Funders, authors and readers may want open access to research, but can they achieve it? A researcher who has been encouraged to make their work open has to deal with regulations, guidance, and mandates from their institution, their funders, their publisher and their national government. These policies are often complex and can be ambiguous, or in conflict with each other.
A supportive policy environment and guidance through the relationship of one policy to another has proved to be essential for real progress in opening access to research. How should policies support the researcher and the research process? How can policies based on commercial profit fit into an open environment? What role do funders have in protecting their investment and the public interest?
