FREE UKSG webinar: Society Publishing at a Crossroads: Rethinking Value in Academic Publishing
2025-02-06 12:00 - 13:00 (Europe/London)
This is a fantastic opportunity to listen to expert speakers with no travelling required. This is a free webinar – Please note that advance registration is required. This webinar will be recorded and all registrants will receive a link to the recording after the session.

When

Thursday, February 6, 2025From 12:00 GMT to 13:00 GMT

..

Where

OnlineUnited Kingdom

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About the Event

As UK and European academic libraries face critical decisions about their subscription portfolios in 2025, this webinar explores new approaches to evaluating and supporting society publishers. Drawing on recent research into the changing landscape of UK learned society publishing, published in UKSG Insights, we’ll examine how the transition to open access is affecting society publishers and explore emerging frameworks for assessing the broader value publishers of all kinds bring to the scholarly ecosystem. While the session will focus primarily on journal publishing, we’ll also touch on the role of open access book agreements within the debate over value in academic publishing.

Recording

You may still register for this event recording here.

Slides

Our speakers have kindly agreed to make their slides available. You may download them from here.

Please use the correct attribution if you wish to refer to them.

Q&A

Please, find here the Q&A document that our speakers have kindly put together.

Speakers

Rob Johnson

Managing Director | Research Consulting

Rob Johnson is the Managing Director of Research Consulting, a mission-driven business which works to improve the effectiveness and impact of research and scholarly communication. He began his career with KPMG, the international professional services firm, before working in senior research management roles at the University of Nottingham. Since founding Research Consulting in 2013 he has led more than 150 projects in the field of scholarly communication and research. He is Vice Chair of UKSG, a Fellow of the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales and holds an MSc in Higher Education Management from Loughborough University.

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Helen Dobson

Licensing Portfolio Specialist | Jisc

Helen is a Licensing portfolio specialist for research content at Jisc. She leads a team working to deliver agreements that meet the requirements of UK universities, achieve savings and support the transition to open access. Helen’s background is in academic libraries and in previous roles she oversaw services providing Open Access and Research Data Management support and publishing advice.

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Shehnaz Ahmed

Director of Research and Publishing | British Association of Dermatologists

.Shehnaz Ahmed started her publishing career in India working for TERI: Innovative Solutions for Sustainable Development – India; a research organisation. She then moved to the UK where she has worked with several organisations such as the RCS, The Lancet, BSR and currently at the BAD. She has worked mainly in academic publishing in journals in the not-for-profit sector so understands the challenges and the motivations of such a landscape. She is responsible for the publishing activity and research portfolio in the BAD. She is one of the co-chairs of the ALPSP SIG in AI, a council member for SoCPC and also runs the Peer Review course for ALPSP.

Learning outcomes

Understand current trends and challenges in society publishing

Learn about new frameworks for evaluating publishing agreements beyond usage metrics

Gain insight into value-based assessment approaches for library decision-making

Subject level and previous knowledge required

Introductory and non-intensive, no previous knowledge or experience required.

Session is aimed at colleagues who work in the information service profession in an academic setting and who are work with eResources and digital content provision.

Attendee Information

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UKSG Webinars Notes for Participants 2025

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Registrations

This is a free webinar and is open to members and non-members of UKSG alike – Please note that advance registration is required.

REGISTER HERE

Unable to attend? Register anyway and we will send you a link to a recording of the webinar after the event. If you have already registered and are subsequently unable to attend, please do not cancel your registration – only active registrations will receive the recording in a follow-up e-mail.

Accessibility

UKSG wants to provide the best possible experience for all our delegates, making presentations as accessible and inclusive as possible. Our intention were possible is to strongly encourage our speakers to provide auto generated closed captioning for both live and recorded events as well as to make sure their slides are as easy as possible for all people to read. In addition we can provide auto generated transcripts post event for each of the recorded sessions.

If you have particular accessibility needs or questions about this webinar, we welcome you to contact Samira Koelle.

Feedback

The UKSG webinars are great for me – they offer a wide range of topics and are very well prepared. I never experienced any technical difficulties. Due to the austerity measures brought by the recent worldwide events the training budget in my institution was frozen, so the fact that UKSG webinars are free is really a boon too!
Anonymous

The UKSG webinar was fantastic – well-organized, timely, accessible, and with an array of presenters that had insight into the topic
Anonymous

Great to squeeze in so much useful knowledge and information without having to go out to a conference. I could enjoy taking it in with a sandwich at my desk! I felt very empowered afterwards.
Emma Thompson, Glasgow Caledonian University

NB: UKSG reserves the right to alter or vary the programme due to events or circumstances beyond its reasonable control without being obliged to refund monies.

Contact

This is a free webinar – Please note that advance registration is required.

Please take a look at our code of conduct

Cancellations

If you have already registered and are subsequently unable to attend, please do not cancel your registration – only active registrations will receive the recording in a follow-up e-mail.

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The UKSG 48th Annual Conference and Exhibition: Brighton
2025-03-31 08:00 - 2025-04-02 13:30
The UKSG Annual Conference is a major event in the scholarly communications calendar which attracts delegates each year from around the world – librarians, publishers, content providers, consultants and intermediaries. The conference combines high-quality plenary presentations, lightning talks, workshops, posters and breakout sessions with entertaining social events and trade exhibition.

When

Monday, March 31, 2025 – 08:00 BSTtoWednesday, April 2, 2025 – 13:30 BST

Where

The Brighton CentreKings RoadBrighton, BN1 2GRUnited Kingdom

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About the Event

Conference Photos

Please click https://dub.sh/rVyiikZ to view the conference photo’s

Programme

Please see below for the latest programme, or you can download the PDF here

Sponsorship Opportunities

We are working again with Content Online who will work with you to create the best sponsorship package for you. See the options here. Thank you for your support – we appreciate it!

List of current sponsors

Sponsor profiles

Exhibition

The Exhibition is now open for bookings, please visit: https://uksg.jewelion.com/.

View the 2025 Exhibition Manual here.

To be added to the alert list, please email info@uksg.org

Travel to Brighton

More information on how to get to The Brighton Centre can be found here.

Here you can find a step by step photo guide from the railway station to Brighton Centre Kings Road/Seafront entrance

Your access needs

We’re committed to running accessible training and events. We want you to feel welcome, included, and able to fully engage in our sessions.

To help us, please share any access needs you have when prompted by our booking form. We may be in touch to ensure we’re making the right adjustments.

Further information on access facilities can be found here for the Brighton Centre or here for generally visiting Brighton. If you have any more questions or need more information please do not hesitate to contact events (at) uksg.org.

We plan to have a quiet room (no meetings or calls please) and also a multi-faith room, more details will follow nearer the time of the event.

Accommodation

Accommodation is not covered by the delegate fee.  The official online accommodation bookings service hosted by Visit Brighton has now closed – click here for more details.

Visit Brighton also provide a number of special delegate offers and discounts for a variety of local tours and restaurants etc – this can be found here

Conference App

The conference app is now live, all registered delegates will receive and email with details on how to download the app. More details on the event app can be found here.

The app includes information on:

sessions and speakers (build your own programme)

delegates lists

sponsors and exhibitors

maps

take part in ‘The Passport Game’ with a chance to win £100 in vouchers

additional information/logistics

polls, Q&A, session chat

community/networking pages including ice breaking area’s.

John Merriman Award/Sponsored Places

More details on sponsored places can be found here

The John Merriman award is supported by the generous sponsorship of Taylor & Francis Group

With thanks to our sponsors

Platinum Sponsors

Gala Reception Partner

Gold Sponsors

More details on sponsors can be found here

Programme

Monday 31 MarchTuesday 1 AprilWednesday 2 AprilBreakoutf sessionsPoster sessions

Time

Programme

Speakers

08.00

Registrations opens alongside refreshments and exhibition viewing.

10.00

Opening of the Conference

followed by Presentation of Awards

Charlie Rapple

Kudos/Chair of UKSG

See Biography
Charlie Rapple is co-founder of Kudos, which works with researchers, funders, publishers and universities to ensure research is more widely found, understood, used and cited. With a background in scholarly publishing technology and marketing, she is passionate about ensuring research is more effectively communicated. She is currently serving as Chair of UKSG, having previously served as Vice Chair, Treasurer, Chair of the Marketing Subcommittee, and co-founder of KBART. She is a member of the Editorial Board for UKSG Insights, a blogger in the Scholarly Kitchen and a Fellow of the UN’s SDG Publishers Compact. Charlie has a BA in the History of Art and Architecture from the University of Bristol, and a postgraduate MDip from the Chartered Institute of Marketing.

10.30

Plenary session 1

Navigating AI Futures: overview – Leo Lo, University of New Mexico

This session explores the transformative potential of artificial intelligence (AI) in the research and knowledge ecosystem, drawing on the ARL/CNI 2035 Scenarios report. Dr. Leo S. Lo, Dean of University Libraries at the University of New Mexico, will present four divergent scenarios developed through extensive stakeholder engagement, highlighting critical uncertainties and strategic focal points for libraries and research institutions. These scenarios range from democratized and socially integrated AI to autonomous AI systems, offering insights into potential challenges and opportunities.

AI for Academia – Kate O’Riordan, University of Sussex

Education and AI: between principles for the present and speculative futures.

In relation to AI, Universities can be seen to be shaped through contradictions:

• driving developments in AI through research, while being destabilised by them in education;

• providing stability and stewardship in relation to technocultural knowledge production, while undergoing significant disruption, instability and transformation;

• adapting and reacting in the present while anticipating speculative futures.

An engagement with the speculative futures of the ARL/CNI 2035 Scenarios report, and the role of speculation, can help to enrich strategic thinking about these contradictions and others playing out in Higher Education.

Advising and guiding AI Initiatives – Alan Oliver, Clarivate

Alan Oliver, Director of Community Engagement at Clarivate, will then discuss the work of Clarivate’s Academia AI Advisory Council, which includes Leo and 12 other Council members representing libraries and academia across 9 countries and 4 continents. The Advisory Council addresses key issues identified in the scenarios, such as bias mitigation, data integrity, and the evolving role of libraries.

This session aims to stimulate strategic thinking and foster dialogue on preparing for an AI-influenced future in scholarly communication and research practices.

Alan Oliver

Clarivate

See Biography
Alan Oliver is Director, Community Engagement at Clarivate. Before joining Clarivate, Alan worked with ProQuest and Ex Libris, starting his commercial journey with them in 2002. In his current role within Clarivate’s Academia & Government Strategy and Innovation Team, Alan oversees several key initiatives. His responsibilities include managing the Academia AI Advisory Council, the Web of Science Community Forum and Product Working Group, and maintaining relationships with ELUNA (Ex Libris Users of North America) and IGeLU (International Group of Ex Libris Users).

Leo Lo

University of New Mexico

See Biography
Dr. Leo Lo is the Dean of the College of University Libraries & Learning Sciences at the University of New Mexico. His work focuses on advancing AI literacy and developing training programs for library and higher education professionals. As President of the Association of College & Research Libraries (ACRL), Dr. Lo established a national task force to create a set of essential AI competencies for library workers, and created an AI Discussion Group. He studied Artificial Intelligence at the University of Oxford and holds a doctorate in Higher Education Management from the University of Pennsylvania, as well as an MLIS from Florida State University.

Kate O’Riordan

University of Sussex

See Biography
Kate O’Riordan is Professor of Digital Cultures and Pro Vice Chancellor for Education and Students at the University of Sussex. Her research has examined public engagement with, emerging digital and biotechnologies since the 1990s, deploying sexuality and gender as key analytical categories. She has published widely in these areas, including: Feminist Data Studies; Furious: technological feminism and digital futures; and Life and the Technological. As Pro Vice Chancellor for Education she has had oversight for developing the institutional position on AI in Education, informed by the work of the AI Community of Practice at the University of Sussex.

12.00

Lunch and Exhibition Viewing

Poster Sessions

An International Data Space for OA Book Usage Data Exchange Across Public and Private Stakeholders – Project Update – Ursula Rabar

While APIs have made it easier for libraries, publishers, policymakers, and information services to access, use and innovate with usage and metadata at scale, time and human resources are still required to manage, compile, and link OA book usage data metrics coming from multiple platforms in multiple formats. OA book usage data is even more important at this very moment when EU-funded projects such as PALOMERA worked to support policy alignment for OA monographs in Europe, and the UK has seen the implementation of their new 2024 UKRI policy including long-format outputs. It begs the question, how can OA book impact be monitored more effectively to help inform policy making?

This poster will present the project update with the findings to date and provide visitors with interactive QR codes

Database accessibility: Proactivity, transparency, buy-in – Debi Roland/Anna Dolling

How do we balance the demands of current accessibility legislation with university students’ needs for external database content?

To meet our legal requirement, we researched and sought advice from other institutions in the sector then built our own workflow which involves the implementation of a 5-point checklist. This has raised the profile of accessibility amongst our university colleagues but is skills and labour intensive.

Please come and visit our poster session to find out more and offer your suggestions.

13.30

Breakout Session – Group A

See the breakout tab for more details

13.30

Workshop 1: Citizen Science in Libraries: Towards Societal Impact

Citizen Science is manifesting itself in universities, research institutions and libraries and the last few years centers or hubs that facilitate a dialogue between researchers and communities have emerged. Libraries very much can play a crucial role in making not only public engagement but also research outcomes happen in practice thus supporting both scientific and societal impact.

Citizen Science can be seen as part of a global knowledge mobilization that can help solve wicked problems from climate change over health inequalities to extreme poverty (Hodgkinson et al. 2022) but is the same time manifesting itself very differently around research institutions and libraries (Kaarsted et al. 2023). There is no one size fits all.

This workshop addresses this. It brings three brief cases from the U.K. and Europe, has a take on the importance and implementation around societal impact and offer tips and practices on how libraries can get started. The presenters and facilitators are all part of the LIBER Citizen Science Working Group and offers their very different experiences towards one common goal: Getting started.

Thomas Kaarsted

SDU Citizen Science Knowledge Center

See Biography
Thomas Kaarsted is Director of the SDU Citizen Science Knowledge Center and Deputy Library Director at same university. He has worked with integrating Citizen Science and Open Science in research libraries and universities sinde 2017. He is project manager of a long range of CS-projects and also serves on the LIBER Executive Board.

Anne Kathrine Overgaard

University of Southern Denmark

See Biography
Anne Kathrine Overgaard is Head of Research & Innovation Support at the Faculty of Health Sciences at University of Southern Denmark (SDU). She collaborates closely with management on strategy development and implementation in an RMA setup spanning from pre-pre-ward to innovation and impact through an involvement of external stakeholders and potential end-users. She founded the SDU Citizen Science Knowledge Centre with Thomas Kaarsted. The Citizen Science Centre, located in the Research Library, is regarded as a crucial partner in engaging stakeholders and citizens in research aimed at creating societal impact. Anne Kathrine Overgaard is the key link in this collaboration, which is seen as essential for fulfilling the faculty’s strategy and vision.

Nel Coleman

University of Edinburgh

See Biography
Nel Coleman (they/them) is part of the Open Research team at the University of Edinburgh Library. Having joined the team early in 2022, their role has been to connect the library with citizen science activities across the University; from the medical school to the arts and humanities. They work to develop infrastructure to support participatory research, and to secure active partnerships between the library and key networks, groups, communities and hubs – helping to support the active involvement of non-professionals in research.

Kirsty Wallis

University College London

See Biography
Kirsty is currently Head of Research Liaison in UCL Library services where she also leads the day-to-day running of the Office for Open Science and Scholarship. This broad remit is built upon the LERU 8 Pillars of Open Science and brings together teams from across the institution around a common goal. This includes particular focus on creating a community around citizen science and developing an advocacy and support service. Kirsty is also a part-time PhD student, researching the evolution of research support services in Libraries and the effect of the shifting policy landscape.

14.30

Breakout Session – Group B

15.30

Refreshments and exhibition viewing

16.00

Breakout session – Group C

17.00

Lightning Session 1

The right to use AI : protecting and advancing learning and research. Jisc Licensing and the ICOLC AI Task Force – Ben Taplin

As AI has developed rapidly, vendors have begun to present libraries with new licence language defining rights and restrictions. Faced with new clauses that sought to prohibit use of licensed content in AI systems, a group of licensing specialists across the world came together in early 2024 to work collectively to ensure library user rights are maintained.

This session will discuss why blanket bans on AI in licences are wrong and how the ICOLC AI Taskforce supports libraries in resisting them, enabling the full legal use of AI technologies to transform teaching and research and ensure equitable access to information.

Enhancing Open Research Culture at the University of York: Lessons Learned from our Community of Practice – Luqman Muraina

This lightning talk shares successes, challenges and lessons learned on the development of a cross-disciplinary open research (OR) community of practice at the University of York, told from the perspective of our Graduate Engagement Leads. This role was created in 2023 for three postgraduate researchers in support of the University’s strategic commitments towards OR.

Achievements from the past year included the completion of a university-wide survey, the introduction of new communication channels and continuation of our OR Awards scheme. Ongoing activities include the introduction of a regular community discussion series and review of the OR Skills Framework based on community feedback and engagement.

Ben Taplin

Jisc

See Biography
Ben Taplin has been Jisc’s contract and licensing specialist for ten years. He is also a member of Jisc’s Artificial Intelligence group and the ICOLC AI Taskforce.

Luqman Muraina

University of York

See Biography
Luqman Muraina started the Global Development PhD programme at the IGDC, University of York in 2023 and completed the MA Sociology degree at the University of Cape Town, South Africa in 2022 with funding from the Mastercard Foundation and completed the B.Sc. Sociology degree from Olabisi Onabanjo University, Nigeria.He has over three years of teaching and research assistantship experience and is currently engaged as a Graduate Engagement Lead for Open Research at the York university’s library, where he supports the university’s commitment towards Open Research as a default research practice. He researches on decolonization and politics of knowledge, higher education, African politics & development, Black feminism, etc.

17.30

Exhibition viewing and reception

TBC

Supper and quiz or free evening

Sponsored by

Time

Programme

Speakers

08.00

Registration

08.30

Lightning Session 2

Building the Future: Addressing the Educational Gaps and supporting the development of a Professional Identity for Research Librarians – Lucy Roper & Charlotte Wein

Despite the global prevalence of research librarians, there is a notable absence of formal educational programs specifically designed for this profession in many countries. This deficiency poses significant challenges to the formation of our professional identity: The absence of shared theories, methods, and ethical standards hinders the development of a unified professional identity.

We will present some ongoing initiatives focusing on training and resource provision for early career research librarians and demonstrate how Lucy’s latest work, The Solo Librarian: A Practical Handbook, provides insights and practical guidance for librarians working alone or in small teams.

These Flipping Publishers…! Finding Our Way to OA – Beth Bayley

We can all get on board with Open Access in principle: Few would oppose all people having access to knowledge that improves lives. But the road to achieving it is bumpy. As a publisher with a genuine aim to move to OA, we’ve tried it all – flipping, Transformative Agreements, Transformative Journals, Subscribe to Open, Gold OA, and Diamond OA. This session charts the OA journey of one of the industry’s smaller, and independent, publishers, focusing on practical aspects. Can broader lessons be drawn from our experiences?

Open Research Spaces: How a library can foster an open environment – Leah Burns

The space of a library has undeniably changed and adapted to the trends of academia. This session will highlight how the physical and virtual space of a library can shift to foster an environment of Open Research, of mutual aid between academics, and welcome non-traditional knowledge sharing.

Lucy Roper

UCEM – University College of Estate Management

See Biography
Lucy Roper is an academic librarian at the University College of Estate Management (UCEM). Her role is to manage, organise, evaluate, and disseminate information, supporting members of the UCEM academic community, including students, lecturing staff and researchers. Lucy has over twenty-five years of experience managing library and information services, ten years working as a solo librarian at UCEM and wrote The Solo Librarian: A Practical Handbook in 2024. With the advancements in information governance, she took on additional responsibilities, becoming Strategic Copyright Lead, ensuring that UCEM and the library and information services provided comply with copyright and data protection legislation.

Charlotte Wien

Elsevier

See Biography
Dr. Charlotte Wien is a full professor of scholarly communication at Arctic University Tromsö, Norway and Vice President of Library Relations at Elsevier. Charlotte has worked both as a scholar and as a librarian previously and has extensive experience in curricula development for librarians. During her career she has focused on the research libraries transformation from ‘classical library’ to ‘service center for researchers and students’ and the derived consequences in terms of the changing competence needs for librarians. She holds two master degrees, of which one is in Library Science and PhD-degree in information retrieval.

Beth Bayley

Karger Publishers

See Biography
Beth Bayley is Open Science Manager at Karger Publishers, a health sciences publisher based in Switzerland. She also co-leads Karger’s Open Science Task Force as well as the Karger Ambassadors Program. Specializing in Open Access since 2010, Beth is engaged with strategy, policy, and communications to support Karger in its drive toward a sustainable transition to Open Access that will serve all stakeholders, from libraries to authors to research funders and the broader public.

Leah Burns

Lancaster University

See Biography
Leah is part of Lancaster University’s Open Research team based in the library. They manage and organise training and embed open research practices throughout the university. With a Masters in literary studies and bountiful experience with research ethics, Leah combines her passions of Open Access, citation ethics, and accessibility in the academic sphere with the physical space of the library.

09.00

Plenary Session 2

Cyber Security and the Academic Library: What to Be Worried about and What to Do- Rick Anderson and team – Rick Anderson, Heather Lowrie, Susie Winters

Academic libraries are ripe targets for cyberattack, given both the high value of the content they licence and the sensitive data hosted in the campus networks to which they are a portal. Criminals use social engineering as well as brute force attacks to try to gain access to both campus information and campus systems – and too often, they are successful. In this presentation, a publisher, an academic library director, and a higher-education cybersecurity consultant will share experiences that illustrate these dangers and share strategies libraries can use to help safeguard their institutions’ networks.

How to respond to a cyber attack in the real world – TBC

I will share details about an incident response to a cyber attack, focusing on the human impact of managing a security breach. Highlighting how team members react differently to such a crisis and shares key takeaways including the importance of having a solid incident response plan, regular employee training, and crisis management to ensure business continuity and resilience.

Rick Anderson

Brigham Young University

See Biography
Rick Anderson is University Librarian of Brigham Young University. He serves on numerous editorial and advisory boards and is a regular contributor to the Scholarly Kitchen. He has served as president of NASIG and of the Society for Scholarly Publishing, and is a recipient of the HARRASSOWITZ Leadership in Library Acquisitions Award. Rick is the author of three books, including Scholarly Communication: What Everyone Needs to Know (Oxford University Press, 2018), which has been published in three languages.

Heather Lowrie

Independent Security Advisor

See Biography
Heather Lowrie is a seasoned technology, security and risk leader with a track record of achievement in government, public and private sectors. She was recognised by her peers as “CISO of the Year 2024” at SC Awards Europe and is a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Information Security.

With experience spanning in-depth engineering to board level management, Heather is adept at setting direction and taking accountability for security in large and complex organisations. She is an accomplished strategist with significant experience of leading through crisis (including managing major cyber incidents), and leading strategic change for digital, AI & security transformations.

Heather served as the first Chief Information Security Officer for The University of Manchester, building security capabilities and leading through a significant cyber incident. Prior to that, she worked in Scotland’s public sector, orchestrating the cybersecurity efforts behind Scotland’s first digital-first Census. She has also held various technical and technical leadership roles in the financial services industry. Heather is a member of the UK Advisory Council for ISC2 and the Advisory Council for Infosecurity Europe.

Susie Winters

Springer Nature

See Biography
Susie Winter is Vice President Communications at Springer Nature.

Susie joined Springer Nature from the Publishers Association, the trade association for the publishing industry in the UK where, as Director of Policy and Communications, she was responsible for developing and leading the PA’s work across the policy agenda as well as promoting the contribution made by the UK publishing industry at both a UK and European level.

Prior to that, she was the first Director General for the Alliance for Intellectual Property, working to ensure that the importance of IP rights to the UK economy is recognised. Having begun her career as a Press and Broadcasting Officer for the Liberal Democrat Party she then spent several years at communications consultancy Luther Pendragon.

10.30

Refreshments and exhibition viewing

11.00

Breakout Session – Group A

11.00

Workshop 2: Managing Innovation and Hype Cycles in Academic Libraries: From Reactive to Strategic

How can academic libraries navigate the complex landscape of emerging technologies while maintaining service excellence?This interactive workshop will explore how to effectively evaluate and manage (technology) hype cycles within the constraints of academic library resources. It will introduce key frameworks such as Gartner’s hype cycle (Linden & Fenn, 2003) and Roger’s diffusion of innovation (2003) for understanding technology hype cycles and their impact on library services. This session posits that the emergence of critical, systematic analysis of emerging technologies will become a key skill within librarianship. Understanding these frameworks could be central to information literacy innovation and information management infrastructures.Drawing on examples from artificial intelligence, decolonisation initiatives, and digital transformation, participants will explore how libraries have navigated recent changes, identifying successful strategies and common pitfalls. Participants will critically examine the lessons learned and discuss strategies for responding to future developments.The workshop emphasises that hype cycles, while challenging, can drive positive innovation when managed strategically. Participants will examine how to recognise where trends sit within these cycles and develop frameworks for deciding when, how, and, crucially, whether to invest limited resources.

Siobhan Haime

Open Library of Humanities

See Biography
Siobhan is the Publishing Technologies Librarian at the Open Library of Humanities and Janeway Systems. She oversees support for service and leads on improving metadata and discovery. Siobhan is passionate about Open Access, Knowledge Equity, Open Education, and has a keen interest in digital transformation and technological advances in librarianship.

12.00

Lightning Session 3

The hidden REF, celebrating all research outputs – Lyndsey Ballantyne

Our 2021 and 2024 competitions highlight the diversity of contributions, from librarians and technicians to research software engineers and administrators — vital roles often overlooked in traditional assessments. In 2023, the Festival of Hidden REF gathered professionals and policymakers to discuss creating a more effective and equitable research environment.

The Hidden REF campaign recognises all research outputs and roles that make research possible.

I will share our initiatives, outcomes, and strategies for gaining recognition for these roles, inviting the UKSG community to collaborate and discuss strategies for gaining well-deserved recognition for these hidden roles.

