Carr Drives Open Innovation Practices

INNOVATION Minister Kim Carr has backed Cutler Review recommendations to establish an “open access” regime to publicly-funded research based on open publishing licences and creative commons standards.

In a video address to the Open Access and Research Conference 2008 in Brisbane, Senator Carr said open access to research results were an important part of improving the innovation environment in Australia.

The Cutler Review of the National Innovation System argued that to 'the maximum extent practicable ... research ... funded by Australian governments ... should be made freely available over the internet as part of the global public commons'.

It also recommended that wherever possible this Australian-produced research be readily available through “machine searchable repositories.”

“It is my firm view that publicly funded research should be widely available to other researchers, industry and the general public,” Senator Carr said.

“That doesn’t just mean letting people search for keywords or abstracts. It means full, open access to research data and outputs.”

“If we are serious about boosting innovation, we have to get knowledge and information flowing freely,” Senator Carr said.

While Government is still weighing its formal response to the National Innovation System – which will come in the form of a White Paper to be published by the end of the year – Senator Carr’s comments provide an indication of the direction Government may take.

Senator Carr pointed to policies of recent years that encouraged researchers to commercialise their own discoveries as a “failure” – with the paltry returns that Universities receive through royalties providing the evidence.

The commercialisation process necessarily required secrecy. Universities, Senator Carr said, could better contribute to the economy by “diffusing and divulging” results.

“When that knowledge is created using tax-payer dollars, the community might reasonably feel that it has paid for it once already,” Senator Carr said.

”Making the results of publicly funded research freely available in a reasonable time is good for industry, good for the public and good for researchers themselves, whose work will be much more widely recognised and appreciated.”

Original Article: CeBIT Australia