Berlin Declaration on Open Access to Knowledge in the Sciences and Humanities

Summary

The Berlin Declaration on Open Access to Knowledge, published on October 22, 2003, advocates for a global, interactive, and accessible representation of human knowledge through the Internet. It builds on earlier open access initiatives to promote the free dissemination of scientific research and cultural heritage. The declaration defines open access as allowing users to freely access, use, and share scientific and cultural works while ensuring proper attribution. It emphasizes the need for contributions to be deposited in online repositories maintained by reputable organizations to facilitate wide distribution and long-term archiving.

To support the transition to open access, the declaration encourages researchers and cultural heritage holders to publish and share their work openly. It also calls for developing methods to evaluate open access contributions, recognizing them in academic evaluations, and supporting the legal and financial frameworks necessary for open access. The goal is to leverage the Internet’s capabilities to enhance the dissemination of knowledge and ensure that it remains accessible and usable globally.