Lessons Learned in the UK from Navigating the FAIR Open Research World: A Collaborative Approach to Transforming Library Workflows – Martin Jagerhorn

Lancaster University is a typical, mid-sized UK institution. With a small research support team, the library needs innovative technology and partners to meet the ever-increasing challenges of the rapidly evolving Open Research World. This presentation focuses on solutions to the cumbersome depositing of publications in institutional repositories (IR).World-wide almost every university has an IR, and nearly everyone faces the challenges of lacking data quality and coverage, with faculty frustrated over the clunkiness and overwhelming manual workload of data entry. Furthermore, research outputs increasingly require a plethora of checks necessitating FAIR and evermore extensive meta-data. Is this article eligible for APC funding or covered by an agreement, and compliant with our and the funders OA policies?

At Lancaster, we use our Current Research Information System (CRIS) for fulltext deposits, but it is faced with the same challenges. With more and more OA routes and ballooning publishing charges, our presentation delves into a first-of-its-kind innovation and collaboration with technology partners and illustrates to what extent we can hit the sweet spot for effectively managing open research workflows through a combination of AI scanning of manuscripts, integrations and a simple user interface, while upholding the flag of FAIR data principles.

Jisc’s open policy finder – re-developing Sherpa and looking to the future – Karen Jackson

Jisc’s Open Policy Finder, formerly Sherpa Services, has undergone significant changes over the past year as part of our commitment to building a future-ready, streamlined, and efficient product to support open access workflows. These changes represent not just a fresh identity but also the foundation of a platform designed to adapt and scale for future use cases, ensuring continued relevance and impact in a rapidly evolving environment.

This lightning talk will showcase the key enhancements we’ve implemented, including the launch of our unified website and the rebranding of the service in November 2024. We will share our roadmap for further development, focusing on creating solutions that anticipate and respond to the changing demands of our users.

We invite attendees to explore our accompanying poster and share feedback on the changes.

Lyndsey Ballantyne

Software Sustainbility Institute

See Biography
Lyndsey Ballantyne is a Community Manager at the Software Sustainability Institute where she plays a key role in advocating for under recognised contributors to research. By organising workshops, conferences, and networking events, she creates opportunities for people from different backgrounds to contribute to and benefit from the research software ecosystem. She is involved in the Hidden REF initiative, which aims to recognise the often-overlooked work of research staff, such as software engineers, librarians and publishers in traditional assessments like the Research Excellence Framework (REF). Lyndsey promotes inclusivity and recognition for essential behind-the-scenes roles, ensuring their contributions to research are valued and celebrated.

Martin Jagerhorn

ChronosHub

See Biography
Martin has about 20 years of experience in research information management. Since 2019, he heads Business Development at ChronosHub and establishes collaborations with institutions, consortia, funders and publishers to streamline open access management processes. Besides ChronosHub, he has co-founded or funded businesses like Avedas, Morressier and Zendy and acted as advisor towards nonprofit initiatives including national and international Open Science infrastructure initiatives. His educational background includes an MSc in Industrial Engineering with a specialization in Information Systems.

Karen Jackson

Jisc

See Biography
Karen is a product manager in the research management team at Jisc, working on open policy finder (previously Sherpa services). She has been at Jisc since 2017, and previously worked in HE libraries with a particular focus/interest in open access and institutional repository management & administration

Karen Jackson

Jisc

See Biography
Karen is a product manager in the research management team at Jisc, working on open policy finder (previously Sherpa services). She has been at Jisc since 2017, and previously worked in HE libraries with a particular focus/interest in open access and institutional repository management & administration

12.30

Lunch & exhibition viewing

14.00

Plenary Session 3:

Empowering Neurodivergent Staff, Learners andResearchers: The Library as a Partner in Success

Neurodiversity is increasingly recognised as a natural variation in human cognition, encompassing conditions such as ADHD, autism, dyslexia, and dyspraxia. Neurodivergent individuals possess unique strengths and face distinct challenges in academic environments. As a librarian with ADHD, I have experienced at firsthand the barriers and frustrations that neurodivergent students and staff can encounter when navigating academic libraries. This presentation will draw upon those personal experiences and wider research to explore how libraries can create more inclusive and supportive environments for neurodivergent users by tailoring digital resources and training to their specific needs.

The panel discussion will begin by sharing personal experiences of being neurodivergent within the workplace, examining the challenges faced by neurodivergent individuals in academic libraries, such as information overload, sensory sensitivities, and difficulties navigating complex systems. It will then highlight the opportunities for libraries to provide targeted support through a range of digital resources and training initiatives. These could include curated collections of accessible tools and resources, online tutorials and guides with alternative formats, assistive technologies, and self-paced online courses. The presentation will also emphasise the importance of fostering a neurodiversity-affirming culture in libraries through staff training, inclusive design practices, and the development of peer-to-peer support networks, such as buddy schemes.

This presentation will support library staff in creating a more inclusive and supportive library environment for all users. It will also contribute to the ongoing conversation about neurodiversity and inclusivity in higher education, aligning with the UKSG conference’s commitment to diversity and the exchange of ideas on scholarly communication.

Caroline Ball

University of Derby

See Biography
Caroline Ball is academic librarian for Business, Law and Social Sciences at the University of Derby. She is a Senior Fellow of the Higher Education Academy and has also worked as a copyright and licensing advisor and a lecturer in publishing. She is a keen advocate for librarians’ role in driving forward social justice in higher education, in recent years co-founding the #ebookSOS campaign, serving on the committee for NLISN (Neurodivergent Library and Information Staff Network), and is in her second terms as a trustee for Wikimedia UK.

Andrew Walsh

SCONUL

See Biography
Andrew works part-time supporting Academic Libraries North, part time freelance. Most of his time is nowadays spent running workshops around neurodiversity, pedagogy, playful learning, playful leadership, Lego and other fun things. He is co-chair of NLISN (nlisn.org), co-chair of the Playful Learning Association, and editor of the Journal of Play in Adulthood. He is joining the panel as an autistic, ADHD and dyspraxic librarian

Jo Fitzpatrick

Lancaster University

See Biography
Joanne is seconded to the Open Book Futures project at Lancaster University, supporting the accessibility of diamond open access monographs, and is part of the Open Research team in the Library, with experience in Research Data Management and Bibliometrics. As Co-Chair of the Neurodivergent Library and Information Staff Network (NLISN) she works to provide peer support for neurodivergent library staff. She is joining Caroline on this panel as a diagnosed autistic librarian.

15.00

Breakout Session – Group B

15.00

Workshop 3: Towards a Barrier-Free Future: Integrating Open Research into Publishing Practices

For over 20 years, UK institutions, libraries, Jisc, funders, and publishers have collaborated to make open access publishing standard practice, but broader open research practices have lagged behind. Policy developments and no-additional-cost agreements have expanded open access and highlighted barriers in publishing. More recently, attention has shifted to open research, but barriers in research and publishing systems persist. As negotiations are underway for post-Plan S agreements, this workshop will examine how publishing can better support open research practices, address barriers, and anticipate unintended consequences. Participants will contribute to draft recommendations, with a focus on open research and publishing practices.

Steven Vidovic

University of Southampton

See Biography
Steven Vidovic, Head of Open Research & Publication Practice at the University of Southampton, champions transparency and reproducibility in research, research integrity, and research culture. With a background in earth and environmental sciences and roles in both academic publishing and libraries, Steven has led initiatives and policy development to support open research, responsible metrics, and authorship standards at Southampton. He has contributed to national advisory groups (UKRI, NIHR, Jisc) and served as Chair of the DOAJ Advisory Board.

Ruth Harrison

Imperial College London

See Biography
TBC

16.00

Refreshments and exhibition viewing

16.30

Breakout Session – Group D

TBC

Gala Evening

Sponsored by

Time

Programme

Speakers

08.00

Registration and refreshments

09.00

Plenary 4

Challenges and Opportunities: Building an Equitable Research Culture for Marginalised Researchers – Emily Ennis

This talk provides an overview of some of the sector-specific challenges facing marginalised researchers in the UK and highlights the work universities and funders are doing to begin tackling these obstacles. Approaching the issue from a research culture perspective, this session focuses on data collected from staff surveys, HR records, and funding databases at University of Leeds to outline the challenges facing marginalised researchers. While these data do not provide an exhaustive list of challenges, they provide early insights into the deep-rooted systemic inequities in the research sector as well as opportunities for making a more inclusive, supportive, and equitable research culture.

Metrics that Matter: Identifying and Testing Scalable Metrics for a Gender Equitable Research Culture – Francesca Soldati

Research metrics are widely used in recruitment and promotion decisions but reliance on these metrics has led to unintended consequences, including gender disparities within the academic landscape. It is well documented that women in research, particularly those in early to mid-career stages, often face challenges such as lower publication rates and fewer citations than their male counterparts, while remaining underrepresented in senior positions. However, the underlying causes of these discrepancies remain unclear; this project proposes an investigation into the relationship between research culture, gender, and career outcomes, aiming to identify scalable metrics that can better support gender equity in research.

Emily Ennis

University of Leeds

See Biography
Dr Emily Ennis is the Research Culture Manager for the University of Leeds. She builds relationships with researchers and research enablers across the University to better understand diverse research cultures and ensure wide-reaching impacts from the work led by the Research Culture team. She oversees a variety of research culture initiatives at the University, including targeted interventions tackling inequities in the research environment. Emily previously worked in research and impact management at Leeds, enabling her to build a comprehensive knowledge of the full research lifecycle, including how research is used beyond the sector. Emily is also a recovering academic.

Francesca Soldati

University of Aberdeen

See Biography
Francesca is an Open Research Officer at the University of Aberdeen (UK), where she promotes the responsible use of research metrics and supports researchers in adopting open research practices. Before joining the Open Research Team in 2021, Francesca gained a PhD in Conservation Biology and held various roles at the University of Lincoln. She now applies her analytical skills from biology to bibliometrics, research impact assessment, and understanding how these areas influence research culture.

10.00

Breakout Session – Group C

11.00

Refreshments and exhibition viewing

11.30

Breakout Session – Group D

12.30

Plenary 5

Stopping Short of the Goal: Is Open Access Really Fulfilling Its Promise to the Public?

The panel discussion, titled “Stopping Short of the Goal: Is Open Access Really Fulfilling Its Promise to the Public?” will delve into whether Open Access truly serves the public interest as it often said to be aiming to.

While Open Access is often described as making taxpayer-funded research freely accessible, the conversation will explore if access is sufficient, or if the concept falls short by not addressing the accessibility of information in a way that the general public can understand and apply in their lives. And if it is insufficient, what should be done to support this part of the mission of OA. Is the purpose of Open Access solely to facilitate academic exchange, or should it be evolving to bridge the gap between researchers and the public, increasing public engagement and understanding of scientific findings? This panel will tackle these complex questions and discuss if there’s a need to differentiate between Open Access and science communication, assessing the distinct but complementary roles both play in disseminating trusted, comprehensible information.

Andrew Barker

Lancaster University

See Biography
Andrew Barker has been Library Director at Lancaster University since September 2019. Prior to that he held a number of senior roles within a wide range of UK universities, including both Russell Group and Post 1992 Institutions. Within these institutions he has been responsible for all aspects of library leadership. Throughout his career in HE Andrew has also worked visibly, and actively, across the sector, often working closely with publishers on projects and advisory boards. He was a trustee of UKSG between 2014 and 2022, and was chair of its trustee board 2018 and 2022, he is currently Co-chair of SCONUL.

Chris Box

Karger Publishers

See Biography
Christian Box is the Head of Academic and Research Markets at Karger where he is responsible for the interactions, products and services across the Academic customer base. Prior to joining Karger he spent 16 years with Institute of Physics Publishing in the UK where he held a range of positions. Chris holds a BSc (hons) degree in Applied Biochemistry and Molecular Biology as well as a MSc Financial Management.

Emma Yhnell

Cardiff University

See Biography
Emma Yhnell is a multi-award-winning science communicator and educator who specialises in using innovative and engaging methods to effectively communicate complex topics to non-specialist audiences. A committed change-maker, margin mover and regular media commentator, Emma’s work to make science more accessible, inclusive and fun extends globally.

Marion Boland

Research Ireland

See Biography
TBC

13.15

Summary and Close

Time/Group

Programme

Speakers

GROUP A

Group A

Doing DORA: A small-scale project to upscale research culture and research integrity

Inspired by colleagues’ work to embed the principles of DORA but frustrated by the snail-like pace at our own institution, we embarked on a plan of small workshops to Do DORAif/where we could.  What developed over the next 12 months was in the spirit of our original plan but far beyond what we had envisaged.  This breakout will discuss the ways in which circumstance actually embedded, promoted and advocated for DORA with a shoestring budget and time where available.  We will discuss practical promotion, guerrilla good-practice, unexpected outcomes and embracing flexible opportunities when it comes to Doing DORA.

Cath Dishman

Liverpool John Moores University

See Biography
Cath is the Open Access and Digital Scholarship Librarian at Liverpool John Moores University. She takes the lead for open access advocacy at LJMU and manages the institutional repository and open journals service. Cath has over 20 years’ experience in libraries in a range of roles from academic services, customer services, user support and most recently research support. Cath is also the Content Officer for CILIP’s Library and Information Research Group (LIRG)

Katherine Stephan

Liverpool John Moores University/Think.Check.Submit.

See Biography
Katherine Stephan is the research engagement librarian at Liverpool John Moores University. She is responsible for organising library training related to research, outreach, engagement and publishing for all researchers at LJMU. She has a background in children’s librarianship and is a keen advocate of local libraries, open research and responsible research assessment. She is the librarian member of Think, Check, Submit (an initiative to help researchers identify trusted journals for their research); a member of the UKSG’s outreach and engagement committee; and a co-organiser of Open Research Week, a collaboration between LJMU, Edge Hill, Essex and Liverpool Universities.

Group A

The Library CEO: Managing Politics, Technology and Talent as the New Paradigm

Managing an academic research library in the 21st century has no blueprint. Since the introduction of electronic resources, fundamental changes to the work of the library have been underway. Leading a modern library that is subject to perpetual shifts in its priorities, mandate, and budget, requires a set of skills and competencies not taught in library or information science programs. A unique assortment of mentorship, executive coaching, business and/or legal training, and hard won experiences are required to be successful in this new environment. Contrary to popular belief, library directors have more in common with Chief Executive Officers than they realize. But far too often the transition to library leadership is sabotaged when the expectation to manage a collection is confronted with the reality of managing an organization. This conversation among library leaders will introduce the concept of the Library CEO, offering a practical framework for both current and aspiring leaders to become proactive in managing a high performance workplace.

Tony Zanders

Skilltype

See Biography
Tony Zanders is an award-winning software entrepreneur and technology executive, currently serving as the founder and CEO of Skilltype — a software platform for information professionals and their teams to analyze, develop, and share expertise. Prior to Skilltype, Zanders served as the inaugural entrepreneur-in-residence at the Boston University Libraries, advised the senior leadership team on talent and the future of work. For nine years, he held executive roles at EBSCO and Ex Libris, where he consulted library leaders across six continents on technology strategy.

Tony is a frequent speaker and writer in library and higher education communities. Zanders is an honors graduate from Washington and Jefferson College, where he double majored in English and Philosophy, and was awarded the college’s Young Alumni Award in 2015. A proud native of New Orleans, Louisiana, he currently lives in Baton Rouge with his wife and children.Tony Zanders is an award-winning software entrepreneur and technology executive, currently serving as the founder and CEO of Skilltype — a software platform for information professionals and their teams to analyze, develop, and share expertise. Prior to Skilltype, Zanders served as the inaugural entrepreneur-in-residence at the Boston University Libraries, advised the senior leadership team on talent and the future of work. For nine years, he held executive roles at EBSCO and Ex Libris, where he consulted library leaders across six continents on technology strategy. Tony is a frequent speaker and writer in library and higher education communities. Zanders is an honors graduate from Washington and Jefferson College, where he double majored in English and Philosophy, and was awarded the college’s Young Alumni Award in 2015. A proud native of New Orleans, Louisiana, he currently lives in Baton Rouge with his wife and children.

Jessica Gardner

University of Cambridge

See Biography
Dr Jessica Gardner has been University Librarian at Cambridge since 2017, and is also a Syndic of Cambridge University Press and Assessment. Former Chair of RLUK (2021-2023), Jessica was previously University Librarian at the University of Bristol and Director of Library and Culture at the University of Exeter.

K Matthew Dames

University of Notre Dame

See Biography
Dr. K. Matthew Dames serves as Special Advisor to the Provost at the University of Notre Dame. This role enables him to utilize his legal, business and strategic expertise on opportunities facing the academy, including artificial intelligence. From 2021 to 2022, Dr. Dames was the 61st President of the Association of Research Libraries (ARL), the leading North American trade association for research libraries in academia and federal government. From 2021–2024, Dr. Dames was the chief executive, academic, and talent officer of the Hesburgh Libraries and the university’s Press at the University of Notre Dame.

Group A

From Cataloguing to Discovery: a journey of innovation and resilience

We will talk about the development of the Metadata Team at the University of Leeds. Over the last seven years the team has evolved from a traditional, book-in-hand Cataloguing Team to a forward thinking, dynamic Metadata & Discovery Team. We are now involved in myriad projects ranging from internal Special Collections cataloguing to the development of international linked data and BIBFRAME partnerships.

We will cover five key areas that have contributed to this development. We will share techniques, approaches and examples from the last few years that illustrate the value and importance of a people-centric approach to metadata and discovery.

Elly Cope

University of Leeds

See Biography
Elly Cope is a cataloguer by inclination and training, though she now has to watch while others do the fun stuff and derive what pleasure she can in the metadata work vicariously. She provides strategic leadership and a supportive environment for experimentation and development to the Access & Acquisitions teams at the University of Leeds. Having joined the University as Metadata Team Leader she is now Head of Access & Acquisitions with responsibility for purchasing, reading lists, accessibility of e-resources, metadata, access and discovery.

Alison Hazelaar

University of Leeds

See Biography
Alison Hazelaar has been a leader in the Metadata Team since joining as a cataloguer in 2000. She is now the strategic manager, bringing together projects ranging from rare books cataloguing to the development of linked data initiatives. Alison believes in a coaching approach and development opportunities (but only once she’s had her own fun developing the process).

Group A

Bridge Over Troubled Water: Supporting SocietyPublishers in Turbulent Times

Just as independent bookshops survive through online partnerships and customer loyalty, could learned society publishing thrive through similar collaborative approaches? This session presents new global evidence from Research Consulting and CCC on how society publishers are navigating industry transformation. We’ll examine changing publication patterns, revenue trends, and how libraries, vendors and partners can help societies maintain their independence while accessing world-class publishing capabilities. Learn how embracing “irrational” choices in scholarly communications could help preserve the diversity of academic publishing.

Rob Johnson

Research Consulting

See Biography

Rob Johnson is the Managing Director of Research Consulting, a mission-driven business which works to improve the effectiveness and impact of research and scholarly communication. He began his career with KPMG, the international professional services firm, before working in a senior research management role at the University of Nottingham. Since founding Research Consulting in 2013 he has led more than 150 projects in the field of scholarly communication and research. He is a UKSG Trustee, a Fellow of the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales and holds an MSc in Higher Education Management from Loughborough University

Jamie Carmichael

CCC

See Biography
Jamie Carmichael brings 22 years’ experience in publishing to her current role as Senior Director, Information & Content Solutions at CCC. In this position, she leads go-to-market strategy for open access workflow and data solutions that support the scholarly communications industry in its shift to open science, including RightsLink for Scientific Communications and OA Intelligence. Jamie currently serves on the NISO OA Business Processes Working Group, focusing on metadata management and author workflows

Bethany Logan

University of Sussex

See Biography
Bethany Logan is the Research & Open Scholarship Senior Manager at the University of Sussex. She has worked in academic library roles since 2006 and currently leads the design and delivery of Library services to support research and open scholarship, embedding principles Open Research and Scholarship in policy, practice, and culture across the University.

Maggie Simmons

Geological Society of London

See Biography
Maggie is the Director of Publishing at the Geological Society where she is responsible for the leadership of the Society’s independent journal and book publishing activities. This includes all aspects of the publication process and services, collaborative endeavours, and the development of sustainable future models. Prior to this Maggie held editorial development roles at both the Geological Society and IOP Publishing. Maggie is a Council member of the Society Publishers’ Coalition (SocPC).

Group A

Raising the grade and closing the gap? Exploring the link between inclusive library collections and student success

How do we evidence the impact of inclusive library collections on the university community? How do we convince university leadership that the value-added potential of the library is worth the investment?

At King’s, multiple initiatives are underway to assess the impact of library collections on student attainment. These projects, rooted in inclusive education principles, aim to support student success, promote diversity, equity, and inclusion, and strengthen the student experience. This presentation will offer a summary of these initiatives, how they connect, and how taken together they progress towards evidencing the real-world impact of collections on student attainment and academic success.

Vanessa Farrier

King’s College London

See Biography
Vanessa is the Head of Education and Curriculum Liaison at King’s College London. An experienced academic librarian, she oversees liaison across the university community that focuses on developing inclusive collections. Her work emphasizes the importance of diverse, representative collections that reflect the needs and experiences of the whole university community. She has initiated multiple projects that aim to evaluate the impact of library collections on student success and sense of belonging. She is also a member of the directorate wide EDI Committee and is a member of the RLUK Decolonisation Group

Group A

Supporting postgraduate research students in scholarly communications and open research

PGRs are some of the most excited and driven researchers, eager to engage with open access and open research. However, they are also incredibly influenced by the environment in which they find themselves, particularly by their research supervisor’s own behaviours and opinions around open research. Their status as students often limits their access to tools and support available to employed researchers. Equally, their status as researchers can lead to the assumption that they already understand the research and publishing landscape.What can libraries do to support PGRs in becoming ethical and open researchers? Are the one-shot training courses, often voluntary, enough? This talk will discuss barriers and strategies around support for PGRs as they embark on their research careers.

Beth Montague-Hellen

Francis Crick Institute

See Biography
Dr Beth Montague-Hellen started off academic life as a Molecular Biologist studying at Manchester University. The next 14 years were spent as a bioinformatician, accruing an MSc and a Phd on the way.

Following this, Beth decided that supporting others to do excellent research was far more rewarding than actually doing the research and so moved into Libraries and Research Support. Beth takes an as open-as-possible, EDI focused approach to research support and is a big advocate for green OA alongside a completely transparent research cycle including radically open data and software sharing.

Group A

OU Library support to help students study online

With a high percentage of students with a declared disability the Open University has been working with publishers and academic teams to produce accessible course content since 2008. This has been advanced through accessibility testing, enhancements in pedagogy and the use of assistive technologies and content conversions.

The OU library recently concluded an internal research project on the student experience of library converted materials. The research sheds light on the accessibility preferences of students with a declared disability.

In this workshop we aim to guide attendees through the research findings contextualised by an overview of the various accessibility processes at the OU. With the aim of facilitating a group discussing around the following questions:

How best do we ensure the student voice is kept central to discussions about accessibility?

How best can we empower students to reach accessible content? What does accessibility best practice look like from publishers? What format should be prioritised?

Bev Delaney

The Open University

See Biography
Bev Delaney is an eContent Manager/Librarian and has worked at The Open University for 18 years. Her role is broad, building publisher relationships, supplying resources, advice and guidance ensuring module needs are met, evaluation of resources to get best value and specialising in Accessibility. She works across the University with other teams, focussing on accessibility and with the library team, testing content and sharing results and needs directly with publishers. Originally from a commercial and special library background with a breadth of knowledge that helps support the needs of Law, Wellbeing (Nursing and Social work) and Policing.

Alex Mormoris

The Open University

See Biography
Alex Mormoris is an eContent Manager/Librarian who has recently switched careers and has been working at The Open University library for the last year. As part of his role, he builds and maintains relationships with publishers, assists with troubleshooting, and advises on spending decisions across three of the OU’s four academic faculties. Alex supports on accessibility efforts within the OU as well as Equality, Diversity and Inclusion work, supporting work across staff networks and curated collections. Prior to joining the OU Alex worked on both EDI and Access and Participation projects at several different UK universities.

Group A

Shared responsibility (or failure)? Who should bear the burden of maintaining the integrity of thescientific record? A panel discussion

The current crisis in research integrity in scientific publishing is characterized by several interrelated issues that undermine the credibility and reliability of scientific research. Key aspects include the reproducibility crisis, peer-review failures, publication bias, data fabrication/falsification, plagiarism, predatory journals, pressure to publish, and differing cross-cultural norms around what constitutes best practice in research dissemination.

These issues collectively threaten the foundation of scientific knowledge, making it imperative for the scientific community to address and mitigate these challenges to restore trust and integrity in research. While this is a complex systems problem that implicates/touches all major stakeholders in the scientific community researchers, institutions, funders, publishers, and service providers the scholarly communication ecosystem seems to have shifted the majority of the burden for managing these recent crises to publishers.

Is this fair? Does it make sense? How realistic/sustainable is it for publishers to bear this burden/cost and what is the role for other stakeholders to ensure the credibility of the scientific record? This panel discussion – no presentations! – will feature publishers, librarians, and funders tackling the difficult question of who bears the responsibility for research integrity. Its costs are high. Are we ready to shoulder them together?

Sara Rouhi

American Institute of Physics (AIP) Publishing

See Biography
Sara Rouhi is the Director of Open Science and Publishing Innovation at AIP Publishing. Driving AIPP’s open science strategy, she focuses on developing new publishing models and sustainable business strategies to accelerate AIPP’s mission to advance pragmatic, researcher-focused open science.

Rouhi joins AIP Publishing from Public Library of Science (PLOS) where she held business development and publishing development leadership roles. Her work centers at the nexus of new business models, open science/access, and equity. She’s a vocal advocate for pragmatic, sustainable, community-driven open science strategies. She has a track record of leading agile, award winning teams at PLOS and Digital Science and received numerous awards and recognition for her work in scholarly publishing. She’s based outside of Washington DC, is an avid long-form improviser in the DC comedy scene, and rants on all things #scholcomm, politics, and comedy on Bluesky @RouhiRoo.bsky.social.

Sarah Thompson

University of York

See Biography

Sarah Thompson is Assistant Director for Library, Archives and Learning Services at the University of York, where she has responsibility for Content and Open Research. Her teams acquire and manage the library’s information resources and collections, and support York researchers to publish their work open access and develop other open research practices. Sarah has strategic oversight of the Library’s content budget for both paywalled and open access content, and is steering a gradual transition towards the latter. She is also active in a number of different networks, working in collaboration with other libraries, consortia, publishers and service providers to support the move to open access and open scholarship.

