space, is one of the key technological tools that has been created to support open access opportunities at the University of Toronto. T-Space is a free content repository, accessible by using major search engines such as Google, Google Scholar and others. These search engines have preferred Internet presence ensuring a wider dissemination of content from a participating institution. This free access to scholarship also supports the facilitation of networking between researchers and practitioners, making T-Space a natural on-line networking hub.
Learn more about U of T and OISE events during Open Access Week.
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