SPARC: “Building Open With Purpose And Going Beyond Statements”

From a SPARC Blog Post:

This year’s International Open Access Week theme “Open with Purpose: Taking Action to Build Structural Equity and Inclusion” is more urgent than ever. The killings of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, Ahmaud Arbery, and so many others have reverberated around the world, and have rightfully brought the need to address racism and inequity to the forefront of the Open Access community’s conversations. While there are now many more discussions about structural racism and the importance of diversity, equity and inclusion happening, these are only a beginning. We recognize there is harm done every day that systemic inequity goes unchallenged. This is why the International Open Access Week Advisory Committee chose to focus on equity issues for the third year in a row.

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Our blog post for last year’s Open Access Week noted, “Open can advance equity by creating the opportunity to reassess and change the underlying structures in the research and education systems.” The current moment of transition we are in provides us with a unique opportunity to reconstruct the foundation of research and scholarship and to build equity into its core. However, to do this, conversations will not be enough. Actions that simply support existing structures in the way we’ve done in the past will not be enough. We need action that is intentionally focused on centering equity in this foundation and a commitment to being held accountable for tangible progress.

Learn More, Read the Complete SPARC Blog Post (approx. 680 words)

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