Rachel Bruce

UK Research and Innovation Strategy

Wei Mun Chan

eLife Sciences Publications Ltd

See Biography
Wei Mun Chan is eLife’s Research Integrity Manager. He works closely with eLife’s Executive Editor and editors, overseeing research integrity and publishing ethics for eLife.

GROUP B

Group B

COUNTER-intuitive: up close and personal with usage metrics

In this highly interactive, practical session, we’ll introduce the COUNTER Code of Practice for usage for usage reporting and guide you through the ins and outs of obtaining and working with your reports. You’ll come away understanding the value of normalised metrics for comparing across publishers and over time, which metrics to use and when, and of course best practice for harvesting your data using automated tools.

Tasha Mellins-Cohen

COUNTER Metrics / Mellins-Cohen Consulting

See Biography
Tasha Mellins-Cohen, Executive Director at COUNTER Metrics and Founder of Mellins-Cohen Consulting, joined the scholarly publishing industry in 2001. She has held roles within learned societies and commercial publishers across operations, technology, editorial and executive functions, while donating time to key industry initiatives and bodies such as UKSG, ALPSP and STM. In 2020 she started consulting in response to requests for help in developing and implementing OA business models in not-for-profit groups. In 2022 she stepped up from volunteer to Director at COUNTER Metrics, the standard for usage metrics, alongside her consulting work.

Beda Kosata

CELUS

See Biography
Beda is the principal developer of the usage stats platform at Celus. He is also a member of the COUNTER Technical Advisory Group. Organic chemist by education, he switched his career to IT in the early 2000s. His former experience as research scientist helps him in his current role developing tools for research libraries

Group B

Stronger Together: creating a new regional consortium for collective licensing of e-resources

At a time when libraries across the country are looking closely at the affordability of their online subscriptions, a group of London universities is investigating whether pooling resources and sharing procurement could offer a sustainable solution. Senate House Library, Royal Holloway University of London, Central School of Speech & Drama, and King’s College London have come together, with help from Jisc, to trial joint licensing of a selection of e-resources.

We didn’t know if this would be successful but adopted a “learning by doing” approach: try it and find out. We’re tackling issues such as access and authentication, monitoring usage and negotiating fair pricing with suppliers. At time of writing we have launched three new resources, obtaining greater access, better terms and lower pricing than any institution would individually. Negotiations on a fourth resource is underway.

The project remains a small but practical example of creating a new shared service. The project could grow to include more of Senate House’s federal members institutions, acquiring access to more of the resources they want.

Phil and Nick will explore what has worked, what hasn’t, and what we have learnt through working together.

Phil Bower

Royal Holloway

See Biography
Phil has 20 years experience in academic libraries, working in roles related to metadata and discovery, serials and subscriptions, digital resources and collection management, and project management. Since 2020, Phil has been Head of Acquisitions and Content Delivery at Royal Holloway, leading a dedicated team providing students and staff seamless access to information resources. He is committed to finding efficient and innovative ways of working that deliver the best possible experience for library users. His wider professional interests include e-resources licencing, the OA landscape, and data analysis.

Nick Skelton

University of London

See Biography
Nick Skelton is a strategic consultant in digital Higher Education. He facilitates knotty problems, acts as a critical friend, and brings people together. He has a 25 year career in UK HE, starting in IT at the University of Bristol before moving into consultancy in 2019.

Since 2023 Nick has been a part-time Project Manager for Jisc and University of London. He has managed stakeholders, negotiated with publishers, and kept the consortial licensing project on track through a successful pilot.Nick Skelton is a strategic consultant in digitalHigher Education. He facilitates knotty problems, acts as a critical friend,and brings people together. He has a 25 year career in UK HE, starting in IT atthe University of Bristol before moving into consultancy in 2019.Since 2023 Nick has been a part-time ProjectManager for Jisc and University of London. He has managed stakeholders,negotiated with publishers, and kept the consortial licensing project on trackthrough a successful pilot.

Group B

End-to-end accessibility: joining the dotsbetween publisher practice and user experience

Providers of digital platforms and eBooks invest significant resources in improving accessibility and ensuring compliance with standards, but this is only part of the picture of successful resource provision for end-users. The benefits of these investments can be undermined if the users – and those in libraries and universities who support them – are unaware of how to translate technical improvements into user satisfaction.

Users have to navigate multiple layers to get at the content: discovery services, VLEs, reading list systems, publisher and aggregator platforms, varieties of file formats, university-provided software and software on their own computers and mobile devices. And even when all these layers are optimised for accessibility, users may not be aware of the features available to them.

This panel draws on a triple perspective – the content provider, accessibility consultant and accessibility librarian – and will answer questions such as:

What should librarians expect from their content suppliers?

How do their accessibility statements help you?

What does an accessible library service look like?

How are students supported in developing their digital skills?

What workarounds exist when accessibility barriers are found?

How does a university reduce their own accessibility risks under the accessibility regulations?

Matt Kibble

Gale

See Biography
Matt Kibble is Director of Product Management for Gale’s academic databases, with responsibility for Gale Research Complete, the OneFile suite of aggregated periodical databases, specialist resources in Literature and Business Studies, and for areas such as Accessibility, Discovery and Usage. He has been working in this field for more than 20 years, primarily in specialist Arts and Humanities resources: prior to Gale, he helped set up and manage the Bloomsbury Digital Resources division, and before that managed Arts and Literature databases and historical archives at ProQuest

Jessica Wykes

City St George’s, University of London

See Biography
Jessica Wykes is the Accessibility Librarian at City St George’s, University of London Library, where she works on assistive technology, alternative formats, and promoting inclusivity in library services. With a keen interest in improving user experiences, she also chairs the Library Services Accessibility Group.

Alistair McNaught

Alistair McNaught Consultancy

See Biography
Alistair McNaught has inhabited the gaps between students, libraries and publisher practice since 2010. An original members of the Publisher’s Accessibility Action Group, he coordinated the first national survey of e-book accessibility in 2016, following up with the Aspire project which evolved into textBox Digital’s Aspire service.

Alistair was a senior advisor for the Jisc TechDis advisory service until 2015 when he became an accessibility specialist for Jisc. He set up his own consultancy in 2018 and now works independently and in partnership with AbilityNet (on accessibility maturity models) and textBox Digital (supporting publishers in their accessibility journeys).

Group B

What about Open Science?

This breakout session will cover how the game “What about Open Science?”, was created with our UKSG Innovation Award, and the speakers approach to game development and education on Open Science. This competitive Open Educational Resource ‘game’ was designed to create discussion around common open science concepts and ideas that everyone should understand but do not always fully grasp. The game has been tested by OSCAIL in Dublin, Ireland; by SURF in The Netherlands; and at the 19th Munin Conference in Tromsø, Norway. The game will be published online as an OER during UKSG 2025.

The breakout session will include a presentation on game development – from inception to fruition. We will discuss highs and lows, the many pivots, and our experience with Open Peer Review of the game. In addition, we will discuss some of the game ‘remixes’ and key feedback from the launch. There will be time for questions and answers with the speakers.

Sarah Coombs

Digital Competency Centre for Practice-Oriented Research/ Saxion University of Applied Sciences

See Biography
Sarah Coombs is Content Coordinator for the Digital Competency Centre for Practice Oriented Research (DCC-PO), and the Open Science Advisor for Saxion University of Applied Sciences and for the Netherlands Association of Universities of Applied Sciences (NAUAS). She has completed her PhD with the Centre for Science and Technology at the Leiden University looking at how the impact of UAS research can be evaluated. She enjoys being creative in all kinds of ways including thinking of new ways to present Open Science and research support with Aisling Coyne and Katrine Sundsbø.

Aisling Coyne

Technological University Dublin

See Biography
Aisling Coyne is the Open Scholarship Librarian for Technological University Dublin (TU Dublin) where she manages the institutional repository, Arrow, and the Diamond journals published through it; engages in outreach and promotion of Open Scholarship; delivers training to academics, staff, students, and researchers on a variety of Open topics; among other things. Aisling is a member of two Library Association of Ireland special interest groups (Library Publishing and Open Scholarship); Irish Open Access Publishers; National Open Research Forum project SCOIR; is a founding member and co-chair of OSCAIL, among other groups.​​Aisling has a very special interest in OER, Games and Gamification, creating Open Scholarship games with Sarah Coombs and Katrine Sundsbø since 2022.

Group B

The status of Discovery: present and future of a story that will never end

Discovery, a complex network ecosystem that encompasses offerings from libraries, content and technology providers, is a crucial part of the knowledge-acquiring process. Its effectiveness is dependent on collaboration between all these stakeholders: users, librarians, content providers, and technology companies.

This presentation will delve into the current state of digital content discovery and explore the potential role of AI in this process. We will address pressing questions such as the persistence of metadata issues and the future readiness of our workflows. How will libraries, content providers, and discovery technology providers rise to the challenge of supporting effective digital content discovery pathways?

Magaly Taylor

Gale part of the Cengage Group.

See Biography
Magaly Taylor has over 15 years of experience in Discovery, Metadata, and Usage in libraries, content providers, and service providers. She has worked in various types of libraries and contributed to different metadata working groups and committees internationally, including ABES-SC in France, NISO in the US, and UKSG in the UK. Currently, Magaly is the Discovery and Usage Manager for Gale, which is part of the Cengage Group. She is an active member of the UKSG Education Committee; in 2024, she was elected a UKSG Trustee.

Ben Johnson

Ex Libris, a Clarivate company

See Biography
Ben has been working with Knowledgebases and Discovery since 2007 with Serials Solutions, ProQuest, Ex Libris products. Since 2012, he has worked on the NISO KBART Standing Committee, including two years as co-chair with co-panelist Magaly Bascones, and two years on the KBART Automation Working Group. Currently, Ben works on the Ex Libris Provider Relations team with new and existing content providers on improving the quantity and quality of metadata into Ex Libris products for use by libraries, explaining the technical and practical aspects of data exchange across the library supply chain

Will Peaden

Coventry University

See Biography
Will is Head of Content and Discovery at Coventry University. He leads the team in all aspects of acquistions, e-resources, metadata and discovery, reading lists and document supply. Previously, he worked at Aston University as a Information Resources Specialist focused on metadata, acquisitions and collections management. He is the Chair of CILIP’s Metadata and Discovery Group, Co-Chair of the Mercian Metadata Group, and a member of the BIC Metadata Group and a member of the UK Committee on RDA (UKCoR).

Group B

AI Tools in Academic Research: empowering AI literacy in the research community with an evaluative framework

This breakout session will explore how Libraries and Learning Resources at the University of Birmingham is supporting the research community’s use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) following the emergence of Narrow and Generative AI technologies. It will explore how a collaboration between the Research Skills Team and Copyright and Licensing Team developed an evaluative framework to empower researchers to self-evaluate an AI Tool, and how this framework became central to a new training session for the 23/24 academic year. We will also discuss the influence this has had on broader institutional activity guiding the use of AI in research.

James Barnett

University of Birmingham

See Biography
James Barnett has been a Research Skills Advisor for Library Services at the University of Birmingham since 2019, having previously worked as an Academic Liaison Librarian at Coventry University. In his role within the Research Skills Team, James provides the university’s research community with training and one-to-one support on topics such as Literature Searching, Reference Management, Open Research and Research Metrics.

Lisa Bird

University of Birmingham

See Biography
Lisa is Copyright and Licensing Advisor at the University of Birmingham providing copyright guidance and managing the digitisation service. Lisa has been an active member of the British and Irish Association of Law Librarians including being Chair of their Professional Development Committee. Lisa has published several journal articles related to education, technology, and widening participation. Lisa’s interest in technology and librarianship continues in 2022 she presented at RLUK’s Digital Scholarship Network meeting on ‘Making your collections digital scholarship ready: copyright and licensing implications of AI and TDM’ and in 2023 presented at the UKSG Conference on ‘A TDM journey: understanding user needs and developing library support’

Group B

Open Access for Books: TheRole of Libraries in a Changing Policy Landscape

Books have long lived in the shade of journal articles when it comes to institutional strategies and funder policies for open access. However, books are essential scholarly formats across many disciplines, so there is a demand to develop institutional strategies. Libraries are at the heart of such developments. But where should librarians begin, how should they advance, and what should they consider if they want to develop such strategies?

Libraries worldwide are updating their collection development policies to evaluate and invest in open access programs. They are also leading campus conversations to help faculty book authors realise the advantages of open access dissemination and align with any national or private funder mandates. This session brings together perspectives from institutions, libraries, and research funders on open access policies for books to share their observations and experiences. The emphasis is on practical recommendations to ensure that books don’t get “left behind” in a global move towards open research.

The session will particularly highlight the evidence-based work of the PALOMERA project (https://operas-eu.org/projects/palomera/), which has researched policies and strategies for open access books in 39 countries in the European Research Area. Based on an extensive open data collection and deep systematic analysis of the data, the project has developed actionable recommendations for eight stakeholder groups, including libraries and research funders.

Niels Stern

OAPEN Foundation

See Biography
Niels Saaby Stern is the Managing Director of the OAPEN Foundation and Co-director of DOAB (Directory of Open Access Books). He has worked in scholarly publishing for more than twenty years. Since 2014 he has also acted as an independent expert for the European Commission on open science and e-infrastructures. He is a member of the OPERAS Executive Assembly and the Vice-chair of the Open Book Collective Board of Stewards and serves on a number of advisory boards and committees.

Tahia Zaidi

UK Research and Innovation (UKRI)

See Biography
Tahia Zaidi is Senior Strategy Advisor at UK Research and Innovation (UKRI). She is responsible for the development and implementation of open access policies and strategies, with a particular focus on monographs. She is presently leading projects to build capacity in the UK research and innovation sector to develop strategies that can advance the transition to open access for monographs.

Ellen Breen

Dublin City University (DCU)

See Biography
Ellen Breen is a member of the Library’s leadership team at Dublin City University (DCU). In her current role of Associate Director (Research & Teaching), she is responsible for the strategic development and delivery of targeted library services, engagement, partnerships and support to the research and teaching community. She is responsible for the management of the university’s open access university press (DCU Press) and is a member of the university’s Open Research Steering Group.

Nienke van Schaverbeke

Delft University Technology (TU Delft)

See Biography
Nienke van Schaverbeke is Head of Scholarly Communications and Publishing at the library of Delft University Technology (TU Delft), she serves as Publishing Director of TU Delft’s dedicated diamond open access publishing house: TU Delft Open Publishing.

With a background in academic publishing (Brill, Cambridge University Press) and cultural heritage (Europeana, Netherlands Institute for Sound & Vision) she is on a mission to connect people with knowledge and culture.

Group B

This house believes journals are no longer the only publishing option

Our goal is to discuss how a form of publishing which emerged in the analogue C20th is now being challenged by the digital C21st. Journals are no longer the only platform for trusted research. Preprint servers, reports on open websites, blogposts, podcasts and videos are all options for today’s researcher. Yet many funders and most universities still rely on game-able journals and their indexes for funding awards and career advancement. Covid showed that journals are too slow and too rigid for a digital-first environment, something that research institutions outside the academy, like IGOs, NGOs and think tanks, have understood. Today, they self-publish their research findings, rapidly, cheaply and openly on their websites without the need for journals and in so doing capture valuable reputational kudos – so why not universities too? Yet there are downsides to these C21st, informal, publication choices: poor metadata and unstable websites makes this content hard to discover and preserve. In this session, you’re invited to join our expert panellists in discussing the pros and cons of different publishing options in today’s digital-first environment.

Toby Green

Coherent Digital Policy Commons

See Biography
To follow

David Worlock

Outsell inc

See Biography
David Worlock is a consultant and advisor on digital information and communication. After beginning as an educational publisher, he built a pioneer database service for lawyers in the late 1970s and in 1985 launched EPS, which he sold to Outsell in 2006. He writes and blogs widely about scholarly communications.

Charlotte Wien

Elsevier

See Biography
Dr. Charlotte Wien is a full professor of scholarly communication at Arctic University Tromsö, Norway and Vice President of Library Relations at Elsevier. Charlotte has worked both as a scholar and as a librarian previously and has extensive experience in curricula development for librarians. During her career she has focused on the research libraries transformation from ‘classical library’ to ‘service center for researchers and students’ and the derived consequences in terms of the changing competence needs for librarians. She holds two master degrees, of which one is in Library Science and PhD-degree in information retrieval.

GROUP C

Group C

Beyond the Stacks: A Sneak Peek into Library Staff Engagement with Job Shadowing

Do your Library teams struggle to stay in touch with each other? Do your staff sometimes not know the function of other teams within your Libraries, and who to turn to with a problem?The University of Nottingham Libraries Training and Development team saw just that, and wanted an engaging way to combat it. Thus our Libraries Job Shadowing scheme was born.Job Shadowing is a way for staff to spend time with another team, learning what they do and providing the lightbulb moments when the pieces of the Library jigsaw fall into place. The scheme upskills staff and improves staff engagement, but also promotes cross team collaboration

Ayesha Thompson

University of Nottingham

See Biography
Ayesha is a Chartered Librarian and has been at the University of Nottingham as a Resource Acquisitions Librarian since 2019. Managing a team of Acquisitions Assistants, she is an advocate for upskilling and developing staff members, leading to her joining the UoN Training and Development group and helping to found the Libraries Shadowing scheme. She is also passionate about Equality and Diversity and currently serves on UoN Libraries EDI Project Board

Cristina Rusu

Loughborough University

See Biography
Cristina is Copyright and Licensing Manager as well as Senior Library Assistant at Loughborough University. She joined the Open Research Library Team in 2022, and has since completed an MA in Information and Library Studies at Aberystwyth University. She is currently juggling multiple projects on copyright literacy, from interactive online short courses, guides, infographics, comics to videos around copyright. She recently presented a lightning talk at CILIP’s Copyright Conference 2024, on targeted copyright literacy.

Group C

Evaluating Rights Retention, almost two years on

In May 2023, University of Aberdeen became one of the first institutions in the UK to institute a Rights Retention policy for research articles. As we, the Open Research Team, now look to expand the policy to longform publications, we need to evaluate the effectiveness of the policy and our outreach activities about it. It soon became clear that there was no one source of data that could tell us how well Rights Retention was working. In this presentation, we will look at a variety of data sources, (Pure reporting, OpenAlex, web and service analytics, and internal feedback) and consider their usefulness in evaluating new policies.

Varina Jones-Reid

University of Aberdeen

See Biography
Varina grew up as a library kid, you know the kind who’s parents support their love of books and learning but don’t have any money, so they just live at the library. Several things happened since then, including a stint in library school in the wonderful but frozen metropolis of Pittsburgh, but she’s still just a library kid, trying to make sure all the other library kids can read what they want. Now through open research advocacy.

Susan Halfpenny

University of Aberdeen

See Biography

Susan Halfpenny is Head of Research and Learning Information Services at the University of Aberdeen. Sections within her remit include open research and metadata, Aberdeen University Press, digital skills, information consultancy and subject enquiry services. Susan has led a range of initiatives to develop digital literacies and facilitate digital transformation and enable open research and digital scholarship. She is passionate about the role the libraries play in providing access to the world’s knowledge; positively impacting the wider community through the development of partnership, access to information resources and development of critical literacies.

Group C

Adopting strategic approaches to increase scholarly publishing and digital literacy in African academic and research institutions

This paper emphasises the need for strategic approaches to boost scholarly publishing and literacy in African academic institutions. Despite the potential of scholarly publishing to enhance scholarly communication, African content remains underrepresented due to factors like low digital literacy, inadequate training, limited internet access, and high subscription costs. The paper proposes several strategies, including developing digital infrastructure, fostering global collaborations, enhancing training programmes, and advocating for policy changes. By implementing these strategies, African scholars can improve digital content creation and visibility, ultimately benefiting teaching, research, and the global digital economy.

Gloria Tachie-Donkor

University of Cape Coast

See Biography
Dr. Gloria Tachie-Donkor holds a PhD in Information Science from the University of South Africa. Presently, she is a Senior Assistant Librarian and Head of Client Services Department at the Sam Jonah Library. Additionally, she is a Research Fellow, Department of Information Science, University of South Africa. Her research expertise is in information literacy and information privacy. She led a project to develop research support services and learning spaces at the University of Cape Coast. Dr. Tachie-Donkor teaches information literacy skills at the Department of Information Science, UCC. She is currently an advocate for digital scholarly publishing and digital literacy.

Group C

It’s Nice, but is it sustainable? Rethinking sustainability for Diamond open access infrastructures and funding models

Those involved in running community-led infrastructures and funding models that support Diamond open access will be familiar with questions being repeatedly raised about the sustainability of their work. In this breakout session, we will hear short talks from five initiatives that are engaging directly with this question, in relation to both open access books and journals, even as they sometimes push back against its often unspoken assumptions. Each contributor will unpack what “achieving sustainability” means for them, including reporting on their concrete progress in support of this work, in their own terms, as well as potentially highlighting the limits of understanding sustainability as merely financial. Panellists will also reflect on developments in the broader scholarly system that potentially both are a challenge for their work and present opportunities. This will be followed by questions from the audience.

Scaling Sustainability: Open Book Collective and Community-led Open Access – Joe Deville, Open Book Collective / Lancaster University

From the Back of the Sofa to the Budget Line: Sustainability at Opening the Future – Kira Hopkins, Copim Opening the Future / Birkbeck, University of London

Why we need a Big Deal for Diamond Open Access Journals – Caroline Edwards, Open Library of Humanities / Birkbeck, University of London

Sustaining open metadata as a public good: benefits and challenges – Rupert Gatti, Thoth Open Metadata and Open Book Publishers

Sustainable Principles: POSI in Practice – Niels Stern, Directory of Open Access Books & OAPEN

Joe Deville

Lancaster University

See Biography
Joe Deville is Professor in Science and Technology Studies at Lancaster University and Managing Director of the Open Book Collective. At Lancaster, he is based jointly in the Department of Sociology and the Management School, as well as being Director of the Centre for Science Studies. He is currently leading the Copim Open Book Futures project, which is developing a fairer, more sustainable and more diverse ecosystem for the production, funding, and preservation of Open Access books. He is also a co-founder and Trustee of Mattering Press, a Diamond Open Access book publisher and UK-registered charity.

Kira Hopkins

Copim Open Book Futures / Birkbeck University

See Biography

Kira Hopkins works on Opening the Future, a part of Copim Open Book Futures. Previously, they worked at Ubiquity, a born-OA publishing house in London as a book editor and journal account manager, after completing a PhD in Archaeology.

Caroline Edwards

Birkbeck, University of London / Open Library of Humanities

See Biography
Dr Caroline Edwards is Senior Lecturer in Contemporary Literature and Culture at Birkbeck, University of London and Executive Director of the Open Library of Humanities (OLH). She is author of Utopia and the Contemporary British Novel (Cambridge University Press, 2019), co-editor of China Miéville: Critical Essays (Gylphi, 2015) and Maggie Gee: Critical Essays (Gylphi, 2015) and editor of The Cambridge Companion to British Utopian Literature and Culture since 1945 (forthcoming). Caroline is also widely known as an open access advocate, having co-founded the Open Library of Humanities in 2013

Rupert Gatti

Thoth Open Metadata and Open Book Publishers

See Biography
Rupert Gatti is a Fellow in Economics at Trinity College, Cambridge and has been directly involved in establishing several non-profit open access book publishing initiatives, including Thoth Open Metadata, Open Book Publishers, the Open Book Collective, the Open Access Book Network, ScholarLed and the OPERAS Metrics Service.

Niels Stern

OAPEN Foundation

See Biography
Niels Saaby Stern is the Managing Director of the OAPEN Foundation and Co-director of DOAB (Directory of Open Access Books). He has worked in scholarly publishing for more than twenty years. Since 2014 he has also acted as an independent expert for the European Commission on open science and e-infrastructures. He is a member of the OPERAS Executive Assembly and the Vice-chair of the Open Book Collective Board of Stewards and serves on a number of advisory boards and committees.

Group C

Advancing Open Science in Africa: Lessons from the AfLIA Open Data Management Foundational Course for African Librarians

Open Science is gaining momentum in Africa as a movement to make scientific research more accessible, transparent and inclusive. However, the practice of open science within the region is at different stages of development requiring Librarians to play an active role in the advocacy for open science and open data management best practices. This paper reviews the state of Open Science in Africa and examine lessons learnt from the AfLIA Open Data Management Foundational Course for African Librarians.

Mac-Anthony Cobblah

University of Cape Coast

See Biography
Dr Mac-Anthony Cobblah is an advocate for Open Science and Digital Scholarship in Africa. He has strong background in Information Science, Electronic Information Management and Digital Scholarship. He is currently the University Librarian for the University of Cape Coast, Ghana. He is also the Chair of the Consortium of Academic and Research Libraries in Ghana (CARLIGH) and the Chairperson, Academic Libraries and Library Consortia section of the African Library and Information Associations and Institutions (AfLIA) as well as the Licensing Coordinator of EIFL for Ghana. He is part of the team working on the AfLIA Open data management foundational course.

Group C

Using data to analyse Read and Publish deals and a look to how we adapt our processes in a post TA future/world

In light of the Jisc Review of TA agreements, financial pressures faced by HE sector (UK) and uncertainty of block grant support, the sector is as a turning point. Without knowing what comes next we must continue working to analyse the deals to determine what we want and do not want from any future iterations. This session will discuss how we analyse these deals including the use of Unsub and EZProxy. We have begun to adapt our processes and will provide an overview of how we have established our data requirements and created a framework for assessing deals.

Helen Monagle

University of Manchester

See Biography
Helen Monagle is the Subscriptions and Negotiations Officer at the University of Manchester. She takes the lead in Library specific supplier contract negotiations and the management of these complex and evolving contracts. Helen works alongside the Subscriptions Manager in the negotiation of the new generation Plan S compliant subscription journal deals and the implication on legacy ‘big deal’ packages. In addition to this Helen is working to develop a negotiation strategy for Collection Strategies Directorate subscriptions and outright purchases including services and to give negotiation advice to colleagues. Helen has over 10 years’ experience in libraries, mostly in HE libraries but also Health and Public libraries.

Vicki Ridge

University of Manchester

See Biography
Vicki Ridge is the Subscriptions Data Analyst within the Subscriptions Team at the University of Manchester Library. She leads the data analysis side of the Plan S deals and provides cross departmental support monitoring financial trends, journal renewals and usage data.

