Librarians, funders, and the 2013 OSTP Public Access and Open Data Memoranda

Abstract

Funding agencies have largely incorporated into their documentation methods to increase public access to research, as laid out by the Office of Science and Technology Policy’s 2013 memoranda. As such, librarians and scientists are at a critical point of change in practice and standards, including data management planning, transparent research processes, and disseminating data as widely as possible. This poster provides an overview of the OSTP guidelines and the responses to these guidelines by the NSF and the NIH. Based on this overview, there are clear areas where librarians can help improve how scientists respond to and comply with the Public Access policies, and some suggestions for future steps are provided. With a better understanding of the memoranda, and examples of areas where we can engage and improve practice, librarians will be prepared to provide policy-based guidance and advocacy at their own campuses.