Open access vs equity

A White House demand on open access is raising difficult questions for researchers

It might seem a no-brainer that increasing open access to scholarly publications should also benefit diversity, equity and inclusion in research. If knowledge is democratised, everyone is on a level playing field.

But take a deeper look and things quickly become less clear. Costs for publishing are often shifted onto authors under open-access systems that require fees for every paper published. These costs could further marginalise those researchers already at the fringes who may lack the funding to pay for publication, especially in the most prestigious and more expensive journals.