Group C

Not just JUSP. Beyond the silos, making datasets sing to each other

With frozen budgets and more financial pressure than ever before we need to show value for money on every purchase. Evidence-based decision making for resource acquisition has always been high strategic priority for the library this paper seeks to illustrate how linking disparate datasets can illustrate and enhance value for money purchasing. We will present four mini-case studies using datasets from JUSP, Reading lists, Alma and OpenAthens. We will explore some data modelling and various ways to visualise the stories emerging from the data and how these feed library conversations both internally and with the wider university.

Gavin Brindley

Coventry University

See Biography
Gavin has been E Resources Manager at Coventry University since 2012. During this time, he has been involved in many projects including the development and management the of eBook collections via different purchasing models. These Purchasing models include traditional routes such as purchases based on reading lists and requests from academics, purchases of publisher collections and aggregator subscription packages, Demand Driven Acquisition (DDA) via aggregators platforms, and Evidence Based Acquisition (EBA) via publisher platforms and aggregators. He has also been closely involved in the implementation and development of discoverability and WAYFless linking. He has also been involved with usage analytics and Return on Investment (ROI) among other things. Prior to his time at Coventry University Gavin ran library services in an FE setting and prior to that had a background in the preservation of digital objects.

Will Peaden

Coventry University

See Biography
Will is Head of Content and Discovery at Coventry University. He leads the team in all aspects of acquistions, e-resources, metadata and discovery, reading lists and document supply. Previously, he worked at Aston University as a Information Resources Specialist focused on metadata, acquisitions and collections management. He is the Chair of CILIP’s Metadata and Discovery Group, Co-Chair of the Mercian Metadata Group, and a member of the BIC Metadata Group and a member of the UK Committee on RDA (UKCoR).

GROUP D

Group D

Realising a New Vision for Academic Publishing: HowOpen Institutional Publishers and Libraries are Working Together to Bring About Change in Scholarly Communications

Libraries are increasing becoming involved in publishing in ways that have the potential to bring about change in scholarly communications. From setting up new presses, to providing financial support as well as advocating for open research within institutions, librarians are key to realising a new future for academic publishing.

But much of this work is happening in siloes, split across roles or taking place across different professional departments. There is a lack of a coherent vision for a credible alternative to the status quo and no clear division of labour or allocation of responsibility. This panel explores the way forward to effect positive change.

Philippa Grand

LSE Press

See Biography

After completing a PhD in Modern British History at the University of Manchester, Philippa Grand, began a career in academic publishing that covers both the commercial and university press sectors, including stints at Palgrave Macmillan, Routledge and Bristol University Press. In recent years, she has been involved in open institutional publishing, first as Press Manager at University of Westminster Press (where she is still a member of their Management Board) and now at LSE Press as Head of Publishing. She is co-vice chair of the Open Institutional Publishing Association.

Rosie Higman

LSE

See Biography

Rosie Higman is Open Research Services Manager at LSE Library where she leads a team responsible for open research, open access, research data management and bibliometrics. Prior to this she held research data management roles at the Universities of Sheffield, Manchester and Cambridge focusing on data sharing and advocacy for open research. She is also undertaking an AHRC-funded PhD on Open Access and the Role of the National Library which is jointly supervised by the University of Sheffield and the British Library.

Gillian Daly

Scottish Confederation of University and Research Libraries (SCURL)

See Biography

Gillian Daly is Executive Officer of SCURL and Press Manager for Scottish Universities Press (SUP). A qualified librarian, Gillian has held roles in both education and public libraries, and was Head of Policy and Projects at the Scottish Library and Information Council before moving into research support as Knowledge Exchange Partnerships Manager at the Scottish Graduate School for Arts and Humanities. Gillian joined SCURL in 2019 and has led the development of SUP a library-led open access press involving collaboration across 19 universities.

Paula Kennedy

University of London Press

See Biography

Paula Kennedy has overall responsibility for the University of London Press and its strategy. She leads and manages the Press team and its collaborations with a range of publishing partners and other presses, particularly regarding open access publishing. Before moving to UoL Press in 2021, Paula worked for academic publishers including Palgrave Macmillan as the Global Head of Humanities and Publisher for Literature and Theatre/Performance Studies, at the AHRC as Head of Creative Arts and Digital Humanities and as a freelance impact consultant for universities. Paula is a member of the Advisory Board for the ‘Open Book Futures’ project and a member of the OPERAS Open Access Books Network Special Interest Group.

Sarah Thompson

University of York

See Biography

Sarah Thompson is Assistant Director for Library, Archives and Learning Services at the University of York, where she has responsibility for Content and Open Research. Her teams acquire and manage the library’s information resources and collections, and support York researchers to publish their work open access and develop other open research practices. Sarah has strategic oversight of the Library’s content budget for both paywalled and open access content, and is steering a gradual transition towards the latter. She is also active in a number of different networks, working in collaboration with other libraries, consortia, publishers and service providers to support the move to open access and open scholarship.

Group D

One Nation One Subscription (ONOS): The Path to Transformative Knowledge Agreements in India

This session will explore the One Nation One Subscription (ONOS) initiative of Government of India which aims to provide countrywide access to national and international scientific and academic content. The ONOS intends to sign national licenses with most of the prominent STEM publishers and database producers of the world whose contents are already being subscribed by various institutions of higher education and research organizations either directly or through Government-funded consortia. This initiative is expected to benefit access to e-resources from 70 publishers to all research and educational institutions including universities, colleges, research organizations as well as every citizen of the country.

Kruti Trivedi

Information and Library Network Centre

See Biography
Dr. Kruti Trivedi joined the INFLIBNET Centre in 2007 and currently holds the position of Scientist D (LIS). She plays a crucial role in several key initiatives, including the eShodh Sindhu Consortium, the NLIST project funded by the Ministry of Human Resource Development MHRD, and the National Institutional Ranking Framework NIRF project. In her capacity at INFLIBNET, Dr. Kruti leads the bibliometrics team, contributing significantly to the Centre’s research and analytics efforts. Additionally, she is involved in the Government of India’s One Nation One Subscription ONOS initiative, which aims to secure national licenses for e-resources and enhance accessibility to scholarly content across the country.

Group D

The art of the possible: Mid-tech and low-cost ways to upgrade your skill set and harness free datasources to enhance your bibliographic metadata

Without the resource to purchase new records or employ trained cataloguing staff to create bespoke metadata and enhance existing records, how can library collections teams ensure that their catalogue records are of sufficient quality to drive discovery and enable collective collections comparison work to be as accurate as possible?

Our session we will give example workflows, highlight useful resources and helpful community members. We’ll demonstrate the impact and added value technical services teams have on improving end user experience, as well as discussing how improving accuracy and detail in MARC records can positively affect the results of collective collections work.

Jennie-Claire Crate

Jisc

See Biography
Jennie is the Product Manager for Jisc Library Hub, managing the team that supports Library Hub Cataloguing, Library Hub Compare, Library Hub Discover, and the National Bibliographic Knowledgebase. Her role includes strategic planning and convening communities of practice in order to investigate ways of solving librarian’s problems around discovery and metadata workflows.Before moving to Jisc in 2023, Jennie worked as Curation & Discovery Supervisor at the University of Kent and prior to this held metadata roles at several UK universities. She enjoys testing ways of streamlining data processes and playing with spreadsheets of statistics

Elly Cope

University of Leeds

See Biography
Elly Cope is a cataloguer by inclination and training, though she now has to watch while others do the fun stuff and derive what pleasure she can in the metadata work vicariously. She provides strategic leadership and a supportive environment for experimentation and development to the Access & Acquisitions teams at the University of Leeds. Having joined the University as Metadata Team Leader she is now Head of Access & Acquisitions with responsibility for purchasing, reading lists, accessibility of e-resources, metadata, access and discovery.

Group D

Growing and diversifying our future profession: How HE libraries develop and evaluate their Students as Partner roles

The role of student staff in academic libraries has changed. Libraries are increasingly working in partnership with students to Co-create and co-develop services, projects and initiatives (Salisbuy et al. 2021), but what is the impact of these schemes and how can we evaluate them effectively? This breakout session will explore how HE libraries are developing and evaluating students as partner roles. It will communicate the results of a large scale research project exploring the approaches of SCONUL institutions to student roles within their Libraries and if (either intentionally or not) these roles have had an impact on progression into the Library and Scholarly Communications sector or onto LIS programmes.

The breakout session will also discuss two case studies of libraries developing student as partner roles at Manchester Metropolitan University and Lancaster University, including how the impact of these roles has been evaluated. Attendees will benefit from learning more about the current approaches of other institutions to developing student as partner roles and the impact this has had on diversifying the workforce of the sector, as well as receiving practical tips on implementing and evaluating student as partner schemes at their own institutions.

Tom Morley

Lancaster University

See Biography

Tom is currently undertaking a secondment as the Research Culture and Open Monographs Lead at Lancaster University Library. Within this role he leads and coordinates programmes of activity to develop an Open Research Culture as well as exploring options to facilitate open monograph publishing. In his substantive post he works across the areas of Open Access, Research Intelligence and Research Data Management to coordinate and deliver a range of projects, services and initiatives as an Open Research Officer. Tom is also co-editor of the UKSG e-News.

Lesley English

Manchester Metropolitan University

See Biography
Lesley English is the Head of Academic Engagement and Teaching Services at Manchester Metropolitan University. She leads a team of Academic Liaison Managers, Librarians, Learning Advisers and eLearning Developer, whose focus is on engagement with academics across faculties and academic departments, and delivering Infoskills teaching, both embedded and centrally. Lesley previously worked as Head of Library Engagement at Lancaster University where she created two students-as-partner schemes, one funded by Access & Participation Plan funding. Lesley has roles within the Academic Libraries North Consortium as Co-lead on the Steering Group for EDI and as Co-Chair for the Mentoring Oversight Group.

Group D

The first year of Controlled Digital Lending at LSE

This session will briefly explain the general principles of CDL, and address it in the context of UK legislation. We will review the first year of the CDL programme at LSE – discussing the initial approach, consultation with the leadership and institutional legal teams, the selection of titles for the collection, risk management, and how it works in practice with the digital representations and their presence on different library platforms.

Wendy Lynwood

London School of Economics and Political Science

See Biography
Wendy Lynwood is the Law Librarian and Copyright Officer at LSE. Following an early career sojourn in the world of law firm libraries she has since worked in a variety of liaison roles in Higher Education. Joining LSE during the pandemic she had to quickly get up-to-speed on all things copyright related, and now knows more about the Copyright, Designs & Patents Act than she could have anticipated. Wendy is a Fellow of Advance HE, a Chartered member of CILIP, and a CILIP mentor. This is her first UKSG conference and she’s looking forward to the experience!

Kevin O’Donovan

London School of Economics and Political Science

See Biography
Kevin O’Donovan is the Library Acquisitions Manager at the London School of Economics. He has previously been part of the NAG Executive Committee, the UKSG Outreach and Education Committee, and is currently the chair of the IGELU Alma Digital working group.

Group D

Open Educational Resources and sources: Initiatives from Government of India and Higher Educational Institutions

He will present availability Digital Open Access Resources or e-learning platform initiated by the Government India and other educational institutes in India used by the students, faculty and researchers. Digital resources and e-learning have become significantly important in education systems across the world. These open educational Resources includes course materials, modules, textbooks, videos, software, and other tools, materials or techniques, used to support and provide access to knowledge and educational resources. The Ministry of Education, Govt. of India undertakes a large number of projects for providing on-line content and resources for all-round development of students. Some of these are NPTEL, Virtual labs, Talk to Teacher, Spoken Tutorial, e-PG Pathshala, SWAYAM, MOOCS Project, Sakshet, etc. There are also NDLI, National Science digital Library, Shodhganga, E-Pathshala, Gian, E-PG Pathshala, Moocs, SWAYAM, SWAYAMpraba, Virual Labs etc. It will also explain what the benefit is and who can be beneficial of these e-learning portals. It will also discuss thee valuable Government information Sources used for research and educational purposes like, the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation including National Statistical Office, Central Statistical Office, National Sample Survey, the Registrar General of India, the Reserve Bank of India, NITI Aayog, The Labour Bureau, Census of India, and resources like the Indian Statistical Abstract, the Report of Currency and Finance, and the Combined Finance and Revenue Accounts of the Union and States.

Debal Chandra Kar

Galgotias University

See Biography
Dr. Debal Kar is has 37 years experience in Library profession worked as University Librarian at Galgotias University, Dr. B. R. Ambedkar University Delhi, TERI University and at The Energy and Resources Institute (TERI). Dr. Kar has obtained a “Management of Information in Science and Technology” (MIST) Certificate course from Vrije University Brussels, Belgium. Dr. Kar is a recipient of the Endeavour Executive Fellowship 2014 from the Government of Australia and worked as a Visiting Fellow at the University of Technology, Sydney, Australia, 2014. He is a SLA Fellow (USA). He is the founder-editor of World Digital Libraries. He served as president of SLA Asian Community/Chapter in 2008, 2017, and 2021. He was Vice-Chair of the IFLA Regional Division Committee – Asia and Oceania 2021-2023 and IFLA Social Science Libraries Section Standing Committee 2021-2025 member.

Group D

Catching Up with NISO’s CREC: Tools for Preventing the Spread of Retracted Research

Retracted research is published work that is withdrawn, removed, or otherwise invalidated from the scholarly record can be inadvertently propagated within the digital scholarly record through citations. This is more likely to happen when the process for effectively communicating retraction at all publication lifecycle stages is unclear. In June 2024, the NISO CREC (Communication of Retractions, Removals, and Expressions of Concern) Working Group published its Recommended Practice, a solution that aims to ensure that retraction metadata is shared across the publishing and discovery ecosystem. This session aims to educate potential adopters about the benefits of integrating this Recommended Practice into their workflows.

Keondra Bailey

National Information Standards Organization (NISO)

See Biography
Keondra Bailey is the Assistant Standards Program Manager at the National Information Standards Organization (NISO). In this position, she works closely with a range of working groups, standing committees, and topic committees to further NISO’s mission of promoting standards development through collaboration. Keondra earned her Master of Library Science (MLS) degree from North Carolina Central University.

Group D

Academy-owned: Supporting scholars who are taking a stand for nonprofit, equitable, inclusive,and open alternatives to high-profit journals

In recent years, numerous editors and editorial boards of leading journals have stepped down in protest against publisher practices that they believe are harmful to research and academia. Subsequently, several have established successful new journals in collaboration with nonprofit organizations, often overcoming competition from the very publications they left behind.

Join us for a lively discussion of how libraries, library publishers, and nonprofit presses can effectively support researchers aiming to create high-quality, diverse, equitable, inclusive, and open alternatives to expensive, high-profit journals. We will hear from two scientists who established such alternative journals, including someone who was part of a high-profile editorial resignation, and learn more about the kinds of support they and their colleagues seek from libraries and academic publishers. We will also explore some of the benefits and challenges of moving an editorial operation from a large, commercial publisher to a smaller nonprofit and share strategies for campus partners interested in supporting research communities that are starting new journals or growing existing ones.

Amy Harris Ryan

MIT Press

See Biography
Amy Harris has held various positions at the University Press of Florida, the University Press of Kentucky, and The MIT Press. Her nineteen-year career in scholarly publishing has had a particular focus on helping academic work find its widest possible audience and achieve its greatest impact, often in partnership with libraries.

Kate E. Watkins

University of Oxford

See Biography
Kate Watkins is a Professor of Cognitive Neuroscience at the University of Oxford. Her research uses brain imaging and stimulation to understand the neural basis of speech and language. In 2019, she co-founded a new open access journal at the MIT Press called the Neurobiology of Language. Kate is currently the co-Editor-in-Chief of the journal.

Caroline Edwards

Birkbeck, University of London / Open Library of Humanities

See Biography
Dr Caroline Edwards is Senior Lecturer in Contemporary Literature and Culture at Birkbeck, University of London and Executive Director of the Open Library of Humanities (OLH). She is author of Utopia and the Contemporary British Novel (Cambridge University Press, 2019), co-editor of China Miéville: Critical Essays (Gylphi, 2015) and Maggie Gee: Critical Essays (Gylphi, 2015) and editor of The Cambridge Companion to British Utopian Literature and Culture since 1945 (forthcoming). Caroline is also widely known as an open access advocate, having co-founded the Open Library of Humanities in 2013.

Zoltan Dienes

University of Sussex

See Biography
Zoltan Dienes is a professor of psychology at the University of Sussex, where he has worked since 1990. He works in two areas: consciousness science and scientific reform. As a major part of his consciousness research, he has one of the most active labs in the world investigating hypnosis, or more generally, the process of phenomenological control. In terms of scientific reform, he has advocated methods for obtaining evidence for no effect (using Bayes factors – he provided the first online Bayes factor calculator in 2008); he was on the first Registered Reports editorial board in 2013 (an article type where papers are accepted before the data are collected); and is a co-founder of Peer Community In Registered Reports (https://rr.peercommunityin.org/), where scientific articles are free for authors and free for readers. He does not author, review nor edit for scientific journals run by for-profits, except for society journals (where there is some trickle down of money to an academic society).

Group D

Can Gold OA survive a shift to Green?

It’s been over 20 years since the Budapest Declaration on Open Access and while the OA movement has made significant headway, the future end-state is becoming increasingly less clear. In the wake of Plan S, a future fully Gold Open Access state seemed, for the first time, a possibility and then – to the concern of many stakeholders – a potential inevitability. Global market conditions in the interim, however, have made it increasingly difficult for publishers and libraries to negotiate OA agreements supporting a full transition to Gold OA. Instead, recent policy mandates have focused on immediate OA without the provision of financial support for Gold OA, effectively preferentially promoting Green OA. Concurrently, we’re seeing broader interest/adoption of the Rights Retention Strategy and a move away from paying APCs – and for the first time, we’re seeing a decline in the growth of Gold OA relative to pay-walled content. We’re also starting to see agreements suggesting financial support for zero embargo Green OA. This session seeks to examine the complex interplay and potential consequences of a shift in global policy mandates from Gold to Green and what it could mean for stakeholders across the industry, including researchers. Speakers will examine existential questions such as ‘What do we really want from OA?’, ‘What does a shift to green OA mean for subscriptions, TAs and the transition of the industry to fully OA?’, ‘How can Green OA routes be developed to better support researchers’ etc.

Sara Bosshart

Royal Society of Chemistry

See Biography
Sara is Head of Open Access at the Royal Society of Chemistry where she is responsible for OA across the organization. Sara is a Board member of OASPA and Chair of the Governing Board of ChemRxiv. Previously, Sara was OA Publisher at IWA Publishing where she transitioned the business to OA through a variety of models including Subscribe to Open and Read & Publish. Originally a marine geologist, Sara began her career at Frontiers where she launched a suite of new OA journals in the Life Sciences and was responsible for the expansion of Frontiers into the UK.

Beth Montague-Hellen

Francis Crick Institute

See Biography
Dr Beth Montague-Hellen started off academic life as a Molecular Biologist studying at Manchester University. The next 14 years were spent as a bioinformatician, accruing an MSc and a Phd on the way.

Following this, Beth decided that supporting others to do excellent research was far more rewarding than actually doing the research and so moved into Libraries and Research Support. Beth takes an as open-as-possible, EDI focused approach to research support and is a big advocate for green OA alongside a completely transparent research cycle including radically open data and software sharing.

Adeline Rebe

Couperin Consortium / University of Strasbourg Library Services

See Biography
Dr. Adeline Rege holds a PhD in Modern History from Sorbonne Univerity and a Degree as a Scientific Librarian. She is co-head of Negotiations department at the french consortium Couperin and head of Research support and Open Access Officer at the University of Strasbourg. Her expertise extends to the negotiation of open access agreements with publishers, supporting negociators, and advocating for authors rights. Drawing on her national experience in France, she also brings an international perspective to open science, as a member of LERU’s Info & Open Access Policy Group and contributing, as an external expert and reviewer, to Switzerland’s Open Science Strategy.

Anna Vernon

Jisc

See Biography
Anna Vernon. Head of Research licensing at Jisc. She is responsible for the strategic development and delivery of Jisc’s research content and software portfolio and leads the open access negotiations on behalf of UK institutions. Prior to working at Jisc Anna worked at the British Library on a range of copyright and licensing initiatives.

Meagan Phelan

AAAS

See Biography
Meagan is the Communications Director for the Science family of journals, where she oversees efforts to boost the visibility of all forthcoming Science family of journal content for reporters worldwide. Prior to joining AAAS in 2013, she served as a senior writer at AIR Worldwide, where she interacted with more than 65 Ph.D.-level scientists and engineers to communicate advances in wind engineering, seismology, climate science, and other fields. Previously, she was a senior writer and editor at the Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center. Meagan holds a Bachelor’s degree in Biology and Spanish from Gettysburg College, and a Master’s degree in Science Writing from The Johns Hopkins University. In 2008, Meagan received a Fulbright Scholarship to work with Dr. Juan Antonio Raga at the University of Valencia to help determine the cause of morbillivirus resurgence among small cetaceans in the Mediterranean. Meagan also completed science-reporting internships with Science as well as National Public Radio and has freelanced for various outlets including Anesthesiology News.

Database accessibility: Proactivity, transparency, buy-in.

How do we balance the demands of current accessibility legislation with university students’ needs for external database content?

To meet our legal requirement, we researched and sought advice from other institutions in the sector then built our own workflow which involves the implementation of a 5-point checklist. This has raised the profile of accessibility amongst our university colleagues but is skills and labour intensive. Please come and visit our poster session to find out more and offer your suggestions.

Debi Roland

University of the Arts London

See Biography
As part of the Discovery Team in Library Services Debi has been involved in the procurement, management and use of e-resources since the advent of networked CD-ROMs and in the late 1990s, was part of a team which created a library presence for the University of the Arts London on the World Wide Web – The i page. In more recent years she has been involved in writing accessibility statements and liaising with publishers and suppliers to ensure e-resources are accessible for all. Outside of work she still has 2 adult sons living at home and relaxes by knitting and crocheting.

Anna Dölling

University of the Arts London

See Biography
Anna has worked for University of the Arts London (UAL) Libraries since 2000. She currently works a assistant librarian for access and inclusion, and as a library assistant. Since the start of her library career Anna has been interested in the accessibility of resources and spaces, physical and digital. Anna feels that disability inclusion must be at the forefront of any service provision, from planning and conception to delivery and evaluation.

The Hidden REF, celebrating all research outputs

Lyndsey’s ‘s poster session will follow on from her lightning presentation taking place on Tuesday at 12:00.

The Hidden REF campaign recognises all research outputs and roles that make research possible.

Our 2021 and 2024 competitions highlight the diversity of contributions, from librarians and technicians to research software engineers and administrators — vital roles often overlooked in traditional assessments. In 2023, the Festival of Hidden REF gathered professionals and policymakers to discuss creating a more effective and equitable research environment.

I will share our initiatives, outcomes, and strategies for gaining recognition for these roles, inviting the UKSG community to collaborate and discuss strategies for gaining well-deserved recognition for these hidden roles.

Lyndsey Ballantyne

Software Sustainbility Institute

See Biography
Lyndsey Ballantyne is a Community Manager at the Software Sustainability Institute where she plays a key role in advocating for under recognised contributors to research. By organising workshops, conferences, and networking events, she creates opportunities for people from different backgrounds to contribute to and benefit from the research software ecosystem. She is involved in the Hidden REF initiative, which aims to recognise the often-overlooked work of research staff, such as software engineers, librarians and publishers in traditional assessments like the Research Excellence Framework (REF). Lyndsey promotes inclusivity and recognition for essential behind-the-scenes roles, ensuring their contributions to research are valued and celebrated.

Jisc’s open policy finder – re-developing Sherpa and looking to the future

Karen’s poster session will follow on from her lightning presentation taking place on Tuesday at 12:00.

‘Jisc’s Open Policy Finder, formerly Sherpa Services, has undergone significant changes over the past year as part of our commitment to building a future-ready, streamlined, and efficient product to support open access workflows. These changes represent not just a fresh identity but also the foundation of a platform designed to adapt and scale for future use cases, ensuring continued relevance and impact in a rapidly evolving environment.

Our poster will accompany our lightning talk, highlighting key enhancements including the launch of our unified website and the rebranding of the service in November 2024. We will also share our roadmap for further development, and invite attendees to view and share feedback on the changes.’

Karen Jackson

Jisc

See Biography
Karen is a product manager in the research management team at Jisc, working on open policy finder (previously Sherpa services). She has been at Jisc since 2017, and previously worked in HE libraries with a particular focus/interest in open access and institutional repository management & administration

An International Data Space for OA Book Usage Data Exchange Across Public and Private Stakeholders – Project Update

While APIs have made it easier for libraries, publishers, policymakers, and information services to access, use and innovate with usage and metadata at scale, time and human resources are still required to manage, compile, and link OA book usage data metrics coming from multiple platforms in multiple formats. OA book usage data is even more important at this very moment when EU-funded projects such as PALOMERA worked to support policy alignment for OA monographs in Europe, and the UK has seen the implementation of their new 2024 UKRI policy including long-format outputs. It begs the question, how can OA book impact be monitored more effectively to help inform policy making?

In 2022, the Mellon Foundation awarded a project team led by the University of North Texas, OpenAIRE, and OPERAS to develop “governance building blocks” for the OA Book Usage Data Trust in line with both the Principles of Open Infrastructure and protocols emerging from the Design Principles for International Data Spaces (IDS). Over 24 months, stakeholders leveraged in-depth community consultations to produce a rulebook to guide participation in the data space community, define Data Trust membership benefits, and get feedback on cost-recovery and functional requirements. In 2024, the Data Trust’s Technical Advisory Committee and Board of Trustees selected an experienced IDS technical team to build out the technical OA Book Usage Data Trust infrastructure. Using a staged development approach focused on “scaling small”, a limited proof of concept IDS focused on the exchange of COUNTER item-level views and downloads data was developed and tested with alpha cohort partners (JSTOR, LibLynx, Michigan University Publishing, Punctum Books, Taylor & Francis) with plans to extend IDS security and auditing functionality to support additional data exchange use cases in beta cohorts of publishers, presses, aggregators, and additional data analytics providers (e.g. EBSCO, OAPEN, Longleaf).

This poster will present the project update with the findings to date and provide visitors with interactive QR codes.

