Supporting the development of aligned policies for open access books and monographs

Monographs, books and other types of long-text formats are very important outputs in some disciplines, such as in the Social Sciences and the Humanities. Whilst many disciplines rely nearly exclusively on the production of articles, professional advancement requirements, as well as the nature of the research and the writing process in some disciplines, result in the unwavering significance of long-text formats and monographs, both in the digital and in the print formats.

Open access for monographs and other long-text formats has been a slow process in multiple aspects. This is likely because of the higher costs and business models of book publishing, as well as a hesitancy on the side of researcher to trust important parts of their work in terms of volume to the new open access publishing environment. Additionally, funder policies and strategies focus a lot less on monographs than on journal articles, and they are often recommendations and not requirements.

This action aims to support the development of aligned institutional and funder policies and strategies regarding open access to books and monographs in Europe. In this context, the action should support: 1. activities that foster greater understanding of bottlenecks in the development of policies and strategies for open access to books and monographs by institutions and funders; 2. the coordination of policies amongst funders and research institutions, and the sharing of good practices in policies and strategies for open access to books and monographs; 3. actionable and evidence-based recommendations and resources for comprehensive institutional and funder policies for open access to books and monographs. The action may also envisage international cooperation with entities outside the EU Member States and associated countries.

The action should be no longer than 24 months.