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28 April 2022
Seminar on Open Science

Publishing academic content behind a paywall not only limits access to scholarly work, but also prevents research output from being visible and making maximum impact. Researchers are paying to publish their research output, and libraries are paying to access it in what is known as double-dipping by publishers, leading to what we term ‘serial crisis’. Research institutions pay twice and still do not see their research widely available to be read.

By signing the Berlin Declaration on Open Access in 2012, the University of the Free State (UFS) committed itself to supporting open access to its research outputs. National initiatives by research institutions and the government make research outputs freely available via national site licensing. The UFS supports this initiative via the South African National Library and Information Consortium (SANLiC) as an interim transformative agreement with publishers, allowing research outputs to be open access, without the additional publication charges.

What do we do about publishers who are unwilling to transform? Do we still pay their massive subscription and publication fees? What do we need to do to ensure that all UFS research outputs are accessible to all?

Topic: Should the UFS continue to subscribe to academic journals that are behind a paywall?
Thursday 12 May 2022
12:00-13:30

Microsoft Teams
RSVP: Elma Viljoen, viljoene@ufs.ac.za (link will be provided)

Join the following top experts for what promises to be an insightful discussion:

  • Colleen Campbell
    Coordinator: Open Access 2020 Initiative
    Max Planck Digital Library, Munich, Germany
  • Ellen Tise
    Senior Director: Library and Information Services, Stellenbosch University

  • Glenn Truran
    Director: South African National Library and Information Consortium (SANLiC)

The welcoming and introduction to the webinar will be conducted by Prof Corli Witthuhn, Vice-Rector: Research.  

Bios of speakers

Colleen Campbell leads external engagement in the open access transition at the Max Planck Digital Library (MPDL) in Munich, Germany. There, she coordinates the Open Access 2020 Initiative, a global alliance of research organisations and their libraries that are driving the transition of today’s scholarly journals to open-access publishing models, and the ESAC Initiative, an international community of practice dedicated to optimising open-access workflows and processes. She is a member of the LIBER Open Access Working Group, serves on the Managing Board of EIFL, a not-for-profit organisation that works with libraries to enable access to knowledge in developing and transition economy countries in Africa, Asia-Pacific, Europe, and Latin America, and contributes to the advisory groups of a number of other scholarly communication initiatives.

Ellen Tise has been the Senior Director of Library and Information Services at Stellenbosch University (SU) since January 2006. She previously held the positions of University Librarian at the University of the Western Cape (UWC) and Deputy University Librarian at the University of the Witwatersrand. She holds a BBibl Honours degree from the UWC and an MPhil in Science and Technology Studies from SU. Among other notable leadership roles, Ms Tise served as the first President of the Library and Information Association of South Africa (LIASA) from 1998 to 2002, and President of the International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions, known as IFLA, for the years 2009 through 2011. She also served as Chair of the Board of the National Library of South Africa (2012-2015), and on the OCLC Board of Trustees (2014-2018). She has just started a second two-year term as Chair of the Freedom of Access to Information and Freedom of Expression Advisory Committee of IFLA. She is the recipient of several awards for distinguished leadership and outstanding contributions to librarianship, including honorary membership of LIASA and an honorary IFLA fellowship. She has published various articles in professional journals and is a regular speaker at national and international conferences, seminars, symposia, etc.

Glenn Truran has been the Director of the South African National Library and Information Consortium (SANLiC) since 2014 and works from home in Cape Town. After graduating from the University of the Witwatersrand (Wits) with a BA and HDipEd (PG), he worked briefly as an educator in South Africa and England. Subsequently, he completed a diploma in Public Policy and Development Administration at Wits and received his MBA from the University of Cape Town in 2003. Before joining SANLiC, he worked in several educational and poverty alleviation non-profit organisations in Gauteng and Cape Town. He has been actively involved in SANLiC’s Open Access Transformational Agreements task team.

Charlie Molepo has been the Deputy Director at the UFS Sasol Library responsible for Research and Scholarly Communications since 2015. He represents the non-academic staff on the University Council and serves on its Finance and Human Resources Committees. Before joining the UFS, he worked at Vista University, the University of Natal, the University of Johannesburg, the University of KwaZulu-Natal Libraries, and Dawson Books UK (Betrams) as the International Account Director for Africa. He serves as President-Elect (2022-2023) in the Library and Information Association of South Africa (LIASA).

News Archive

Vice-Chancellor honoured with major awards
2013-05-02

02 May 2013

The University of the Free State (UFS) is proud to announce that Prof Jonathan Jansen, Vice-Chancellor and Rector, has been awarded a number of major awards recently.

The University of California in the United States awarded him the Alice and Clifford Spendlove Prize in Social Justice, Diplomacy and Tolerance. The award is made in recognition of persons who exemplify in their work the delivery of social justice, diplomacy and tolerance in the diverse local and global society.

“The committee was very impressed with the commitment that Prof Jansen has had to reconciliation and forgiveness as a way to build bridges and to find common ground. Prof Jansen is following in the steps of many of our greatest peace-time leaders and we support his efforts to bring understanding to all cultures,” said Mark Aldenderfer, chair of the awards committee and Dean of the School of Social Sciences, Humanities and Art at the University of California.

Prof Jansen also received the 2013 Academia Award at the Sixth Annual Ubuntu Lecture and Dialogue Awards Ceremony of the Turquoise Harmony Institute on 4 April 2013 in Johannesburg. The Institute aims to foster relations among different faith and cultural traditions to contribute to the well-being of humanity.

According to the organisers, “outstanding individuals who made noteworthy contributions to dialogue, peace and harmony in the society,” are given recognition during the ceremony. The awards are made in a number of different categories. Prof Jansen was among the recipients who included Graca Machel and the South African National Editors Forum (SANEF). Previous winners of Turquoise Awards include Ahmed Kathrada, Chester Williams, Dr Frene Ginwala and Prof Russel Botman.

On 10 May 2013, Prof Jansen was also honoured by Kappa Delta Pi International Honour Society in Education. He was awarded membership of the Laureate Chapter of the society founded in 1911 which “is comprised of men and women who have made distinguished contributions to education, and is limited to 60 living persons”. Prof Jansen joins an exclusive membership of 293 which includes such luminaries as Albert Einstein, Eleanor Roosevelt, Jean Piaget and George Washington Carver.

Also in the United States, Prof Jansen has been invited to be Messenger Lecturer for Fall 2013 at Cornell University. He will give three lectures and interact with the students and staff of Cornell at various functions.

“This is a significant honour and it will really allow members from across the university to get a deeper appreciation of the work you are doing at UFS and in South Africa more broadly,” said Prof Judith Byfield of Cornell’s Department of History and Director of Graduate Studies at the department’s Africana Studies and Research Centre.

On the local front, City Press published its inaugural 100 World Class South Africans on 28 April 2013. During a rigorous selection process, 100 of our country’s most extraordinary citizens who have achieved world-class status were chosen. Prof Jansen’s achievements procured him a place on this prestigious list in the category: Heroes and Mavericks.

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