Ursula Rabar

OA Book Usage Data Trust

See Biography
As Community Manager for the OA Book Usage Data Trust, Ursula facilitates global consultations and engagement with diverse OA book usage stakeholder communities. Her position is hosted by OPERAS-EU, the European infrastructure consortia focused on Open Scholarly Communication in the European Research Area for Social Sciences and Humanities. Prior to this position, Ursula worked in publishing and bookselling, focusing on print book sales, foreign rights, OA journal commissioning and institutional partnerships.

Feedback

The conference was great and was organised really well. Everyone was really friendly and I gained loads from it.
Previous delegate

I thoroughly enjoyed the conference and look forward to returning next year.
Previous delegate

Contact

General queries – events@uksg.org

Sponsorship queries – Par Rock at Content Online for more information – par@contentonline.com

Exhibition queries – Karina Hunt at KHEC – karina@khec.co.uk

Cancellations

The closing date for cancellations is Friday 28th February at 5pm GMT, after which date cancellations will not be eligible for a refund. Cancellations should be sent in writing to events@uksg.org.

The UKSG code of conduct can be found here

The General UKSG booking terms and conditions can be found here

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UKSG Licensing Skills for Librarians online seminar 2025
2025-04-29 11:00 - 14:00
This seminar is designed for librarians involved in e-resource purchasing in academic institutions; specifically for librarians in these institutions who are being trained to undertake purchasing roles will also benefit from attending. The seminar will take place online over two half days, although you may want to set aside some reading time prior/in between the sessions.

When

Where

Tuesday 29 April, 2025 – 11:00 BSTtoWednesday 30 April 2024 – 14:00 BST

Online United Kingdom

About

Sponsors

Programme

Feedback

Registration

Contact

Map

Share

About the Event

Registration

Registration is now open – please register for your place here

UKSG membership rate: £70+VAT

Non-membership rate: £82.00+VAT

Details of membership can be found at https://www.uksg.org/join

Course Information

Electronic publishing has brought huge changes to learned information provision and to the role of librarians and other information professionals. ‘Ownership’ of content is no longer a simple matter of receiving and storing print copies on a shelf. Publishers and intermediaries license access to electronic resources, and so the licence has become a feature of most sales agreements. Information professionals consequently need to become familiar with the terms and conditions of licences, their meaning and their implications. This two-day online course will address these issues using a mixture of presentations, Q&A and some homework.

Why should you attend?

The online course is designed specifically for librarians involved in e-resource purchasing in academic institutions. Librarians in these institutions who are being trained to undertake purchasing roles will also benefit from attending. Participants will gain a good understanding of the key issues surrounding publisher licensing and negotiations, together with practical skills and knowledge which they will be able to use in their professional lives.

Jisc Collections has an international reputation for expertise in the negotiation and licensing of scholarly online resources. It currently manages around 200 agreements, and its model licence is seen as a ‘gold standard’ across the academic sector.

DO NOTE: We welcome participants from all corners of the globe to join our seminars, however speakers and topics for this event are generally UK focussed and times are in GMT, if you have any doubt about the suitability, please don’t hesitate to contact us.

Learning Objectives

At the end of the course participants will:

understand the key issues surrounding publisher licensing, and how these impact libraries

be familiar with the concept of a Model Licence and the important clauses in publisher licences

be familiar with the principles of successful negotiation of terms and conditions in the context of licensing online information resources

understand the fundamental dos and don’ts of e-resource licence negotiation

be aware of the legal implications that licence terms have for their institution

understand the latest issues and concerns related to licensing

be aware of the issues around licensing for additional users, including those at partner organisations.

Accessibility

UKSG wants to provide the best possible experience for all our delegates, making presentations as accessible and inclusive as possible. Our intention where possible is to strongly encourage our speakers to provide auto generated closed captioning for both live and recorded events as well as to make sure their slides as easy as possible for all people to read. In addition, we can provide auto generated transcripts post event for each of the recorded sessions.

If you have particular accessibility needs or questions about this seminar/webinar, we welcome you to contact us directly at events@uksg.org prior to booking your place.

Programme

Day 1 Day 2

Time

Programme

Speakers

11:00

Welcome and Introduction Note: All times GMT

Ben Taplin

Jisc

See Biography
Ben Taplin has been Jisc’s contract and licensing specialist for ten years. He is also a member of Jisc’s Artificial Intelligence group and the ICOLC AI Taskforce.

11.05

Session 1: Introduction to licences

Why do we need licences for the online content we subscribe to, and what problems do they cause us?

Ben Taplin

Jisc

See Biography
Ben Taplin has been Jisc’s contract and licensing specialist for ten years. He is also a member of Jisc’s Artificial Intelligence group and the ICOLC AI Taskforce.

11.15

Session 2: 10 things to look for in a licence

We look at the key clauses and information any good licence should include.

Ben Taplin

Jisc

See Biography
Ben Taplin has been Jisc’s contract and licensing specialist for ten years. He is also a member of Jisc’s Artificial Intelligence group and the ICOLC AI Taskforce.

11.45

Session 3: A closer look at licences

Part 1. How to navigate your way through a licence and find the important stuff.

Ben Taplin

Jisc

See Biography
Ben Taplin has been Jisc’s contract and licensing specialist for ten years. He is also a member of Jisc’s Artificial Intelligence group and the ICOLC AI Taskforce.

12.00

Lunch Break / Time to reflect on the previous session

13.00

Session 3: A closer look at licences

Part 2. How to navigate your way through a licence and find the important stuff.

Ben Taplin

Jisc

See Biography
Ben Taplin has been Jisc’s contract and licensing specialist for ten years. He is also a member of Jisc’s Artificial Intelligence group and the ICOLC AI Taskforce.

14.00

Summary of the day and wrap up

You may wish to pencil in some time following the session to review today’s learning and prepare for tomorrow’s session.

Ben Taplin

Jisc

See Biography
Ben Taplin has been Jisc’s contract and licensing specialist for ten years. He is also a member of Jisc’s Artificial Intelligence group and the ICOLC AI Taskforce.

Time

Programme

Speakers

11.00

Welcome and introduction to day 2

Ben Taplin

Jisc

See Biography
Ben Taplin has been Jisc’s contract and licensing specialist for ten years. He is also a member of Jisc’s Artificial Intelligence group and the ICOLC AI Taskforce.

11.05

Session 4: License negotiation

How can we negotiate with suppliers about their terms and conditions? Looking at TDM and AI.

Ben Taplin

Jisc

See Biography
Ben Taplin has been Jisc’s contract and licensing specialist for ten years. He is also a member of Jisc’s Artificial Intelligence group and the ICOLC AI Taskforce.

11.30

Session 5: Licensing for Users Overseas

A look at Jisc’s approach to licensing for TNE and partners in the UK.

Greg Ince

Jisc

See Biography
Greg Ince is a Licensing Manager, delivering the optional Jisc service, Transnational education licensing. He is a librarian with 20 years’ experience of working in higher education libraries. Prior to joining Jisc in 2017 to work on the TNE Licensing Pilot, Greg worked for De Montfort University, Royal Holloway, the University of Bath, and most recently, the University of the West of England (UWE), for 10 years. At UWE, he was responsible for content acquisition and subscription, including managing discovery and ongoing access arrangements, with an ongoing focus on licensing for UWE’s onshore and offshore collaborative provision scenarios.

12.00

Lunch Break

13.00

Session 6: Licensing scenarios for additional Users

Group exercises and discussion addressing licensing for different types of additional user groups (inc. partner organisations overseas and in the UK)

Ben Taplin

Jisc

See Biography
Ben Taplin has been Jisc’s contract and licensing specialist for ten years. He is also a member of Jisc’s Artificial Intelligence group and the ICOLC AI Taskforce.

13.45

Conclusion and wrap up

Ben Taplin

Jisc

See Biography
Ben Taplin has been Jisc’s contract and licensing specialist for ten years. He is also a member of Jisc’s Artificial Intelligence group and the ICOLC AI Taskforce.

Feedback

All i all a very good seminar, I learned a lot and found the information very useful.

Really, helpful and informative, thank you!
Previous delegate

Contact

General queries – events@uksg.org

Cancellations

The closing date for cancellations is Monday 7th April, after which date cancellations will not be eligible for a refund. Cancellation should be sent into writing to events@uksg.org.

The UKSG terms and conditions can be found here

The UKSG code of conduct can be found here and UKSG terms and conditions here

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Please help us by letting your colleagues and friends know about our event. Thank you.

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UKSG Open Educational Resources online seminar 2025
2025-05-07 10:00 - 16:30
This seminar takes place over one day looking at how resources are being developed and promoted, and how others have approached the creation and management of OER policies. We welcome speakers from the UK and USA to this session.

When

Where

Wednesday, May 7, 2025 – 10:00 BSTto 16:30 BST

Online United Kingdom

About

Sponsors

Programme

Feedback

Registration

Contact

Map

Share

About the Event

Registration

Registration is now open, please click here to register

UKSG membership rate: £70+VAT

Non-membership rate: £82.00+VAT

Details of membership can be found at https://www.uksg.org/join

Course Information

The next few years will see a continual increase in the amount of materials created by educational and aligned organisations, much of which will be accessible to peers, students and the general population across the globe. The opportunities for sharing Open Education Resources are greater than ever. This widespread change has led to many ethical and practical questions around ownership, hosting and copyright. This seminar explores the current OER landscape, looks at how some of these issues are being addressed, and highlights the opportunities presented by the growth of OER resources.

Why should you attend?

Delegates will have a chance to hear from a variety of different perspectives, which will include how open resources can support teaching and learning, how resources are being developed and promoted, and how others have approached the creation and management of OER policies. This course is aimed at anyone who is keen to understand more about Open Educational Resources, with a view to creating them, making use of them for teaching and learning, or creating policies around them.

DO NOTE: We welcome participants from all corners of the globe to join our seminars, however speakers and topics for this event are generally UK focused and times are in BST, if you have any doubt about the suitability, please don’t hesitate to contact us.

Who should you attend?

The seminar will be of interest to those working across the scholarly information industry, including publishers, librarians, teachers, lecturers, learning technologists, research support staff, other aligned professionals and students.

Learning Objectives

At the end of the course participants will:

Gain a wide overview of the current OER environment across the UK and US

Learn about the opportunities and challenges of implementing an OER policy at an organisational and national level

Discover benefits and opportunities of engaging with the creation of OER content

Attendee Information

The webinar tool we use is Go to Webinar. To test your system ahead of time visit https://support.goto.com/webinar/system-check-attendee

Recording

The sessions will be recorded and available to all registered delegates after the event, so if you unable to join us live or want to review any presentation this will be available.

Accessibility

UKSG wants to provide the best possible experience for all our delegates, making presentations as accessible and inclusive as possible. Our intention where possible is to strongly encourage our speakers to provide auto generated closed captioning for both live and recorded events as well as to make sure their slides as easy as possible for all people to read. In addition, we can provide auto generated transcripts post event for each of the recorded sessions.

If you have particular accessibility needs or questions about this seminar, we welcome you to contact us directly at events@uksg.org prior to booking your place.

Programme

Morning session Afternoon session

Time

Programme

Speakers

10:00

Welcome and Introduction Note: All times BST

Klara Finnimore

Royal College of Art (RCA)

See Biography
Klara is the Journals and E-Resources Librarian at the Royal College of Art. She has responsibility for managing and developing the RCA’s online collection of journals and databases, as well as maintaining the current and archived print journal collections. She also contributes to the work of a number of committees across the library sector.

Ai Gooch

University of Essex

See Biography
Ai is the Assistant Director (University Collections and Digital Services) at the University of Essex. She oversees the University Collections including University’s Special Collections, Archives, and Art Collections, while also leading the development of digital infrastructure and services. She previously worked as the Academic Liaison Librarian (Business and Law) at the University of Essex. Her contributions include initiatives such as Decolonising the Library, Skills @ Essex, and the Race Equality Charter.

10.15

Session 1: The Death of the Textbook

As an educational tool, the commercial textbook in its traditional form is obsolete and yet the sector remains wedded to an outdated paradigm that serves neither the needs of the student or the academy. What are the alternatives? We present the results of a pilot programme at Coventry University where the commercial textbook has been discarded in favour of a shift to Open Content. Is this the beginning of a (re)new(ed) paradigm or a Canutian exercise in futility?

Phil Brabban

Phil Brabban

Coventry University

See Biography
Having initially trained and worked as a Secondary School English and Drama teacher, Phil swiftly made the decision to alter course, changing career to follow a life of excitement and high adventure in Librarianship. He began his career at Durham University in 1999 where he worked for several years, most significantly as an ‘accidental’ Systems Librarian. Phil has worked at the University Library at Coventry since 2007 in a number of leadership roles and was appointed University Librarian in 2014. Now, as Chief Librarian, he carries responsibility for the operational and strategic direction of the service across the entire University Group. Phil has been a member of SCONUL’s Executive Board since 2022 and is co-Chair of the SCONUL Content Strategy group.

Dal Badesha

Coventry University

See Biography
Dal is the Head of Learning Resources and Student Experience at Coventry University, focusing on Open Educational Resources. With a career in academic libraries spanning nearly three decades, Dal began as a library assistant in 1996 and has since held various roles, including Project Manager for one of Europe’s largest textbook schemes. Passionate about accessible learning, she is dedicated to enhancing student experiences through innovative resource strategies.

10.40

Session 2: Taking a strategic approachto embedding the institutional use of OERs

In 2022 the University of Sheffield approved an OER policy, supporting the re-use, re-purposing and adaptation of existing OER, and the creation of new OERs. To implement the policy, a proactive approach was taken, with the formation of a cross-faculty OER Working Group. This group was tasked with promoting policy awareness, fostering an OER community, identifying guidance and support for staff and making recommendations in support of the policy. In this talk we will review the steps taken so far to move to a position where the use of OER is embedded as standard practice at Sheffield.

Louise Robson

University of Sheffield

See Biography
Louise Robson is a Professor of Digital Innovation in Learning and Teaching at the University of Sheffield, with over 30 years experience in teaching. A PFHEA and an NTF, she is known for her work around using digital technologies to enhance the student learning experience, e.g. lecture capture and active learning. She is also a strong advocate for the use of inclusive approaches in student learning. As the chair of the University of Sheffield OER Working Group, she leads the group to deliver the actions needed to embed the use of OERs into learning and teaching activities at the university.

11.05

Session 3: Reflections on building a European Open Education Network: Community as a keystone to consolidate Open Educational Practice in the educational space

This presentation reflects on the experiences of building a European Open Education Network through the ENCORE+ project. ENCORE+ has built a community of more than 500 active members since 2020. We have done this by researching, having constant dialogue with relevant stakeholders, and collecting and sharing good practice examples, strategies and innovation on key topics such as Policies & Practice, Innovation & business models, Quality and Technology. We have developed, co-created and shared our knowledge with our network in a community of practice through a series of reports, network events, focus groups, workshops and contributions to conferences

Orna Farrell

Dublin City University (DCU)

See Biography
Dr Orna Farrell is Associate Professor of Education, specialising in digital education based in the School of Policy Practice, Institute of Education in Dublin City University (DCU). Orna holds a PhD in Education from Trinity College Dublin. Orna is programme chair of the B.Sc. in Education and Training.Orna’s research interests centre around digital innovative pedagogy and include online pedagogy, learning design, digital assessment, eportfolio and open education. She has a growing publication record in her fields of interest, including a range of book chapters, journal articles, invited presentations and conference papers. She has published in high-ranking journals such as Distance Education, the Journal of Interactive Media in Education, Research in Learning Technology, and the International Journal of Educational Technology in Higher Education. Orna is a fellow of EDEN Digital Learning Europe.

11.30

Break

11.40

Session 4: Open for Good: Strategic support for OER at the University of Edinburgh

At the University of Edinburgh we believe that OER and open education are strongly in keeping with our institutional vision; to discover knowledge and make the world a better place. During this session we’ll be exploring how Edinburgh has embedded strategic support for OER across the institution, through the implementation of a permissive OER Policy, supported by a range of central services. We’ll introduce case studies, highlight the importance of developing copyright literacy skills, touch on our commitment to student engagement and co-creation, and provide recommendations that other institutions can follow to enable them to adapt and adopt this model.

Charlie Farley

University of Edinburgh

See Biography
Stephanie (Charlie) Farley has worked in Higher Education Libraries and Learning Technology services for fifteen years, and has spent the last decade embedding strategic support in policy and technologies, training, supporting, and collaborating with staff and students in the creation and use of Open Education Resources at The University of Edinburgh. [View the OEGlobal award winning collection of student made OERs on our TES repository: University of Edinburgh’s Open.Ed Open Educational Resources on TES.]

12.05

Session 5: Building it Together: Developing an Open Textbook community of practice in the UKThe Open Education Network (OEN) is a mature community of practice in the US, which has over 1,800 member institutions and is committed to making open the default in higher education. Brunel University of London Library joined the OEN in 2023 and has been collaborating with library colleagues across the UK to convert the OEN model to a UK environment. This talk will report on the academic engagement and adoption strategies applied at Brunel and the formation of a new UK community, in which librarians across the UK and Ireland are given peer support to develop their open practice

David Beales

Brunel University of London

See Biography
David Beales is the University Librarian at Brunel University of London. David has a range of experience in US and UK higher education, research and parliamentary library environments and most recently worked at the House of Commons Library as the Head of Research Information. David’s areas of expertise include Open Education Resources, collection evaluation and Big Deal modelling.

12.30

Lunch Break

Time

Programme

Speakers

13.30

Welcome back

Tim Leonard

Lancaster University

See Biography
Tim Leonard is Associate Director: Space, Experience and Innovation at Lancaster University Library. He oversees the development of the Library’s learning spaces, its frontline services team and digital systems.Tim has worked in academic libraries for over 20 years and has held positions at Lancaster, the University of Bolton, Manchester Metropolitan University and Cardiff University. He is a member of UKSG’s Education and Events Subcommittee and represents Lancaster in a range of groups with RLUK and Academic Libraries North. His professional interests include learning space design, environmental sustainability and innovative technologies in libraries.

Andy Tattersall

University of Sheffield

See Biography
Andy Tattersall is an Information Specialist at the Division of Population Health at The University of Sheffield. Andy writes, teaches and delivers talks and training about research communications (including podcasting, blogging, social media, video/animation, infographics), digital academia, open research, web and information science and altmetrics. In particular, their application for research, teaching, learning, knowledge exchange and collaboration. Andy received a Senate Award from The University of Sheffield for his pioneering work on Massive Online Open Courses (MOOCs) in 2013 and is a Senior Fellow of the Higher Education Academy. Andy was named in Jisc’s Top 10 Social Media Superstars. He was a member of the Cilip Digital Technology Committee (MmIT) for 10 years (2 as Chair) and is a member of the UKSG Events and Education Committee. Andy co-wrote and edited a book on Altmetrics for Facet Publishing which is aimed at researchers and librarians. https://linktr.ee/andy_tattersall

13.35

Session 6: Games as OERs: putting the fun in fundamental discussions

In this session we will discuss our process towards game creation for educational purposes, and the challenges and advantages games as Open Educational Resources (OERs) create. We will also explore the value of using gamification while developing OERs and walk the audience through the resources we have created, how they are used and where they can be found

Katrine Sundsbø

DOAJ (Directory of Open Access Journals)

See Biography
Katrine is a Community Manager at DOAJ (Directory of Open Access Journals). She has worked in open access and scholarly communications for over eight years, and have frequently used gamification in workshops and events to engage others with important topics related to open research. Katrine is the creator of the Open Access Escape Room, Open Access Mystery and co-creator of Copyright Dough (with Hannah Crago) and Open Science in Peril, Open Educational Resources Escape Room and ‘What about Open Science’ (with Aisling Coyne and Dr. Sarah Coombs). All games are of course created as Open Educational Resources.

Aisling Coyne

Technological University Dublin

See Biography
Aisling Coyne is the Open Scholarship Librarian for Technological University Dublin (TU Dublin) where she manages the institutional repository, Arrow, and the Diamond journals published through it; engages in outreach and promotion of Open Scholarship; delivers training to academics, staff, students, and researchers on a variety of Open topics; among other things. Aisling is a member of two Library Association of Ireland special interest groups (Library Publishing and Open Scholarship); Irish Open Access Publishers; National Open Research Forum project SCOIR; is a founding member and co-chair of OSCAIL, among other groups.​​Aisling has a very special interest in OER, Games and Gamification, creating Open Scholarship games with Sarah Coombs and Katrine Sundsbø since 2022.

Sarah Coombs

Digital Competency Centre for Practice-Oriented Research/ Saxion University of Applied Sciences

See Biography
Sarah Coombs is Content Coordinator for the Digital Competency Centre for Practice Oriented Research (DCC-PO), and the Open Science Advisor for Saxion University of Applied Sciences and for the Netherlands Association of Universities of Applied Sciences (NAUAS). She has completed PhD with the Centre for Science and Technology at the Leiden University looking at how the impact of UAS research can be evaluated. She enjoys being creative in all kinds of ways including thinking of new ways to present Open Science and research support with Aisling Coyne and Katrine Sundsbø

14.00

Session 7: Making OA textbooks a reality

Rupert Gatti

Open Book Publishers

See Biography
Rupert Gatti is a Fellow in Economics at Trinity College, Cambridge and co-founder of Open Book Publishers – a non-profit open access scholarly book publisher. He is also a Steward (Trustee) of the Open Book Collective – a charity facilitating collective library funding for “Diamond” open access books – and an active participant within the Copim community developing open infrastructures to support OA book publishing.

14.25

Session 8: Open Education as Action

Open education is a good idea – there are very few people who think otherwise. But if we want our instructors to act differently – to engage in open educational practices that benefit our students – then we need to go beyond advocating for the idea of open education. We need concrete actions that will empower, engage, and support our instructors to change their practices. Dr. David Ernst discusses how the Open Education Network community helps its members take action to advance open education.

David Ernst

Open Education Network

See Biography
David Ernst is the Chief Information Officer and graduate faculty member at the College of Education and Human Development, University of Minnesota. He is the director of the Center for Open Education and holds a PhD in Learning Technologies. David is the Executive Director of the Open Education Network, a community of open education professionals representing over 1,800 higher education institutions. He also has experience and passion for intercultural understanding, faculty development, and the improvement of educational practices

14.50

Break

15.00

Session 9: Opening Learning For All: MERLOT’s & SkillsCommons’ Open Educational Resources, Practices, and Services.

With access to the internet, academic education and workforce development can be open to all whose learning opportunities have been limited by economics, cultures, politics, and more. Free and open educational resources are not sufficient to transform educational opportunities for learners, teachers and institutions. Open educational practices and services are essential to empower and accelerate educational opportunities. The presentation will highlight MERLOT (Multimedia Educational Resource for Learning and Online Teaching) and SkillsCommons free and open libraries of resources, practices, and services, with examples of individual, disciplinary, and institutional initiatives to provide affordable learning solutions for all.

Gerry Hanley

MERLOT & SKillsCommons

See Biography
Gerry Hanley Ph.D. is the Executive Director of MERLOT (Multimedia Educational Resource for Learning and Online Teaching, www.merlot.org) and SkillsCommons (www.skillscommons.org). At California State University Long Beach, Gerry is the Director of the Center for Usability in Design and Accessibility and Professor Emeritus of Psychology. Gerry’s previous positions included Assistant Vice Chancellor for Academic Technology Services at the California State University Chancellor’s Office, Director of Strategic Planning and Director of the Center for Faculty Development at CSULB. He received his BA, MA, and PhD from the State University of New York at Stony Brook in Experimental/Cognitive Psychology.

15.25

Session 10 : Beyond Affordability: The Value that Open Educational Practice (and Resources!) Can Bring to your Faculty and Learners

OER is understood as a no-cost option for student that increases access at the start of the term. More than that, OER can provide a foundation for developing curriculum that can is adapted to learner contexts, to regional contexts, and that will resonate with students at a deeper level. This session will explore ways that OER can be leveraged to improve teaching and learning beyond affordability.

Mindy Newfarmer

Institute for the Study of Knowledge Management in Education (ISKME)

See Biography
Melinda Newfarmer brings over 25 years of experience in educational technology, product development, and editorial management to ISKME and OER Commons. At ISKME, Melinda runs the services group, which includes platform and tools development, professional learning in open education, and library services. Each team in the services group strives to further ISKME’s purpose of building participatory, equitable access to education. Prior to joining ISKME in 2014, Melinda worked at Stanford Libraries developing an eBook platform for scholarly communications and Cengage Learning in editorial and product management for higher education.

15.50

Panel Session

16.25

Closing remarks and wrap up

Feedback

Really, helpful and informative, thank you!
Previous delegate

Contact

General queries – events@uksg.org

Cancellations

The closing date for cancellations is Friday 11th April, after which date cancellations will not be eligible for a refund. Cancellation should be sent into writing to events@uksg.org. All registrants will be sent a link to a recording for their personal use after the event.

The UKSG terms and conditions can be found here

The UKSG code of conduct can be found here and UKSG terms and conditions here

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FREE UKSG webinar: OA Book Usage Data Trust: An International Data Space for Usage Data and Beyond
2025-05-13 13:00 - 14:00
This is a fantastic opportunity to listen to expert speakers with no travelling required. This is a free webinar – Please note that advance registration is required. This webinar will be recorded and all registrants will receive a link to the recording after the session.

When

Tuesday, May 13, 2025From 13:00 BST to 14:00 BST

..

Where

OnlineUnited Kingdom

About

Programme

Feedback

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Contact

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About the Event

While APIs have made it easier for libraries, publishers, policymakers, and information services to access, use and innovate with usage and metadata at scale, time and human resources are still required to manage, compile, and link OA book usage data metrics coming from multiple platforms in multiple formats.

In 2022, the Mellon Foundation awarded a project team led by the University of North Texas, OpenAIRE, and OPERAS to develop “governance building blocks” for the OA Book Usage Data Trust in line with both the Principles of Open Infrastructure and protocols emerging from the Design Principles for International Data Spaces (IDS). Stakeholders leveraged in-depth community consultations to understand the principles needed to exchange OA book usage data across private and public stakeholders and moved ahead with a data space proof of concept. In 2024, the Data Trust’s Technical Advisory Committee and Board of Trustees selected an experienced IDS technical team to build out the technical OA Book Usage Data Trust infrastructure to develop a limited proof of concept IDS focused on the exchange of COUNTER item-level views and downloads data while collaborating with technical pilot partners (e.g. JSTOR, LibLynx, Michigan University Publishing, Punctum Books, Knowledge Unlatched). This provides an opportunity to explore if the IDS model and functionality can be extended to support additional data exchange use cases.

