Distance learning requires not only the right technologies, but also policies that respect intellectual property and personal data. Open educational resources are an approach that is gathering support.
Scientists and science publishers are sharing information as fast as they can during the COVID-19 pandemic. Speed and openness bring new challenges, but they are the way forward for research.
We publish all articles under a “Creative Commons” license. This means any news organisation, blog, website, newspaper or newsletter can republish our pieces for free.
Universities have a responsibility to reduce barriers in student learning, and one way to do this is through creating textbooks that are free to students.
(Min An/Pexels)
While most Wikipedia editors are volunteers, some are employed by Wikipedia. The Science History Institute’s Mary Mark Ockerbloom offers insight into the “Wikipedian in residence” program.
The Conversation was established as a charity in the UK six years ago. Its purpose? To provide the public with trustworthy and accessible expert analysis and research-based news. It was, and is, fundamentally…
An image from the International Space Station captures plumes of smoke from California wildfires on August 4, 2018.
NASA
From the curious to the serious – a bird’s eye view of the unique ways in which The Conversation covers the world.
We need a simple system for categorising data privacy settings, similar to the way Creative Commons specifies how work can be legally shared.
Shutterstock
Imagine if we could specify our general privacy preferences in our devices, have them check privacy policies when we sign up for apps, and warn us if the agreements overstep.
South Africans’ access to important knowledge and research is incredibly limited. In this time of Open Access, why is this the case – and will it ever change?
Usefulness and value extends far beyond the century in which they were created.
British Library
Amid the intense discussion surrounding the release of the Australian government’s budget 2014-2015 one notable feature of the budget documents has seemingly gone unremarked by most commentators. The budget…
In only a little more than a decade, Creative Commons has been implemented by more than 60 countries.
opensourceway/Flickr
The digital age has presented many and diverse challenges for copyright law. The rapid uptake of digital, networked technologies led to widespread online distribution of content, as well as the emergence…
Art historians have welcomed the National Portrait Gallery’s move to make images available for academic use.
AAP
Britain’s National Portrait Gallery has opened up its image database to allow free downloads for non-commercial and academic uses, in a move welcomed by art historians. “This is very welcome, and increasingly…
Honorary (Senior Fellow) School of Culture and Communication University of Melbourne. Editor in Chief, Design and Art of Australia Online, The University of Melbourne