Celebrate Open Access with IU Libraries
Theme for International Open Access Week 2025 Asks “Who Owns Our Knowledge?”
IU Libraries Bloomington, IU Indianapolis University Library, and the Institute for Advanced Study are joining together in an annual recognition of the impact of Open Access for scholars at our campus locations and around the world.
Open access (OA) is an approach to sharing scholarly literature “online, free of charge, and free of most copyright and licensing restrictions” (Peter Suber, Open Access). Any work in digital form can be open access when copyrights allow. Indiana University Libraries support open access approaches to scholarly dissemination in a variety of ways.
- Learn more about Open Access publishing support in Bloomington or find resources specific to Open Access support in Indianapolis.
Please join us for our virtual panel discussions this October, and do not miss our Keynote speaker, Juan Pablo Alperin, Scientific Director of the Public Knowledge Project (PKP), and Associate Professor in the Publishing Program and Co-Director of the Scholarly Communications Lab (ScholCommLab) at Simon Fraser University.
These virtual events highlight Open Access Week 2025
Scholarly publishing is changing. New platforms and models—from modular “micropublications” to community-owned infrastructure—are challenging traditional modes of publication and raising new questions about ownership, equity, and sustainability. This panel brings together leading scholars and publishing technologists to share how these changes might transform research creation, dissemination, and evaluation.
Panelists:
- Dr. Alexandra Freeman (Director of Octopus)
- Adam Hyde (Founder and Principal Architect, Coko)
- Jennifer Trueblood (Ruth N. Halls Professor of Cognitive Science and Psychological & Brain Sciences, and Director, Cognitive Science Program, IU)
- Moderator: Nate Howard (Program Manager for Digital Scholarship, Institute for Advanced Study, IU)
As commercial scholarly publishing consolidates and costs continue to rise, universities are working to regain control over how scholarship is disseminated, maintained, and acquired. This panel will examine the promise and challenges of university-based publishing—from university presses to library publishing programs and beyond.
Panelists:
- Heather Akou (Professor, Fashion Design, IU)
- Annie Martin (Editorial Director, IU Press)
- Kate McCready (Program Director for Open Publishing, Big Ten Academic Alliance)
- Mary Rose Muccie (Executive Director, Temple University Press, and Scholarly Communications Officer, Temple University Libraries)
- Solimar Otero (Professor, Folklore and Ethnomusicology, Professor, Gender Studies, and Director, Latino Studies, IU)
- Moderator: Karen Stoll Farrell (Director, Scholarly Communication and Open Publishing, IU Libraries)
Keynote by Dr. Juan Pablo Alperin (Simon Fraser University; Public Knowledge Project)
What would happen if Google Scholar were to vanish tomorrow? For many researchers, it has become the default gateway to academic literature, yet its dominance also exposes vulnerabilities in how knowledge is discovered and accessed. This presentation will discuss how the proliferation of open access journals, led by scholars and published out of universities from around the world, is challenging publishing models, reshaping access to knowledge, and redefining the global landscape of scholarly communication. It concludes with a call to strengthen and sustain scholar-led publishing infrastructures—so that access to knowledge is secured by the academic community itself, not left at the mercy of corporate platforms.
Speaker: Juan Pablo Alperin, Scientific Director of the Public Knowledge Project (PKP), and Associate Professor in the Publishing Program and Co-Director of the Scholarly Communications Lab (ScholCommLab), Simon Fraser University.
IU Indianapolis University Library is running a 5-day challenge that will guide you through tools and resources that we recommend for a community-first, open approach to knowledge sharing. Each day, you will receive an email reminding you to read the day's information and try out the activity. You should be able to read and complete the activity in about 20 minutes. The activities won't make you an expert on a tool or platform, but they should help you determine whether it is worth investing more time and effort into using it.
Contributors
Michelle Crowe
Assistant Dean, Engagement, Strategic Partnerships, and Communications