Within this webinar, we will explore how OAEBUDT development to date helps create a more effective, secure and equitable exchange of data across government, charity and commercial scholarly communications stakeholders. A discussion will be facilitated through a Q&A.

Recording

You may still register for this event recording here.

Slides

Our speakers have kindly agreed to make their slides available. You may download them from here.

Please use the correct attribution if you wish to refer to them.

Speakers

Christina Drummond

Executive Director | OA Book Usage Data Trust

As Executive Director of the OA Book Usage Data Trust effort, Christina leads research teams to develop an extensible scholarly communications focused International Data Space (IDS) through an OA book usage data focused proof of concept. Prior to her current role hosted by the University of North Texas, Christina held library faculty, research administration, and leadership positions at UNT, the Educopia Institute and ACLU of Washington. She holds professional certifications in data stewardship, design thinking and information privacy..

Charles Watkinson

Associate University Librarian for Publishing | University of Michigan Library; Director | University of Michigan Press

Charles Watkinson is Director of University of Michigan Press and Associate University Librarian for Publishing at the University of Michigan. He previously held a similar role at Purdue University. He is 2022-2023 President of the Association for University Presses and a member of the Board of Directors of the OAPEN Foundation, the infrastructure service for open access books.

.

Vivian Berghahn

Managing Director | Berghahn Books

Vivian Berghahn is Managing Director at Berghahn Books. Her responsibilities include advancing a range of companywide initiatives, including open access and the strategic development of its overall publishing program. With over 20 years of experience in academic publishing, Vivian has served on the AAP-PSP Committee and ALPSP Council and is currently on the Board of Trustees for the OA Book Usage Data Trust.

Learning outcomes

1. Learning how the IDS model supports a more effective and timely OA decision-making by streamlining data access management

2. Lessons learned from the IDS technical pilot – stakeholder perspectives

Subject level and previous knowledge required

Intermediary, some previous knowledge of OA books and their usage data needed, any technical concepts such as the data space will be explained at the webinar.

Primary audience for this webinar:Any organisation that creates OA book usage data or any organisation that wishes to receive OA book usage data, these include, but are not limited to: publishers, libraries, platforms and service providers, and analytics organisations.

Attendee Information

To help you prepare for UKSG webinars, you may like to read the Notes for Participants:

UKSG Webinars Notes for Participants 2025

Speakers might use Mentimeter for interaction with the audience – link and/or QR code, please make sure your device is compatible with it.

To test your system ahead of time, please visit https://support.goto.com/webinar/system-check-attendee

Follow UKSG on X @UKSG #UKSGwebinar

Registrations

This is a free webinar and is open to members and non-members of UKSG alike – Please note that advance registration is required.

REGISTER HERE

Unable to attend? Register anyway and we will send you a link to a recording of the webinar after the event. If you have already registered and are subsequently unable to attend, please do not cancel your registration – only active registrations will receive the recording in a follow-up e-mail.

Accessibility

UKSG wants to provide the best possible experience for all our delegates, making presentations as accessible and inclusive as possible. Our intention were possible is to strongly encourage our speakers to provide auto generated closed captioning for both live and recorded events as well as to make sure their slides are as easy as possible for all people to read. In addition we can provide auto generated transcripts post event for each of the recorded sessions.

If you have particular accessibility needs or questions about this webinar, we welcome you to contact Samira Koelle.

Feedback

The UKSG webinars are great for me – they offer a wide range of topics and are very well prepared. I never experienced any technical difficulties. Due to the austerity measures brought by the recent worldwide events the training budget in my institution was frozen, so the fact that UKSG webinars are free is really a boon too!
Anonymous

The UKSG webinar was fantastic – well-organized, timely, accessible, and with an array of presenters that had insight into the topic
Anonymous

Great to squeeze in so much useful knowledge and information without having to go out to a conference. I could enjoy taking it in with a sandwich at my desk! I felt very empowered afterwards.
Emma Thompson, Glasgow Caledonian University

NB: UKSG reserves the right to alter or vary the programme due to events or circumstances beyond its reasonable control without being obliged to refund monies.

Contact

This is a free webinar – Please note that advance registration is required.

Please take a look at our code of conduct

Cancellations

If you have already registered and are subsequently unable to attend, please do not cancel your registration – only active registrations will receive the recording in a follow-up e-mail.

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UKSG Introduction to E-Resources Online Seminar 2025
2025-06-24 10:00 - 2025-06-26 12:30
This two-part online event has been adapted from UKSG’s successful and long-running one-day seminar and aims to present a practical introductory overview of all aspects of e-resources management, encompassing e-journals, e-books and bibliographic and full-text databases. Taking place as two morning sessions on Tuesday 24th June & Thursday 26th June.

When

Where

Tuesday 24 June, 2025 – 10:00 BSTtoThursday 26 June 2025 – 12:30 BST

Online United Kingdom

About

Programme

Feedback

Registration

Contact

Map

Share

About the Event

Registration

Registration is now open – please register for your place here

Fee(s)

UKSG membership rate: £70+VAT

Non-membership rate: £82.00+VAT

If you are unsure if you have member please click here for the latest membership list

Details of membership can be found at https://www.uksg.org/join

Course Summary

This two-part online event has been adapted from UKSG’s successful and long-running one-day seminar and aims to present a practical introductory overview of all aspects of e-resources management, encompassing e-journals, e-books and bibliographic and full-text databases.

The emphasis is on developing a sound basic understanding of the details of e-resources handling in order to promote efficient and informed working practices. A wide range of day-to-day issues will be covered, with time devoted to recognising and resolving the problems that can arise at the boundaries between publishers, intermediaries and libraries, and addressing business models such as open access. In addition, the seminar will provide a forum for a virtual group discussion on the current issues and opportunities offered by e-books.

Delegates will be able to air and exchange views in the discussion session after each presentation. The seminar will be delivered over two mornings, and delegates will be asked to use the time in between sessions to reflect on some of the issues raised.

Who should attend?

Designed particularly for staff who are new to working with e-resources, whether from a publisher, an intermediary or a library, this seminar may also be of interest to those looking to consolidate and update their e-resources knowledge.

We welcome participants from all corners of the globe to join our seminars, however speakers and topics are generally UK focussed, if you have any doubt about the suitability please don’t hesitate to contact us.

Learning Objectives

To gain practical tips on managing e-resources which can be applied in the workplace

To gain a basic understanding of the serials supply chain and the factors influencing it, including Open Access

To understand and learn how to build relationships between publishers, intermediaries and libraries

To learn how to have informed conversations with customers/suppliers

To gain insight into the practical aspects of managing e-books

To share experiences with other delegates and discuss questions and challenges which arise during the seminar

Course level and previous knowledge required

Introductory and non-intensive, entry level training for the beginner, novice or returner.

Recording

The sessions will be recorded and available to all registered delegates after the event, so if you unable to join us live or want to review any presentation this will be available.

Accessibility

UKSG wants to provide the best possible experience for all our delegates, making presentations as accessible and inclusive as possible. Our intention where possible is to strongly encourage our speakers to provide auto generated closed captioning for both live and recorded events as well as to make sure their slides as easy as possible for all people to read. In addition, we can provide auto generated transcripts post event for each of the recorded sessions.

If you have particular accessibility needs or questions about this seminar/webinar, we welcome you to contact us directly at events@uksg.org prior to booking your place.

Programme

Day 1 Day 2

Time

Programme

Speakers

10:00

Welcome and Introduction Note: All times BST

Richard Bramwell

EBSCO Information Services

See Biography
Richard Bramwell is an Account Manager at EBSCO Information Services with 10 years’ experience of working in the Library Industry consulting in Discovery, Research workflow and content. Richard is also a member of the UKSG Education Committee.

Klara Finnimore

Royal College of Art (RCA)

See Biography
Klara is the Journals and E-Resources Librarian at the Royal College of Art. She has responsibility for managing and developing the RCA’s online collection of journals and databases, as well as maintaining the current and archived print journal collections. She also contributes to the work of a number of committees across the library sector.

10.15

Managing E-resources – Everything everywhere all at once

A brief introduction to the life-cycle of managing e-resources such as journals, databases and other online tools. The talk will look at the full life-cycle from purchase to making content discoverable and making renewal decisions. I will try to bust some jargon and offer hints and tips to help make the process easier to manage.

Ruth Smalley

Edge Hill University

See Biography
Ruth is the Subscriptions and Licensing Manager at Edge Hill University. Ruth has had a varied career with roles in PR and teaching, before a career change took her to working in public libraries and then moving into higher education libraries. Ruth has a particular interest in evidence based collection decisions and is never happier then when she has a problem that requires a new spreadsheet! Ruth lives in Warrington and enjoys making jewellery and clothes in her spare time.

11.10

Break

11.30

Buying and Managing E-Books

A look at the wide variety of ways that Libraries can acquire E-Books, detailing how they are managed, and an exploration of E-Book activity across the sector.

Anthony Sinnott

University of York

See Biography
Anthony is Access and Procurement Development Manager at University of York. He oversees the purchase of print & electronic resources, the management of subscriptions & databases, and the operation of the reading list system. Anthony’s key focus is on identifying innovative purchasing models that ensure maximum access to resources and building positive relationships with suppliers. Anthony is a member of the Joint Consortia Agreement Contract Management Group, Academic Libraries North CoP Group, and sits on the National Acquisitions Group Executive Committee as Treasurer.

12.15

Wrap up to day 1 & preparing for day 2

Time

Programme

Speakers

10.00

Introduction and recap of day 1

Klara Finnimore

Royal College of Arts

See Biography
Klara is the Journals and E-Resources Librarian at the Royal College of Art. She has responsibility for managing and developing the RCA’s online collection of journals and databases, as well as maintaining the current and archived print journal collections. She also contributes to the work of a number of committees across the library sector.

Richard Bramwell

EBSCO Information Services

See Biography
Richard Bramwell is an Account Manager at EBSCO Information Services with 9 years’ experience of working in the Library Industry consulting in Discovery, Research workflow and content. Richard is also a member of the UKSG Education Committee

10.15

E-Books a roundtable led by the chair

A forum in which to explore e-books – topics, problems, issues and opportunities for the community.

Ruth Smalley

Edge Hill University

See Biography
Ruth is the Subscriptions and Licensing Manager at Edge Hill University. Ruth has had a varied career with roles in PR and teaching, before a career change took her to working in public libraries and then moving into higher education libraries. Ruth has a particular interest in evidence based collection decisions and is never happier then when she has a problem that requires a new spreadsheet! Ruth lives in Warrington and enjoys making jewellery and clothes in her spare time.

Anthony Sinnott

University of York

See Biography
Anthony is Access and Procurement Development Manager at University of York. He oversees the purchase of print & electronic resources, the management of subscriptions & databases, and the operation of the reading list system. Anthony’s key focus is on identifying innovative purchasing models that ensure maximum access to resources and building positive relationships with suppliers. Anthony is a member of the Joint Consortia Agreement Contract Management Group, Academic Libraries North CoP Group, and sits on the National Acquisitions Group Executive Committee as Treasurer.

10.40

Break

10.55

Understanding the nuances of publishing and Introduction to Elsevier resources supporting development of Library professionals

Denis Reidy

Elsevier

See Biography
Denis Reidy , born in Ireland, graduated from University College Cork in 2005 with a PhD in Materials Chemistry. Following academia, Denis worked in various international companies practising business skills including product development, regulatory affairs, project management and materials procurement. In 2010 Denis joined Elsevier and worked at various positions supporting databases and services within the Life Science and Research Intelligence portfolios His current Customer Success Manager position supports the full suite of Elsevier portfolios for the United Kingdom and Ireland region.

11.30

Intermediaries and their services

The development of intermediaries, the role of the intermediary and a review of the new players and the growing range of online access services offered.

Richard Bramwell

EBSCO Information Services

See Biography
Richard Bramwell is an Account Manager at EBSCO Information Services with 9 years’ experience of working in the Library Industry consulting in Discovery, Research workflow and content. Richard is also a member of the UKSG Education Committee

12.10

An overview and a final summing up

Feedback

Thank you, this was really helpful. It has increased my awareness of DDA, EBA, OA and Read & Publish agreements. It has given me a snap shot of where libraries and e-resource providers are at in the world today.

Previous delegate

I enjoyed it. Found it very useful, the chairs were very good. Panel discussion where they shared experience was very useful, and it was also good to hear about things from the perspective of an Aggregator and Publisher to give a rounded view. As someone new to Academic libraries it provided a really good introduction.

Previous delegate

Contact

General queries – events@uksg.org

Cancellations

The closing date for cancellations is Tuesday 3rd June, after which date cancellations will not be eligible for a refund. Cancellation should be sent into writing to events@uksg.org.

The UKSG terms and conditions can be found here

The UKSG code of conduct can be found here and UKSG terms and conditions here

NB: UKSG reserves the right to alter or vary the programme due to events or circumstances beyond its reasonable control without being obliged to refund monies.

Share this Event

Please help us by letting your colleagues and friends know about our event. Thank you.

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FREE UKSG webinar: Usage metrics for OA, AI, and more: building on solid foundations
2025-09-26 13:00 - 14:00
This is a fantastic opportunity to listen to expert speakers with no travelling required. This is a free webinar – Please note that advance registration is required. This webinar will be recorded and all registrants will receive a link to the recording after the session.

When

Friday, September 26, 2025From 13:00 BST to 14:00 BST

..

Where

OnlineUnited Kingdom

About

Programme

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About the Event

COUNTER has been the standard for usage metrics for more than two decades, but the world has changed. Can COUNTER tell us what we need to know about open access or syndicated usage? What about generative and agentic AI? Some would argue that we need something new. In this webinar, we’ll hear from Tasha Mellins-Cohen about why we should be building on the solid COUNTER foundation. She’ll touch on how many publishers are already delivering OA-optimised reporting, best practice for reporting usage of syndicated content, and how the COUNTER community is collaborating to build guidelines for reporting AI usage.

Recording

You may still register for this event recording here.

Slides

Our speaker has kindly agreed to make her slides available.

You may download them from here.

Please use the correct attribution if you wish to refer to them.

Speakers

Tasha Mellins-Cohen

Executive Director | COUNTER Metrics

Tasha Mellins-Cohen, Executive Director at COUNTER Metrics and Founder of Mellins-Cohen Consulting, joined the scholarly publishing industry in 2001. She has held roles within learned societies and commercial publishers across operations, technology, editorial and executive functions, while donating time to key industry initiatives and bodies such as UKSG, ALPSP and STM. In 2020 she started consulting in response to requests for help in developing and implementing OA business models in not-for-profit groups. In 2022 she stepped up from volunteer to Director at COUNTER Metrics, the standard for usage metrics, alongside her consulting work.

Learning outcomes

1. Why we need normalised metrics

2. What COUNTER is already doing in OA, syndication and AI

3. Community collaboration opportunities

Subject level and previous knowledge required

Introductory and non-intensive, no previous knowledge or experience required. Basic awareness of usage metrics would be helpful.

Attendee Information

To help you prepare for UKSG webinars, you may like to read the Notes for Participants:

UKSG Webinars Notes for Participants 2025

To test your system ahead of time, please visit https://support.goto.com/webinar/system-check-attendee

Follow UKSG on X @UKSG #UKSGwebinar

Registrations

This is a free webinar and is open to members and non-members of UKSG alike – Please note that advance registration is required.

RECORDING

Unable to attend? Register anyway and we will send you a link to a recording of the webinar after the event. If you have already registered and are subsequently unable to attend, please do not cancel your registration – only active registrations will receive the recording in a follow-up e-mail.

Accessibility

UKSG wants to provide the best possible experience for all our delegates, making presentations as accessible and inclusive as possible. Our intention were possible is to strongly encourage our speakers to provide auto generated closed captioning for both live and recorded events as well as to make sure their slides are as easy as possible for all people to read. In addition we can provide auto generated transcripts post event for each of the recorded sessions.

If you have particular accessibility needs or questions about this webinar, we welcome you to contact Samira Sotomayor.

Feedback

The UKSG webinars are great for me – they offer a wide range of topics and are very well prepared. I never experienced any technical difficulties. Due to the austerity measures brought by the recent worldwide events the training budget in my institution was frozen, so the fact that UKSG webinars are free is really a boon too!
Anonymous

The UKSG webinar was fantastic – well-organized, timely, accessible, and with an array of presenters that had insight into the topic
Anonymous

Great to squeeze in so much useful knowledge and information without having to go out to a conference. I could enjoy taking it in with a sandwich at my desk! I felt very empowered afterwards.
Emma Thompson, Glasgow Caledonian University

NB: UKSG reserves the right to alter or vary the programme due to events or circumstances beyond its reasonable control without being obliged to refund monies.

Contact

This is a free webinar – Please note that advance registration is required.

Please take a look at our code of conduct

Cancellations

If you have already registered and are subsequently unable to attend, please do not cancel your registration – only active registrations will receive the recording in a follow-up e-mail.

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UKSG Understanding Resource Discovery: Archives and Primary Sources Content online seminar
2025-11-11 10:00 - 2025-11-12 16:00
Understanding Resource Discovery: Archives and Primary Sources Content is a new seminar that aims to expand participants’ knowledge and understanding of the challenges of a successful discovery experience related to specific content types. This seminar is the first of what we hope will be a series of online seminars exploring the particularities and challenges of discovery with different kinds of content types by their format or business models. This seminar will take place over two half days on Tuesday 11th November and Wednesday 12th November.

When

Tuesday, November 11, 2025 – 10:00 GMTtoWednesday, November 12, 2025 – 16:00 GMT

Where

OnlineUnited Kingdom

About

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Programme

Feedback

Registration

Contact

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Registration

Click here to register.

Summary

Archives provide valuable access to the past, enabling educators and researchers in the humanities and social sciences to incorporate historical collections into their work. Primary source archives are invaluable for research and learning, encapsulating entire historical periods through diverse content like manuscripts, images, and publications.

This course explores the discoverability of Primary Source content through the use of metadata, libraries’ experiences in managing primary sources in their discovery services, and how publishers and system vendors can contribute to the overall discoverability of these eResources.

The course examines the entire process from the reader’s perspective and addresses some of the subtleties associated with the content of different primary sources, such as manuscripts.

Who should attend?

This course is valuable to anyone dealing with primary sources and archives e-resources in libraries, content providers and intermediaries in the information chain. While not providing detailed technical solutions to specific problems, it imparts a higher level of understanding as to why the related practices and technologies have developed into their current state. It is suitable for anyone working with e-resources in general or those managing departments responsible for institutional archives collections.

This course does not compare specific incarnations and brands of library systems and solutions.

Course Level and previous knowledge required

If you are an early-career professional or new to the discovery area, it may be worth attending the UKSG Introduction to E-Resources and/or An Introduction to Resource Discovery first. Otherwise, no previous knowledge is required.

Learning objectives

Understand the Primary Sources and Archives content discovery journey

Understand the library’s role in the discoverability of Primary Sources and Archives

Understand the common problems and limitations in library technology related to the discovery of Primary Sources and Archives

Pre-event checks

To test your system ahead of time visit https://support.goto.com/webinar/system-check-attendee

Social

Follow the conference on X formally Twitter @UKSG

Visit the event on Linkedin here

Recording

The sessions will be recorded and available to all registered delegates after the event, so if you unable to join us live or want to review any presentation this will be available.

Accessibility

At UKSG, we are committed to ensuring an exceptional experience for all our delegates. Our aim is to make presentations as accessible and inclusive as possible.

Here’s how we achieve that:

Closed Captioning Options: Our GoToWebinar application allows you to toggle closed captioning on or off during live sessions. You can also customise the text size and colour to suit your preferences.

Auto-Generated Transcripts: For each recorded session, we can provide auto-generated transcripts on request.

If you have particular accessibility requirements or questions about this event, we strongly encourage you to contact events@uksg.org as soon as possible.

Programme

Tuesday 11 NovemberWednesday 12 November

Time

Programme

Speakers

10:00

Introduction & welcome

All times stated are BMT

More details to follow

Anja van Hoek

Amsterdam University Press

See Biography
tbc

Magaly Taylor

Gale part of the Cengage Group.

See Biography
Magaly Taylor has over 15 years of experience in Discovery, Metadata, and Usage in libraries, content providers, and service providers. She has worked in various types of libraries and contributed to different metadata working groups and committees internationally, including ABES-SC in France, NISO in the US, and UKSG in the UK. Currently, Magaly is the Discovery and Usage Manager for Gale, which is part of the Cengage Group. She is an active member of the UKSG Education Committee; in 2024, she was elected a UKSG Trustee.

10:15

The Role of Metadata for Archival Discovery

This presentation examines the central role of archival metadata in enhancing discovery and access, drawing on insights from Metadata and Archival Discoverability: Driving Use of the Philip Mackie Collection at Southampton Solent University (Clark & Alemu, 2025). It explores key archival metadata concepts, including principles of archival description, entity relationships, authority control and subject headings. The presentation highlights the application of core archival standards, such as (ISAD(G), EAD, ISAAR(CPF) and Library of Congress Subject Headings), underscoring their importance in producing consistent, accurate and interoperable archival descriptions which impact discovery and usage. Recommendations will be made on practical approaches to archival metadata creation and enrichment, including the “More Product, Less Process” (MPLP) methodology for addressing cataloguing backlogs (Greene and Meissner, 2005). The presentation will also contrast the descriptive needs of archival materials with those of published resources and consider emerging standards and technologies shaping the future of archival metadata. The Q&A will offer a chance to learn from each other, share best practices, and explore ways to drive discovery and usage.

Getaneh Alemu

Solent University

See Biography
Getaneh Alemu (PhD) is a Cataloguing & Metadata Librarian at Southampton Solent University (since 2014), bringing over 20 years of experience in higher education and libraries. His primary role focuses on creating and harnessing metadata for print and digital resources, ensuring metadata is up-to-date, accurate, usable and standardised. Getaneh holds a PhD in Metadata for Digital Libraries (University of Portsmouth, 2014), an MA in Digital Library Learning (Oslo University College, 2009), an MA in Knowledge and Information Management (Ghent University, 2005) and a BA in Library and Information Science (Addis Ababa University, 2001). He served on IFLA’s Linked Data Technical Review Group (LIDATEC, now METATEC) and is on the editorial boards of Journal of Librarianship and Information Science, International Journal of Metadata, Semantics and Ontologies, and Digital Library Perspectives. Getaneh’s key publications include: “Metadata Standards and Models” (Elsevier, 2024) “The Future of Enriched, Linked, Open and Filtered Metadata” (Facet, 2022) “An Emergent Theory of Digital Library Metadata: Enrich then Filter” (Chandos, 2015) Links: Google Scholar: http://scholar.google.co.uk/citations?user=WX3KZOkAAAAJ&hl=en Slideshare: https://www.slideshare.net/getaneh/presentations ORCID: http://orcid.org/0000-0003-2424-1725

11:15

Break

11:30

Improving the discoverability of Archive and Museum Collections

This presentation explores recent enhancements to the discoverability of archive and museum collections within the discovery layer. It highlights the technical processes involved in harvesting metadata from native archival systems and integrating it into a unified search environment. These changes can be used to surface these rich and often underrepresented resources, the session will demonstrate how these improvements have contributed to greater visibility and accessibility. Attendees will gain insights into the challenges and solutions associated with making archival materials more discoverable to researchers, students, and the wider public

Andrew Dove

Natural History Museum

See Biography
Andrew Dove has over 15 years of experience in Discovery, Systems and Metadata. He has worked across various types of libraries including Museums, NHS and Higher Education. He is currently the Digital Systems Librarian for the Natural History Museum.

12:30

Summary and Close

Time

Programme

Speakers

13.30

Welcome and Introduction

Magaly Taylor

Gale part of the Cengage Group.

See Biography
Magaly Taylor has over 15 years of experience in Discovery, Metadata, and Usage in libraries, content providers, and service providers. She has worked in various types of libraries and contributed to different metadata working groups and committees internationally, including ABES-SC in France, NISO in the US, and UKSG in the UK. Currently, Magaly is the Discovery and Usage Manager for Gale, which is part of the Cengage Group. She is an active member of the UKSG Education Committee; in 2024, she was elected a UKSG Trustee.

Anja van Hoek

Amsterdam University Press

See Biography
Anja van Hoek has recently joined the organisation

Her previous role was as a Program Manager Online Resources at Brill, where she is overseeing Brill’s online publishing program. A major part of her role is the coordination of the various aspects – relating to Brill’s online publishing program – between publishing, sales and marketing. Working closely with the Data and Platform Teams within Brill’s Operation department she plays an important role in monitoring usage data.

13.40

Supporting archival research by providing metadata and advanced search options

Using an online copy is quite different from accessing the original source. 24/7 availability at the desktop is an important, but perhaps the least of the advantages of the online copy. Consulting primary source materials can be supported by offering advanced search options. De Gruyter Brill publishes over a 100 research collections. How we support academic research is explained using concrete examples.

Frans Havekes

de Gruyter Brill

See Biography
Frans Havekes is managing the conversion of content to concrete publications at de Gruyter Brill. Besides regular books and journals, this responsibility comprises the publication of research collections. He has been involved since 2000 in scanning original resources, metadata development and enrichment of the digital, online copy.

14.05

Context is Not a Keyword: Rethinking Discovery for Humanities Research.

Archival materials resist simplification, yet discovery services depend on it. As a result, the richness of historical collections is often flattened into metadata that conceals rather than reveals their value. This talk explores how discovery systems quietly distort the visibility of primary sources and what libraries can do about it: rethinking how value is demonstrated, how engagement is framed, and how archival research is championed within the broader ecosystem of digital scholarship.

Chris Houghton

Gale

See Biography
Chris Houghton is Head of Academic Partnerships at Gale where he leads much of Gale’s collaboration with the global DH and wider academic community. As well as working with scholars to support research and teaching, Chris runs the Gale Fellowship Program which provides financial and research support to a number of researchers every year. Most of Chris’ career has been spent in publishing and software companies – he began his Gale career as a trainer and over the past 15 years has held leadership roles in sales, training, marketing, and now product development.

