Inter-Academy Panel Initiatives on promoting Access to Scientific

Information

Michael T. Clegg

Foreign Secretary

US National Academy of Sciences

THE INTER-ACADEMY PANEL (IAP)

• A Global Network of 90 Science Academies

• Promotes the Use of Science in Policy (Science for Policy)

• Promotes Policies that Strengthen Scientific Institutions (Policy for Science)

• Issues Statements on Problems of Global Scientific Concern

IAP Governance - Executive Committee 2003-06

• Co-chairs*– Professor Chen Zhu Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS)– Professor Yves Quéré Académie des Sciences, France

• Members– Bangladesh – Brazil – Cuba– India– Nigeria– Senegal– Italy– Japan– The Netherlands– Sweden– USA– Ex Officio: Third World Academy of Sciences

IAP ACTIVITIES• Since its inception, IAP has issued statements on:

– population growth (1994)– urban development (1996)– sustainability (2000)– human reproductive cloning (2003)– science education (2003)– health of mothers and children (2003)– scientific capacity building (2003)– science and the media, and (2003)– access to scientific information (2003)

Current IAP Priorities

• IAP Programs– Capacity Building for Academies– Science Education– Health Education for Women– Water

• Initiatives– Biosecurity– GMOs– Access to Scientific Information

Science is the Most Successful Means of Knowledge Creation

• Deals exclusively with arguments based on evidence

• Results must be subject to independent verification by others– Honest public reporting of results essential– Science is cumulative in that new results build on the

existing body of knowledge– Hence access to the corpus of scientific information is

essential for progress

Scientific Information

• Data bases and numerical data– Electronic access

• Scientific literature– Print copies– Electronic access

IAP Statement on Access to Scientific Information (2003)

• High cost of journal subscriptions– Electronic access should be available at time of

publication at no cost to scientists from developing countries

– Electronic access should be available without cost within one year of publication to scientists from developed countries

IAP Statement

• Journal content and, to extent possible, data on which research is based should available in electronic form to facilitate ease of use

• Journal content should be archived collectively by private or government organizations

IAP Statement

• Governments and publishers work together to raise awareness in scientific world of availability (without cost) of electronic access

• Scientific databases obtained by intergovernmental organizations should be available without cost or restrictions on reuse

IAP Initiative on Access to Scientific Information (2003-06)

• IAP General Assembly in Mexico City (2003) voted to create an initiative on Access to scientific information

• Initiative led by Academies of US, China and Senegal

Next Steps

• Inventory of existing programs on access to scientific information

• Inputs and meeting/discussion with interested IAP members to define the IAP program

• Possible additional IAP statement/action plan

Future work

• IAP may develop positions on subcategories of the broad topic of information access– Electronic access– Access to data bases – Responsibilities of the publishing industry– Public sector responsibilities– Orphan data resources. Who pays to maintain

data resources of global value?