ELECTRONIC PUBLISHING TRUST FOR DEVELOPMENT

OPEN ACCESS DEVELOPMENTS

• NEW! OA Workshop in Chennai a great success!
  
• NEW! EPT Submission to the UK Government Science & Technology Committee enquiry into science and publishing
• NEW! Bioline International open access archive for developing country bioscience
  
• E-prints Handbook: guidance for researchers and managers setting up eprints servers for archiving institutional research output
• Berlin Declaration in support of Open Access, signed by all major German funding organisations,
  October 2003
• Wellcome Trust Statement in support of Open Access published October 2003
• Frequently asked questions (FAQ) files on Open Access: a) EPT FAQ for scientists and publishers indeveloping countries; b) Budapest Open Access Initiative FAQ on OA institutional archiving
• Article on the impact of the Open Archive Initiative on developing country science, Ariadne, Issue 30, 2001
• Extended links page to e-publishing and Open Access resources, including BOAI Call for Proposals, SPARC position paper on institutional archives and Directory of Open Access Journals

  The Electronic Publishing Trust for Development (EPT) was established in 1996 to facilitate open access to the world's scholarly literature and to support the electronic publication of reviewed bioscience journals from countries experiencing difficulties with traditional publication.

  Scientists and publishers in many countries face problems both in accessing the world's research information and in gaining high visibility for their publications and national research output. The cost of printing and distributing journals leads to low circulation levels which in turn leads to a reluctance by scientists to publish. The outcome is the loss of much important scientific information which either remains unavailable to the international scientific community or suffers long delays in publication. The transfer of e-publishing technology and online distribution of such journals can greatly increase visibility and enrich the global knowledge base.

  

  E-publishing workshop in Chennai, India, May 2004

  The main activities of the EPT are to:

  • provide awareness of the benefits of electronic publishing
  • transfer e-publishing technology through training and online resources
    
  • provide management and distribution support
  • support open access initiatives and make them known to developing country scientists and publishers.
  The Trust focusses on the biological sciences which, in such fields as infectious diseases, public health, tropical medicine, biodiversity, environmental and agricultural sciences, require a global picture. Local scientific information is critical, particularly in the case of human, animal and plant disease surveillance and conservation.

  

  Registered Charity Number 1059867