14.30

Joint Q&A

14.40

Break

15.00

Using AI to Improve Access and Enhance Discovery Capabilities in Archival Collections

Artificial Intelligence (AI) can improve access and enhance discovery of manuscript collections in innovative ways. While AI is broadly discussed in our professions, particularly its dangers, there is little information available on what facets of AI might be useful to us and how to access them. This session answers those questions, presenting the results of a multi-year study applying AI tools to the William Elliot Griffis collection at Rutgers University Libraries. In collaboration with Durham University UK, sixty plus software methods were tested on untranscribed handwritten and typewritten documents and photographs. The tools produced narrative descriptions, identified hidden patterns, and suggested new ways to organize the material. Attendees will gain a clearer understanding of AI’s capabilities as well as the limitations and ethical considerations. The session will show how AI can expand discovery and access of primary source material for information professionals, researchers, and educators

Sonia Yaco

Rutgers University

See Biography
Sonia Yaco (she) is the Emerging Technologies Librarian for Rutgers University Libraries. She has led special collections and university archives departments at Rutgers University, University of Illinois at Chicago and Old Dominion University. Prior to academia, Yaco headed a computer consulting firm serving libraries, educational institutions, and Fortune 500 companies. Her research examines innovative methods to improve the discoverability of archives using emerging technology. Yaco’s scholarship is used in graduate education programs in the US and UK. She holds a M.A. from the School of Library and Information Studies and a B.A. in Sociology, from the University of Wisconsin – Madison

16.00

Summary and Close

Previous delegate

Registration

Monday, July 28, 2025 – 00:00 BST – Tuesday, September 23, 2025 – 13:00 BST

£ 70.00

+14.00 VAT

Member

Register Now

£ 82.00

+16.40 VAT

Non-Member

Register Now

NB: UKSG reserves the right to alter or vary the programme due to events or circumstances beyond its reasonable control without being obliged to refund monies.

Contact

General queries – events@uksg.org

Please take a look at our code of conduct

Cancellations

The closing date for cancellations is Friday 17th October noon, after which date cancellations will not be eligible for a refund. Cancellation should be sent into writing to events@uksg.org. All registrants will be sent a link to the recording after the event for their personal viewing.

The General UKSG booking terms and conditions can be found here

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UKSG Usage data for decision making online seminar 2025
2025-11-11 12:30 - 2025-11-12 12:30
This seminar is aimed at those responsible for collecting, analysing and making recommendations based on usage data, whether in a library setting or within a publishing organisation. This online seminar will take place over two days 11th (12:30 start) & 12th November (9:00 start), for more details please visit the programme section below.

When

Tuesday, November 11, 2025 – 12:30 GMTtoWednesday, November 12, 2025 – 12:30 GMT

Where

OnlineUnited Kingdom

About

Programme

Feedback

Registration

Contact

Share

About the Event

Registration

click here to register.

Event Summary

Those with a responsibility for overseeing the management of library collections have more access than ever to statistical data to assist with evaluation and to justify return on investment, and enhancement of the user experience. Understanding the library’s use of this data is also vital for publishers. Advances in standardisation led by the COUNTER initiative have made statistics more accessible and reliable as a basis for decision making.

Increasingly, libraries are being asked to make extremely difficult decisions about the priorities for their spending within a strategic context. Although this presents huge challenges, it can also be an impetus to change the ways in which services are provided. Publishers need to be aware of what statistics librarians are looking at and how they are being used to inform collection development.

This seminar provides illustrations by expert decision makers on how statistics are used to make strategic decisions. It will also present the challenges, such as demonstrating value and presenting data to different audiences. Future developments within the field will also be addressed, together with considerations of how these will impact on decision making in the future, for example new approaches to analytics. There will be discussion on how the development of open access is impacting on usage behaviour and influencing considerations for collection development.

Delegates will have the opportunity to reflect on the role of statistics in the broader context of further and higher education, and the culture of assessment that is becoming increasingly prominent within the sector. Delegates will be encouraged to actively participate throughout the day.

Who should attend

This seminar is aimed at both those in libraries who need to analyse or interpret usage data to support decision making about resources and collections, within a strategic context. It will be of interest to those with a responsibility for overseeing the management and evaluation of library collections in the further and higher education sector, and who need to demonstrate impact and value to senior leadership teams, rather than those involved in the operational role. It may also be of interest to those working in other areas of the scholarly information industry. It will also be of importance to publishers who need to understand the collection development decisions of their customers.

Please note: This seminar does not cover the practical aspects of collecting usage data, or of creating reports. These topics are covered by the UKSG Practical Usage Statistics for Librarians seminar, a hands-on workshop on gathering and manipulating usage statistics.

Both days will be recorded and available for playback on demand post event for registered delegates.

We welcome participants from all corners of the globe to join our seminars, however speakers and topics are generally UK focussed, if you have any doubt about the suitability please don’t hesitate to contact us.

Learning Objectives

Delegates will:

gain a greater insight into the wider environment and context in which usage statistics decision making is carried out and new approaches to this

learn about ways in which library resource usage statistics have been used by staff in university libraries to inform decision-making processes

develop an understanding of how usage statistics can be used to demonstrate value from a publisher perspective

gain knowledge of the impact of open access publishing on usage statistics and demonstrating value

Attendee Information

The webinar tool we use is Go to Webinar. To test your system ahead of time visit https://support.goto.com/webinar/system-check-attendee

Accessibility

UKSG wants to provide the best possible experience for all our delegates, making presentations as accessible and inclusive as possible.

Our intention were possible is to strongly encourage our speakers to provide auto generated closed captioning for both live and recorded events as well as to make sure their slides as easy as possible for all people to read. In addition we can provide auto generated transcripts post event for each of the recorded sessions.

If you have particular accessibility needs or questions about this seminar/webinar, we welcome you to contact events@uksg.org

Recording

The sessions will be recorded and available to all registered delegates only after the event, so if you unable to join us live or want to review any presentation this will be available.

Programme

Day 1 – 11 NovemberDay 2 – 12 November

Time

Programme

Speakers

12.30

Introduction & welcome

All times stated are GMT

Etienne Olsina

BibliU

Anja van Hoek

Programme Manager Amsterdam University Press

See Biography
Anja van Hoek has recently joined the organisation

Her previous role was as a Program Manager Online Resources at Brill, where she is overseeing Brill’s online publishing program. A major part of her role is the coordination of the various aspects – relating to Brill’s online publishing program – between publishing, sales and marketing. Working closely with the Data and Platform Teams within Brill’s Operation department she plays an important role in monitoring usage data.

12.40

COUNTER: the community standard for usage metrics

Not sure why we need normalised metrics? Unclear about the difference between an Investigation and a Request (or how those relate to views and downloads)? Can’t understand why metrics are missing from your standard views? This session will clear up the confusion with an introduction to the COUNTER Code of Practice for usage data.

Tasha Mellins-Cohen

COUNTER Metrics

See Biography
Tasha Mellins-Cohen, Executive Director at COUNTER Metrics and Founder of Mellins-Cohen Consulting, joined the scholarly publishing industry in 2001. She has held roles within learned societies and commercial publishers across operations, technology, editorial and executive functions, while donating time to key industry initiatives and bodies such as UKSG, ALPSP and STM. In 2020 she started consulting in response to requests for help in developing and implementing OA business models in not-for-profit groups. In 2022 she stepped up from volunteer to Director at COUNTER Metrics, the standard for usage metrics, alongside her consulting work

13.20

Under the COUNTER when usage data is harder to find

COUNTER stats are great for the majority of our journal and ebook holdings, but what about the resources which don’t supply COUNTER stats? As libraries are increasingly asked to give access to a range of non-traditional resources such as maps, business data and law sites, as well as specialist journals and magazine titles the job of gathering and analysing usage can be complex. This session will look at some of the other places Edge Hill goes hunting for usage, including directly from publishers websites, as well as using data from EZProxy to gain evidence of usage, as well as addressing some of the drawbacks to these methods.

.

Ruth Smalley

Edge Hill University

See Biography
Ruth is the Subscriptions and Licensing Manager at Edge Hill University. Ruth has had a varied career with roles in PR and teaching, before a career change took her to working in public libraries and then moving into higher education libraries. Ruth has a particular interest in evidence based collection decisions and is never happier then when she has a problem that requires a new spreadsheet or Power BI dashboard! Ruth lives in Warrington and enjoys making jewellery and clothes in her spare time.

14.00

Break

14.20

Using COUNTER with other data sources to answer essential library questions

In this session we’ll use real files to crossmatch usage (from a COUNTER Title Report) with pricing (from a publisher price list) to calculate cost per use. You’ll learn about named ranges, useful Excel functions, and how to use a pivot table.

Tasha Mellins-Cohen

COUNTER Metrics

See Biography
TBC.

15.00

Break

15.20

OER and the Impact of Affordable Course Materials on Students

The presentation will review survey findings of students indicating the consequences for their education when they can’t afford to purchase their course materials for their classes. The Affordable Learning Solutions (AL$) initiative is an institutional program for campus faculty, staff, administrators, and students to choose no/low-cost course materials, including Open Educational Resources (OER). The presentation will provide an overview of MERLOT’s AL$ initiative, showcase Open Educational Practices for faculty adopting OER, and will review the economic value for students and the institution. The AL$ resources, tools, and templates are available for UKSG adoption and customization

Gerry Hanley

MERLOT (Multimedia Educational Resource for Learning and Online Teaching)

See Biography

Gerry Hanley Ph.D. is the Executive Director of MERLOT (www.merlot.org) and SkillsCommons (www.skillscommons.org) which provides free, online educational content in academic and workforce disciplines. At California State University Long Beach, Gerry is the Director of the Center for Usability in Design and Accessibility. Gerry’s previous positions included Assistant Vice Chancellor for Academic Technology Services at the California State University Chancellor’s Office, designing and delivering strategic initiatives for improving teaching and learning with technologies for 23 campuses serving over 450,000 students. He received his BA, MA, and PhD from the State University of New York at Stony Brook in Experimental Psychology.

15.50

Summary & close

Time

Programme

Speakers

9.00

Welcome

Nathan Newey

Brown Books

See Biography
Having worked in academic libraries for almost 30 years, I have had a change in direction and now work for Browns Books who are a leading supplier of monographs and e-books to all types of educational establishments in the UK and beyond. My role as Regional Area Manager for London still enables me to interact with libraries ensuring that Browns gives the best possible service to its customers.

Emma Nolin

Head of Information Resources and Scholarly Publishing Malmo University

See Biography
Emma Nolin is the head of Information Resources and Scholarly Publishing at Malmö University Library and has been at Malmö university since 2018. Operations in this department are among other things, print and electronic scholarly information recourses, Open access and scholarly publishing.

9.10

Different kinds of usage data to support information provision at Karolinska Institutet University Library

I will share a recent pilot we’ve done for a cross-comparison of usage data for acquisitions using COUNTER denials, ILL requests, citations, purchasing suggestions and more. For read access, KI Library has multiple levels of service we can provide for our users at different price points. With many different kinds of usage data that can potentially support decision making in this area, we wanted to see how we could use different kinds of usage data together in a more systematic way to catch emerging information needs

David Hahne

Karolinska Institutet

See Biography
David is an e-licensing librarian at Karolinska institutet – a medical university in Stockholm, Sweden. He joined KI Library as part of the acquisitions team in 2021. He has an interest in using data analysis and visualization to aid decision making and support the transition to Open Access.

09.50

Engagement ‘depth’ – using e-book usage data to try to improve student success

Universities have a lot of student data and ‘Learner Analytics’ can be used to try to improve student outcomes. Engagement data (e.g. attendance/ use of VLE) can give us ‘obvious’ red flags, but it can be difficult to quantify the ‘depth’ of student engagement. Library/ learning resources information may help with this. We know that use of our online e-book platform (BibliU) correlates with module outcomes. We will talk about how this data can be part of targeting comms, support and interventions for individual students and different student groups during the semester, to try to increase student success

Valerie Cox

Coventry University

See Biography
Originally a researcher in muscle physiology, Dr Val Cox has worked in academic lecturing/ leadership roles at Coventry University for 26 years. She transitioned to leading initiatives around timetabling/ attendance and engagement, including managing aspects of the Covid pandemic and associated switch to online learning. Her current role is Associate Director of the Strategic Planning and Insight Office, where she continues to develop use of student engagement data to provide ‘real time’ monitoring. She helped to implement the BibliU e-book platform and continues to work closely with Library colleagues to analyse the useage data

10.30

Break

11.00

The Open access citation advantage in the context of scholarly publishing at a higher education institution

Šárka Erben Johansson

Malmö University

See Biography
Šárka is a research librarian at Malmö University. Her areas of work are bibliometrics, publishing strategies and research support. Her main role is in supplying the university’s research units and researchers with bibliometric reports and analyses to support evidence based decision making.

11.30

Beyond the Numbers: Evaluating Ebook Usage Statistics in Practice

How can ebook usage statistics be turned into meaningful insights? In this session, I will present our routines for evaluating usage data, highlight common challenges, and show how the results inform decision-making and collection development..

Frida Rosengren

Lund University

See Biography
Frida Rosengren is a librarian at Lund University, working with electronic media acquisition and evaluation, publication support, teaching for doctoral and undergraduate students, and applying artificial intelligence in library services. She holds a PhD in Biology and a Master’s in Library and Information Science, combining subject expertise with broad experience in scholarly communication and digital resources

12.00

Summary & close

Feedback

The variety of perspectives made it really interesting
Previous delegate

Fantastic lineup. Learned from all presenters. A couple who really stood out were Tasha Mellins-Cohen, Aron Lindhagen, and Andrew Knight. Their presentations were particularly relevant to my work and they had information on specific, practical processes and tips.
Previous delegate

Intense and information-packed. The sessions were just long enough and being split between two days made it easier to focus (and also schedule around work).
Previous delegate

Registration

Monday, October 6, 2025 – 09:00 BST – Tuesday, November 11, 2025 – 09:00 GMT

£ 70.00

+14.00 VAT

Member

Register Now

£ 82.00

+16.40 VAT

Non-Member

Register Now

NB: UKSG reserves the right to alter or vary the programme due to events or circumstances beyond its reasonable control without being obliged to refund monies.

Contact

General queries – events@uksg.org

Please take a look at our code of conduct

Cancellations

The closing date for cancellations is Friday 17th October, after which date cancellations will not be eligible for a refund. Cancellation should be sent into writing to events@uksg.org. All registrants will be sent a link to the recording after the event for their personal viewing.

The UKSG terms and conditions can be found here

Share this Event

Please help us by letting your colleagues and friends know about our event. Thank you.

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UKSG Understanding Data Visualisation online seminar
2025-11-19 10:00 - 2025-11-20 16:00
This seminar will help delegates to discover the opportunities for utilising data in their institutions, introduce some of the data analysis and visualisation tools available, and offer case studies highlighting how libraries are already using different types of data to support service delivery and development and demonstrate impact.

When

Wednesday, November 19, 2025 – 10:00 BSTtoThursday, November 20, 2025 – 16:35 GMT

Where

OnlineUnited Kingdom

About

Sponsors

Programme

Feedback

Registration

Contact

Share

About the Event

Registration

Register your place here

Course summary

Libraries produce and have access to large amounts of statistical data which when utilised effectively can provide valuable insights into the ways resources and services are being used and help to demonstrate impact and value for money. However, collecting, cleaning, analysing, and presenting data can be time-consuming and increasingly may require specialist skills and tools. This seminar will help delegates to discover the opportunities for utilising data in their institutions, introduce some of the data analysis and visualisation tools available, and offer case studies highlighting how libraries are already using different types of data to support service delivery and development and demonstrate impact. Data sources explored will include but are not limited to resource and service usage and discovery data, research and open access data, budgetary data, print book circulation and library footfall data.

Course Level and previous knowledge required

This course will be of particular interest to librarians and library managers working in further and higher education who are interested in developing a data analytics service in their library and utilising a range of different data to support decision-making. The seminar may also be of relevance to publishers and suppliers interested understanding how librarians are using data in their libraries. Previous experience of working with data may be useful but is not essential. Please note that the seminar will not provide practical hands-on experience or training on how to use specific data visualisation tools.

Please note: This seminar does not focus in depth on the collection, collation, analysis or interpretation of eresource usage data. The analysis and interpretation of usage data is covered by another UKSG course in this area: UKSG Usage Statistics for Decision Making.

Learning objectives

Delegates will:

Understand how data can be made visually engaging and used to demonstrate impact and create stories for different audiences

Consider a range of different library data sources and how these may relate to wider institutional strategy and context

Consider how data can be used to support strategic planning and service development

Become familiar with some of the data visualisation tools available

Gain insights into how other libraries are developing data visualisation services

Pre-event checks

To test your system ahead of time visit https://support.goto.com/webinar/system-check-attendee

Social

Follow the conference on X formally Twitter @UKSG or on Bluesky

Recording

The sessions will be recorded and available to all registered delegates after the event, so if you unable to join us live or want to review any presentation this will be available.

Accessibility

At UKSG, we are committed to ensuring an exceptional experience for all our delegates. Our aim is to make presentations as accessible and inclusive as possible.

Here’s how we achieve that:

Closed Captioning Options: Our GoToWebinar application allows you to toggle closed captioning on or off during live sessions. You can also customise the text size and colour to suit your preferences.

Auto-Generated Transcripts: For each recorded session, we can provide auto-generated transcripts on request.

If you have particular accessibility requirements or questions about this event, we strongly encourage you to contact events@uksg.org as soon as possible.

Programme

Wednesday 19th NovemberThursday 20th November

Time

Programme

Speakers

10:00

Welcome and introduction

All times stated are GMT

More details to follow

10:15

Making the data count: using data visualisation to demonstrate impact and value at Edge Hill University

In today’s data-driven academic landscape, university libraries are under growing pressure to articulate their value and demonstrate measurable impact. While libraries have long collected vast amounts of data – from usage statistics to engagement metrics – a key challenge is transforming this data into compelling narratives that resonate with senior leaders and stakeholders. This presentation will share the data journey of Library and Learning Services at Edge Hill University and explore how we use different data visualisation tools and techniques to demonstrate the value of our services and inform decision-making. Attendees will gain practical insights into getting started with data visualisation, including examples of both free and paid tools, and lessons we have learnt along the way.

Anna Franca

Edge Hill University

See Biography
As Head of Collections and Archives at Edge Hill University, Anna França leads the team dedicated to managing and developing the library collections and University Archive. Prior to joining Edge Hill, she held roles at King’s College London and has over 19 years experience in the academic library sector. Anna is interested in the role that libraries can play in supporting a sustainable transition towards a more open research landscape. She is active in a range of professional networks and groups and chairs the USKG Education and Events sub-committee.

11:15

Break

11:30

OCLC Decision Support and the Data Driven Library

‘OCLC Decision Support and the Data Driven Library’ explores the ways in which librarians can support their diverse workflows through data-powered insights. This session showcases how OCLC decision support tools like WMS Analytics, EZproxy Analytics, and Choreo Insights help streamline routine tasks and inform collection policy.

Jodie Walker

OCLC

See Biography
Jodie Walker is a Chartered Librarian with over 15 years’ experience in libraries. Her professional career has spanned a range of library sectors, starting in public libraries, and then moving on to academic, before six years living internationally in Vietnam and China as a school librarian. Jodie joined OCLC as a Library Consultant in January 2024. As part of this role, she supports librarians interested in learning more about OCLC products, research and services.

EBSCO Panorama: Pushing the Boundaries of Library Analytics

This session will explore the vision and capabilities of Panorama, EBSCO’s innovative library analytics tool designed to help libraries capture and showcase the bigger picture of library engagement. Libraries face many traditional challenges in the domain of analytics, including struggles with time, manual processes, and a general lack of tools with which to analyze library usage, trends, and activities. As this session will show, Panorama seeks to alter this landscape by delivering a solution that centralizes data flows from multiple sources and streamlines reporting workflows in several areas, from electronic resource usage to analysis of Transformative Agreements

Robert Faith

EBSCO Information Services

See Biography
Robert Faith works as a Software-as-a-Service specialist at EBSCO Information Services, with a focus on library analytics. Prior to joining EBSCO in 2018, he spent several years working as an educator and researcher. He currently lives in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

Using Mixpanel to gain insight on Discovery usage

During this session we will see how institutions can use Mixpanel to gain insights into how the Primo Discovery tool is being used. Live examples, time permitting, will include: Top search strings performed by end users, which facets are and are not being used, browser and operating system usage, which countries are accessing the discovery, what activities proceed a user leaving discovery. We will also see how the Mixpanel reports can be organized in boards and accessed by various users

Yoel Kortick

Clarivate

See Biography
Yoel Kortick, Senior Librarian at Ex Libris, has worked for Ex Libris in Jerusalem since 2001. His various roles have included support, migration, product management, and training. Prior to working at Ex Libris Yoel held various roles at the libraries of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem and the Israel Museum.Yoel holds an MA in Library and Information Science from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, as well as an MA in Jewish History, also from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem

12:30

Summary & Close

Time

Programme

Speakers

13.30

Welcome and Introduction

All times stated are GMT

13.40

Developing Excel Dashboards for Holistic Electronic Resources Assessment

Assessing electronic resources is usually driven by renewal decisions. Typically, the analysis is done near the renewal deadline and focuses on a single metric such as cost per use. This presentation demonstrates how assessing groups of related resources together yields the benefit of seeing the resources in the context of the library collection. However, presenting this much information to stakeholders can be a challenge. Using an Excel Dashboard to provide quantitative and qualitative data, we present a story of how the resource contributes to the mission of the organization

Holly Miller

University of Southern Mississippi

See Biography
Holly Miller is the Electronic Resources Librarian at the University of Southern Mississippi and an adjunct professor in the School of Library and Information Science, where she teaches Electronic Resource Management. She applies data visualization techniques to library data to support evidence-based decision making. Previously, she was Dean of Libraries at Florida Institute of Technology, leading digital scholarship and open access initiatives. She holds a B.S. in Chemistry and Biology from Bloomsburg University, a Ph.D. in Biochemistry from Wake Forest University, and an M.L.I.S. from Syracuse University

14.40

Break

15.00

Data Visualization for Collection Analysis: Tools, Methods, and Resources

Due to the increasingly digital nature of library resources and collections, it is sometimes difficult to envision a library’s unified holdings and to understand how they have changed over time. Conducting a collection analysis and applying data visualization techniques can be an excellent way to get a top-down view of the collection as a whole. This presentation outlines the presenter’s process for a collection analysis of the Weinberg Memorial Library’s entire catalog of print and electronic resources and offers ways to adapt this workflow for your own library collections

Sylvia Orner

University of Scranton

See Biography
Sylvia Orner is the Collections and Resource Management Librarian at the University of Scranton’s Weinberg Memorial Library. She earned a Master of Science in Library and Information Science from Syracuse University and a Master of Science in Business Analytics from the University of Scranton. Her key research interests include data visualization, data literacy, and collection assessment and analysis.

16.00

Summary & Close

Feedback

The presentations were all really good and as they all looked at the topic from different angles, i.e. strategic use of data, a step by step guide to setting up a dashboard, demo of different tools it led to a very well rounded and helpful seminar.

Previous delegate

I really enjoyed the range of topics and felt they complemented each other well.

Previous delegate

I think this was a great addition to the UKSG seminar portfolio and was really useful.

Previous delegate

Registration

£ 70.00

+14.00 VAT

Member

Register here

£ 82.00

+16.40 VAT

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NB: UKSG reserves the right to alter or vary the programme due to events or circumstances beyond its reasonable control without being obliged to refund monies.

Contact

General queries – events@uksg.org

Please take a look at our code of conduct

Cancellations

The closing date for cancellations is Monday 3rd November, after which date cancellations will not be eligible for a refund. Cancellation should be sent into writing to events@uksg.org. All registrants will be sent a link to the recording after the event for their personal viewing.

The General UKSG booking terms and conditions can be found here

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UKSG Forum 2025
2025-12-03 09:30 - 16:30
The very popular UKSG Forum includes topical papers, networking and a dynamic exhibition designed to bring together our diverse membership for key conversations. We welcome all but free admission is only available to member institutions.

When

Where

Wednesday, December 3, 2025 – 09:30 GMTtoWednesday, December 3, 2025- 16:30 GMT

The Wing @ The Brighton Centre Brighton, United Kingdom

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About the Event

Registration

Bookings have now closed for the UKSG Forum – if you would like to be added to the waitlist please click to register

We kindly ask that only registered delegates attend, as we’re unable to accommodate unregistered guests. Thank you for your understanding.

FREE TO UKSG MEMBERS*! Check the UKSG member list

We welcome members and non-members alike, however a small charge is made for non-members of £75+VAT.

Consider becoming a UKSG member.

Please note there will be a limit of 6 people from one institution.

Summary

The UKSG Forum is one of the key benefits of being a UKSG member and attendance is therefore free to anyone working within a UKSG member organisation. In line with its charitable status, UKSG also wishes to encourage attendance by members of the wider community and therefore subsidises the event so that a nominal charge applies to non-members.

Programme chairs: Magaly Taylor, Tim Leonard

What can I expect at the UKSG Forum?

sessions on best practice and interesting projects

ample, good-quality networking opportunities

a table top exhibition

The Forum is the place for ideas, debate, provocations and short briefings. The programme consists of short lightning talks that provide “food for thought”, appealing to a broad range of interests and levels.

“A laid back event, just right for networking, and a good combination of timings for lightning talks, meetings and networking.”

“The short presentations made the day very flexible. I was able to attend the sessions, switch to the exhibition.”

Accessibility

We’re committed to running accessible training and events. We want you to feel welcome, included, and able to fully engage in our sessions.

To help us, please share any access needs you have when prompted by our booking form. We may be in touch to ensure we’re making the right adjustments.

Further information on access facilities can be found here for the Brighton Centre or here for generally visiting Brighton. If you have any more questions or need more information please do not hesitate to contact events (at) uksg.org.

Directions

More information on how to get to The Brighton Centre can be found here.

