Three Strategic Pillars : Finnish University Libraries' Network Fuelling Open Science and Access to Research-Based Information

Abstract

In the fast-developing landscape of open science, university libraries need to constantly keep up to date in order to provide expert services that meet the current and future needs of researchers, students, and anyone in need of research-based information. Joint actions are needed both nationally and internationally. The COVID-19 pandemic has shown that open science currently only gives partial access to research information. A significant part of the information resources are behind paywalls, and as library premises have been closed for the public walk-in access, the information resources have not been accessible to a wider audience. The Finnish University Libraries’ Network, FUN, acts as a collaborative forum for Finnish university library directors. FUN encourages university libraries to experiment with new modes of operation, to demonstrate impact, and to increase the visibility of the library operations. In this paper, we explore how a network like FUN can promote open science and provide access to research-based information. The strategy of FUN builds on three pillars: Impact – Visibility – Experiment. These three pillars form our framework. We use multiple methods to describe the strategy and give examples of the practices, and also discuss the challenges faced in the new circumstances. University libraries work towards open science together with other important stakeholders such as researchers, publishers and funding agencies. Still, there is a need to voice the concerns of the university libraries as their role differs from those of the other stakeholders. Through its actions, FUN seeks to make the work of Finnish university libraries more visible both within the network and in the society, and thus increase the impact of the libraries in promoting open science and access to research information. Since during the COVID-19 pandemic access to information has been limited, FUN, together with other stakeholders, has taken action and sent a petition to Finnish scientific publishers to temporarily open their publications. One of the three pillars in FUN’s strategy is Experiment. During the COVID-19 pandemic, of most importance for FUN has proved to be establishing a culture of sharing experiences with colleagues, so that every library can benefit from the endeavours of others.