Here you can find a step by step photo guide from the railway station to Brighton Centre Kings Road/Seafront entrance

Social

X (formally Twitter) UKSG and hashtag #UKSGForum2025

Sponsorship & Exhibition

Bookings for sponsorship and exhibition stands is not sold out – if you have any further questions please contact events@uksg.org

With thanks to our sponsors

Programme

Wednesday 3 December

Time

Programme

Speakers

09.30

Registration & Refreshments

10.00

Welcome and introduction

Charlie Rapple

Kudos/UKSG Chair

See Biography
Charlie Rapple is co-founder of Kudos, which works with researchers, funders, publishers and universities to ensure research is more widely found, understood, used and cited. With a background in scholarly publishing technology and marketing, she is passionate about ensuring research is more effectively communicated. She is currently serving as Chair of UKSG, having previously served as Vice Chair, Treasurer, Chair of the Marketing Subcommittee, and co-founder of KBART. She is a member of the Editorial Board for UKSG Insights, a blogger in the Scholarly Kitchen and a Fellow of the UN’s SDG Publishers Compact. Charlie has a BA in the History of Art and Architecture from the University of Bristol, and a postgraduate MDip from the Chartered Institute of Marketing.

10.05

Discovering the Hidden Insight Between Data Points

Slides available here

In a landscape driven by metrics, impact factors, and open data, it is easy to equate numbers with understanding. Yet what truly shapes knowledge often lies between the data points — in context, voice, and lived experience. This keynote explores how engaging research communities reveals those hidden insights that statistics alone cannot capture. By listening between the lines, we can co-create more inclusive, ethical, and meaningful scholarly communication — transforming data from mere measurement into shared understanding and equitable knowledge exchange.

Godwyns Onwuchekwa

Global Tapestry Consulting

See Biography
Godwyns Onwuchekwa is the Founder and Principal Consultant at Global Tapestry Consulting, supporting organisations to build meaningful connections and co-create effective community engagement with stakeholders around the world. With over 15 years’ experience across the public, private, and voluntary sectors, he specialises in inclusive engagement, leadership development, and embedding mental wellbeing in organisational culture. Formerly Head of Communities at eLife, Godwyns is a trained Mental Health First Aider and patient representative, holding a degree in Computing alongside professional training in community engagement, mental health, and bias awareness.

Topic Area: Collection Management and Development Case Studies

10.35

Notes from a small library: planning for the future at the University of Suffolk

This presentation will explore how the impact of increasing budgetary, staff and time constraints and a shifting landscape of options for collection acquisitions has been felt at a smaller institution with a modest library budget and team size.

A planned move to a new, smaller physical space for the University of Suffolk (UoS) library has added another challenge. The small library team have had to review collections and budgets and getting creative to maximise what can be done within a small budget, a skill which is becoming increasingly important across the sector in institutions of all sizes.

Stephanie Gibson

University of Suffolk

See Biography
Stephanie Gibson is a Learning and Teaching Librarian at the University of Suffolk, supporting healthcare courses. Her role involves course liaison, information literacy teaching and collection management for the school of Health, Sciences and Society. She has held various roles in higher education libraries, including variously focusing on information literacy, interlibrary loans, cataloguing and subscription management.

10.50

Dublin City University Print Journal Review: Unifying collections & opening spaces

Slides available here

As part of an ongoing spaces review project, Dublin City University (DCU) library initiated a thorough review of its print journal collections. To date, this review has informed decision making on policy around retention, relegation and disposal of both current and legacy print journals. This presentation examines the background to and detailed planning of the review so far, highlighting collaboration between library teams and the successes and challenges encountered. It discusses collection analysis, assessment and development in the context of a research-intensive higher education institution in Ireland

Claire Mason

Maynooth University Library

See Biography
Claire recently took on the role of Electronic Resources Librarian in Maynooth University Library. Previous to this she was a Senior Library Assistant in the Collections and Digital Services Directorate at Dublin City University and has worked in libraries for nearly 30 years. She began her career in public libraries in the UK and has spent over 20 years in academic libraries in Ireland.

Amanda Halpin

Dublin City University

See Biography
Amanda Halpin is the E-resources & Serials Manager at Dublin City University Library, with over 25 years of experience in academic libraries. She oversees the acquisition and management of electronic resources and print journals. Her role supports seamless access to scholarly content and ensures the library’s collections remain responsive to academic needs. Previously, Amanda was Subject Librarian for Nursing, Psychotherapy and Community Health courses, providing specialised support in teaching and research. She is also a member of the IReL Negotiations Group, contributing to national licensing strategies for Irish academic libraries. Amanda’s broad experience informs her commitment to improving digital access and strategic resource management

11.05

Q&A

11.10

Break and exhibition viewing

Topic Area: Digital Innovation

11.35

UWTSD Birmingham & Generative AI: We’re All In This Together

This talk explores the collaborative journey of UWTSD Birmingham in embracing generative AI across academic and professional domains. Highlighting inclusive strategies, staff development, and student engagement, it showcases how librarians, educators, and support teams are working together to navigate the opportunities and challenges of AI integration. From ethical considerations to practical applications, the session reflects on shared learning and the evolving role of academic liaison librarians and digital skills advisors in shaping AI literacy.

Olivia Edmonds

University of Trinity St David

See Biography
Olivia is currently an Academic Liaison Librarian at the University of Wales Trinity St David (Birmingham) Prior to that, she was a former Secondary English teacher of 10+ years and former Learning Resources Manager at Sixth Form level for 6 years. Her areas of interest include equality, diversity, and inclusion; digital accessibility and the use of Generative AI to support student and staff in a higher education content.

Taran Johal

University of Trinity St David

See Biography
tbc

11.55

Zandra Rhodes’ Colourful Heritage: inspiring future generations of young designers and creative practitioners

Colourful Heritage is a vibrant and inclusive project funded by the National Lottery Heritage Fund, delivered in partnership with the University for the Creative Arts and The Zandra Rhodes Foundation. The project, centred around the digitisation of iconic garments, combines heritage preservation with hands-on creative education. It empowered underrepresented young people across Medway through fully funded workshops, creative mentoring, and an exhibition; and offered internships to UCA students. By connecting fashion, history, and education, Colourful Heritage has worked hard to inspire a new generation of diverse creatives and builds a lasting, accessible digital legacy – a fashion museum in your pocket.

Marie Hitchcock

University of the Creative Arts

See Biography
Marie Hitchcock is Discovery Services Manager at the University for the Creative Arts, having responsibility for the management of all library systems and the discovery and access of online resources. The role has recently been expanded to include management of the Collections Team bringing together the acquisition and discovery of library resources. Before working in HE she has worked as Head of Service for the three libraries at an FE college group and also as Assistant Librarian at the Zoological Society of London.

Ellen Brown

University of the Creative Arts

See Biography
Ellen Brown is a creative practitioner, educator, and neuroinclusion advocate with over 20 years’ experience designing inclusive, transformative learning experiences. She has worked across schools, arts organisations, and Higher Education, championing access for underrepresented and neurodiverse learners. With a background in community-engaged projects funded by organisations such as Arts Council UK and the National Lottery, Ellen now predominantly works within a specialist Creative Arts HE setting, developing inclusive curricula and mentoring staff and students from Foundation to PhD. Her work centres on creativity as a tool for equity, empowerment, and meaningful educational change.

12.15

Digitisation at the House of Commons Library: Public access requests

Slides available here

From July 2024 the House of Commons Library Digitisation team have been fulfilling on demand requests for digital access to parliamentary papers. This talk will be a reflection on the project to date, the difficulties in anticipating demand and types of material. The talk will also cover how have balanced this new program of work against our mass digitisation projects and longer term digital preservation goals.

Matthew Pentlow

House of Commons Library

See Biography
Matthew Pentlow is the Digitisation Librarian at the House of Commons Library, where he manages efforts to preserve and provide access to parliamentary records through digitisation. His work focuses on the mass digitisation projects, public access requests and developing workflows for longer term preservation/access. With experience in Digitisation across the Library and Museum sectors he is interested in how digitisation technology can develop and provide greater access for users.

Caroline Marwein

House of Commons Library

See Biography
Caroline Marwein is the Systems Librarian at the House of Commons Library, where she manages the Cataloguing, Digitisation & Systems Team and the Library’s management and discovery systems. Her work builds on experience in library, information, and knowledge management at Croydon Libraries, Freshfields, BDO, Grant Thornton, BSI, and the Energy Institute, all contributing to shaping her interest in how metadata and system design influence the representation and understanding of information and collections.

12.35

Q&A

12.45

Light lunch, exhibition viewing and networking

Join Angela Jones Evans from University of Gloucestershire for the The Sustain-agility game

This a poster session with a difference!Delegates are invited to take part in the Sustain-agility game a board game where you will be a part of a library team navigating and overcoming a variety of challenges and hazards.

You will be faced with a race against time to win tokens for your team which you will add to an Investment Options board on which you decide how to prioritise tokens to build a sustainable library for the future. The tokens will be added up, and the final priority listing will be summarised at the end of the day.

Topic Area: Research support and data services

14.00

Cultivating an Open Data community in a post-COVID era

Slides available here

Since the pandemic, many institutions have faced difficulties engaging with their research communities. The past 5 years have witnessed increasing workloads for academics and the restriction of budgets to fund research activities. This has made it tricky to maintain engagement with open research practices, which are sometimes seen as an optional extra to research projects rather than an integral aspect of their methodologies. This is especially true for research data, code, and ‘alternative outputs’, which do not have the same compliance mandates required of articles and monographs. In this talk, Jenny explores her approach to this problem and how in the past year, she has recentred Lancaster’s Research Data Management service to be research-led, focusing on way of embedding RDM practice in pre-existing structure.

Jenny McHugh

Lancaster University

See Biography
Jenny McHugh is a Research Data Manager in the Open Research team at Lancaster University Library. With a background as a researcher in History and Digital Humanities, she is passionate about fostering an open research community that is inclusive of all disciplines and researcher-led. She also contributes to digital preservation strategy and advocacy, working closely with the archive and special collections team. She is the deputy theme lead for the Data Engineering strand of Lancaster’s Data Science Institute, the largest research centre at the institution, helping to shape data-led research. Likewise, she sits on the Diversity in Data Science and AI working group, which aims to support research into and by under-represented and under-served groups in data fields. She is also a member of the N8’s Centre for Computational Intensive Research, working alongside RDM colleagues across the north of England to create cross-institutional initiatives and training events.

14.20

They Asked for Everything: The Case of the Systematic Review that Swallowed the Library

Slides available here

Systematic reviews are booming, especially in health and education, and they are putting real pressure on interlibrary loan services. These fast-moving projects generate hundreds of requests, raising questions around copyright, licensing, cost and capacity. At Leeds Beckett, we have joined the dots across interlibrary loans, copyright and academic teams to design better workflows and keep services legal, sustainable and researcher friendly. We have also spoken with the CLA to explore how current licences support this work, resulting in new copyright provision for collaborative projects. This session is for anyone involved in resource delivery, licensing, scholarly communication or digital services

Liesl Rowe

Leeds Beckett University

See Biography
Liesl Rowe is the Senior Digital Library Advisor at Leeds Beckett University, with a prior background in acquisitions at other HE institutions. She is responsible for the digitisation and copyright clearance services, offering advice to staff and students on any copyright queries which might arise. She also works closely alongside LBU’s accessibility team, providing alternative texts which meet the access needs of our students. Liesl has written a guide to copyright and AI for staff and students, not to mention speaking on the subject at staff conferences and helping formulate library AI policy. Outside of work, Liesl can be found trying to complete all of Yorkshire’s parkrun events or improving her sword-fighting skills as a keen foilist

14.40

Q&A

14.45

Break and exhibition viewing

15.05

Copim Compass: A new OA monograph and scholarly communication resource

The last few years has seen a welcome florescence of open access (OA) resources particularly for books: numerous OA initiatives, open infrastructures, policies, best practice guidelines, explanatory guides, how-to toolkits for OA publishing, and many more. Even for those immersed in OA books, the landscape can be overwhelming and it can be difficult to know where to look for reliable information. Copim Open Book Futures therefore decided to create Copim Compass, a guide of guides; a signposting exercise to categorise, describe, and link to these resources. The resource has recently gone live: https://compass.copim.ac.uk/ In this talk, I will present the resource, describe its creation process and rationale, and outline what lacunae in the existing resources we encountered during our lengthy scoping exercise. I will also provide an avenue for interested attendees to suggest additional resources to add to our compass.

Kira Hopkins

Copim Open Book Futures / Birkbeck College, University of London

See Biography
Kira Hopkins is a Scholarly Publishing Outreach Officer at Copim Open Book Futures (Birkbeck College, University of London). They implement Opening the Future, a Diamond OA revenue model for books, and previously worked at Ubiquity Press, an open access publisher and publishing service provider, as a book editor, journal manager and partner account manager

15.25

Extending the library beyond the library

Academic libraries are increasingly aligning their research support services—such as publishing, data management, and analytics support—with institutional priorities. However, institutional stakeholders may be slow to recognize the library’s evolving value proposition, instead maintaining collections-focused views of the library. This presentation will present findings from the OCLC Research “Library Beyond the Library” project which examines how libraries are redefining their roles through innovative services and strategic collaborations. Brief case studies demonstrate how future-oriented libraries are increasing their visibility and impact.

Ellen Hartman

OCLC

See Biography
Ellen Hartman is OCLC’s Library Solutions and Member Relations Manager for EMEA and APAC. With ten years of experience at OCLC and a background in libraries, archives, and research, Ellen brings a holistic approach to libraries and information management.

Leading OCLC’s product education and presentation efforts across the EMEA and APAC region and serving as liaison to the OCLC Leader’s Council, she provides valuable insights to the library community. Passionate about bringing stories about librarianship to life, she explores how technology can support the library of the future and shares how OCLC makes knowledge and information accessible worldwide.

15.40

Q&A

15.45

Closing keynote: Checked Out or Dialled In? UK HE Libraries and the AI Shift

Slides available here

An overview of work, progress and strategic discussion nationally on AI adoption for Higher Education Libraries.Presentation will explore the work being done nationally through working groups within SCONUL and UCISA on AI for Libraries, highlight some emerging work across different UK HE libraries, and lay out some options around what additional work may happen next.

Mark Hughes

Cardiff Metropolitan University

See Biography
Mark has been in role as Head of Libraries at Cardiff Metropolitan University since 2016, and prior to that worked in senior roles in both HE and Public Libraries. Mark served a term as Vice Chair and then Chair of the WHELF consortium between 2021 and 2025, and he currently co-chair of SCONUL’s Technology & Markets Strategy Group, within which he Chairs the AI sub group, and a newly elected member of SCONUL Executive Board. He has a longstanding interest in digital and technology service development, and is very passionate about library collaborative and partnership working.

16.15

Closing remarks & summary

Feedback

“I had a brilliant experience talking at the 2023 UKSG. I was well supported from the moment my proposal was accepted and the organisation made my first in-person speaking appearance a breeze! The forum is an excellent event. UKSG always put together an excellent programme with an exciting range of speakers that spark interesting conversation.”
Previous delegate/speaker

A great variety of presenters from speakers at all stages of their careers and it was good to hear from younger speaker
Previous delegate

Fantastic speakers. A good variety of topics covered and all very informative.
Previous delegate

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Open Access in a Time of Financial Uncertainty online seminar
2025-12-08 10:00 - 2025-12-09 13:00
This intermediate-level seminar examines the evolving landscape of Open Access publishing, focusing on its challenges, opportunities, and sustainability in financially constrained times, while exploring strategies to broaden access and enhance discovery. This seminar will take place over two half days on Monday 8th and Tuesday 9th December.

When

Monday, December 8, 2025 – 10:00 GMTtoTuesday, December 9, 2025 – 13:00 GMT

Where

OnlineUnited Kingdom

About

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About the Event

Registration

Registration has now closed

Course Summary

Open access publishing provides a vital avenue for disseminating research, by ensuring that valuable research remains widely accessible to all, regardless of resources. This model can enhance collaboration and innovation, enabling researchers to share findings quickly and broadly in challenging economic conditions. This course will give an intermediate overview to this area. In particular it will:

Explore the evolving landscape of Open Access publishing within the context of financial challenges faced in current times.

Give focus to the specific challenges and opportunities associated with open access publishing.

Look at options for the discovery of Open Access resources.

Summarise what can be done to make Open Access more universal.

Investigate the sustainability of big-deals and Gold Open Access in general.

Look at the role of repositories and how these can potentially pug the gaps in Open Access provision.

Explain how new policies and initiatives (e.g. Right Retention) are continuing to affect open access publishing.

Course Level and previous knowledge required

This course offers an intermediate level overview and it is anticipated that you would have some previous knowledge about the subject matter.

Please note that this is not a detailed practical or technical course and it will not go into detail about how specific services or systems function, or how to optimise workflows. Instead the course gives a high-level, intermediate overview of the essential elements of processes and systems, providing the conceptual foundation for other more specific training in the use of particular services and systems.

Learning objectives

By the end of this course, participants will be able to:

Understand the evolving landscape of Open Access publishing, particularly in the context of current financial pressures.

Be able to identify key challenges and opportunities associated with implementing and supporting OA publishing models.

Explore effective strategies for discovering and accessing Open Access resources.

Evaluate the sustainability of transformative agreements, including big deals and Gold Open Access models.

Summarise approaches to broaden the global reach and inclusivity of Open Access.

Pre-event checks

To test your system ahead of time visit https://support.goto.com/webinar/system-check-attendee

Social

Follow the conference on X formally Twitter @UKSG

Recording

The sessions will be recorded and available to all registered delegates after the event, so if you unable to join us live or want to review any presentation this will be available.

Accessibility

At UKSG, we are committed to ensuring an exceptional experience for all our delegates. Our aim is to make presentations as accessible and inclusive as possible.

Here’s how we achieve that:

Closed Captioning Options: Our GoToWebinar application allows you to toggle closed captioning on or off during live sessions. You can also customise the text size and colour to suit your preferences.

Auto-Generated Transcripts: For each recorded session, we can provide auto-generated transcripts on request.

If you have particular accessibility requirements or questions about this event, we strongly encourage you to contact events@uksg.org as soon as possible.

Programme

Monday 8th DecemberTuesday 9th December

Time

Programme

Speakers

10.00

Introduction & welcome

All times stated are GMT

Sarah Beighton

Staffordshire University

See Biography
tbc

10.10

Future of Transformative Agreements

An overview of the evolution of Transformative Agreements: their origins, current landscape, and possible futures

Gary Steele

Glasgow Caledonian University

See Biography
Gary was appointed Head of Library Services at Glasgow Caledonian University in 2024, providing strategic and operational leadership for the Sir Alex Ferguson Library. He began his career in 2005 at Trinity College Dublin, followed by roles at the National Maritime Museum Greenwich and the British Museum. Since 2011, he has held a range of systems, management, and leadership positions at Glasgow Caledonian University. Gary has a strong interest in promoting sector-wide collaboration and shared services and has worked closely with colleagues across the UK to share best practice. Through his involvement with the Scottish Higher Education Digital Library (SHEDL) Journals and Learning Content groups, the Scottish Confederation of University & Research Libraries (SCURL), Advanced Procurement for Universities and Colleges (APUC), the Jisc Library Purchasing Coordination Group, and the Jisc Publisher Negotiations Expert Group, he has contributed to shaping a more open, affordable, and transparent market for library resources and services.

10.50

Achieving Financial Sustainability Through Enhanced Green OA

Against a backdrop of financial uncertainty across the sector, the cost of achieving open access for journal articles continues to rise. Investment in so-called transformative agreements has not delivered the transition envisaged, and hybrid open access remains the dominant (problematic) route. Green OA may offer a more financially sustainable alternative, particularly as rights retention policies remove embargoes and allow immediate deposit of AAMs. Yet Green OA still carries an image problem around discoverability and quality. This presentation will outline how Manchester is exploring an enhanced Green OA model, and how sector-level collaboration could help address longstanding barriers and support a more sustainable route to open access.

Stephen Carlton

University of Manchester

See Biography
Steve Carlton is an Open Research Librarian in the University of Manchester Library’s Office for Open Research. He recently marked ten years working in open access, following roles at the University of Liverpool and the University of Salford. In his current role he’s responsible for the Library’s Open Access service, which helps to share thousands of research outputs open access each year. He’s interested in harnessing the power of open access to help researchers to reach broader audiences, the development of more sustainable routes to open access and the intersections between open access and other open research practices. And dorky metadata stuff. He’s on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/steve-carlton-478521159/.

Scott Taylor

University of Manchester

See Biography
TBC

11.30

Break

11.45

Beyond the budget crisis: A publisher’s view on sustainable Open Access

As libraries and institutions face financial pressures and evolving funder mandates, the scholarly publishing ecosystem must adapt while building on proven approaches. This session explores how Wiley advances established models like transformational agreements and gold open access while developing strategic innovations that respond to economic uncertainty and shifting policy requirements. Drawing on experiences across Europe, Asia, and the Americas, we’ll examine how both traditional and emerging approaches are evolving, what adaptations stakeholders seek, and how partnerships between libraries and publishers can balance multiple demands with maintaining momentum toward OA goals

Melanie Lehnert-Bechle

Wiley

See Biography
Melanie Lehnert-Bechle brings over 16 years of scholarly publishing experience to her role leading Wiley’s global Open Research team. Prior to joining Wiley, she spent more than a decade at Springer Nature in progressive roles spanning trade and institutional sales, marketing, and external communications. At Wiley, she led the Go-To-Market strategy for the ground-breaking transformational agreement with the DEAL consortium in Germany in 2019. Since 2022, she has worked in Wiley’s Research Publishing team on OA business models and policies, and stakeholder engagement. Passionate about Open Research, Melanie enjoys connecting with various groups across the research ecosystem

12.25

The discovery of open access resources

At DOAJ, our vision is to build an equitable and diverse scholarly ecosystem where trusted research can be accessed globally without barriers. For a large part of our user group, financial uncertainty is a normal, everyday reality. It is therefore vital that we continue to provide our key review services—reviewing journal applications and indexing trustworthy open access journals—and our open metadata services. Open metadata is the key that unlocks equitable access to knowledge and that allows information to flow freely around the world. This presentation will illustrate our role in that process and the strategies we use to maximise the discoverability of open access information.

Dominic Mitchell

DOAJ

See Biography
Dominic has over 25 years of experience working with the publisher and library communities. He is responsible for providing strategic oversight of DOAJ’s platform, major projects, and ensuring that the infrastructure and projects remain aligned with the organisation’s mission, values, and long-term strategic goals. He acts as Committee chair for the Think. Check. Submit. initiative, of which DOAJ is a founding organisation

13.10

Summary and close

Time

Programme

Speakers

10.00

Welcome and Introduction

Jon Cook

University of York

See Biography
tbc

10.05

Rights retention in a time of financial uncertainty

Rights retention strategies have increasingly been adopted by researchers, funders, and research organisations as a way of maximising the reach of research and meeting open access expectations. In times of financial uncertainty, it becomes even more important that researchers and research organisations can assert and retain the rights to openly disseminate scholarly works that they produce or support. This presentation will outline the development of rights retention strategies, particularly in the UK, and share the experience of University of York in implementing rights retention at a time of uncertainty and rapid change in scholarly publishing.

Thom Blake

University of York

See Biography
Rights retention strategies have increasingly been adopted by researchers, funders, and research organisations as a way of maximising the reach of research and meeting open access expectations. In times of financial uncertainty, it becomes even more important that researchers and research organisations can assert and retain the rights to openly disseminate scholarly works that they produce or support. This presentation will outline the development of rights retention strategies, particularly in the UK, and share the experience of University of York in implementing rights retention at a time of uncertainty and rapid change in scholarly publishing

10.45

Reshaping our Approach to Open Access for Books in the New World Order

In this session Dr Frances Pinter will argue that the consequences of the new world order, that are only just now unfolding, require new approaches and advocacy to open access, especially for books. She will be drawing specifically on her experiences as founder of Knowledge Unlatched and her current work with the Opening the Future model. She will also draw on her work in the post-communist countries in Central and Eastern Europe and the former Soviet Union.

Francis Pinter

Central European University Press

See Biography
Dr Frances Pinter is Director, Academic Relations at the Central European University Press and formerly CEO of Manchester University Press. She advises several small university and mission driven presses around the world. She was the founding Publisher of Bloomsbury Academic and the founder of Knowledge Unlatched, taking a particular interest in developing sustainable OA business models. Previously she was Publishing Director at the Open Society Institute (now Open Society Foundations) where she worked in all the post-communist countries and was instrumental in the founding of EIFL. She is a visiting research fellow at the School of Advanced Study, University of London and recently founder of SUPRR (Supporting Ukrainian Publishing Resilience and Recovery)

11.25

Break

11.40

The next steps to achieve Open Access – views from a research funder

While the Swedish system with joint nehgotiations with publishers have led to high rates of open access publishing, it has also meant an increas in cost. To address this tha posible path beyond transformative agreements have been discussed, and a plan is being implemented. I will give a brief overview of this development and the role of research funders in the Swedish context.

Olle Lundberg

Forte -Swedish Research Council for Health, Working Life and Welfare

See Biography
As a professor of Health Equity Studies at Stockholm University, Lundberg has contributed to the understanding of how social determinants generate health inequalities, as well as to the policy development in Sweden and elsewhere. As a Secretary General for one of Sweden’s public funders of research, he has worked to promote Open Access in collaboration with other funders, universities and the National Library in Sweden, but also internationally through cOAlition S.

12.20

Panel/Discussion Session

13.00

Wrap up and Close

£ 70.00

+14.00 VAT

Member

Book now

£ 82.00

+16.40 VAT

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NB: UKSG reserves the right to alter or vary the programme due to events or circumstances beyond its reasonable control without being obliged to refund monies.

Contact

General queries – events@uksg.org

Please take a look at our code of conduct

Cancellations

The closing date for cancellations is Friday 28th November, after which date cancellations will not be eligible for a refund. Cancellation should be sent into writing to events@uksg.org. All registrants will be sent a link to the recording after the event for their personal viewing.

The General UKSG booking terms and conditions can be found here

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FREE UKSG Further Education Webinar: AI at Barton Peveril - The College Picture and The Library Landscape
2026-01-29 13:00 - 14:00
This is a fantastic opportunity to listen to expert speakers with no travelling required. This is a free webinar – Please note that advance registration is required. This webinar will be recorded and all registrants will receive a link to the recording after the session.

When

Thursday, Januray 29, 2026From 13:00 GMT to 14:00 GMT

..

Where

OnlineUnited Kingdom

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About the Event

Barton Peveril has been a forerunner and an outlier in the development of AI in a College context with a range of staff and student “agents” now in operation. In this webinar, Chris Loveday (Vice Principal – Business Services) and Adam Say (Library Manager) will talk through the broader picture of the AI options available at the College for students and staff (including student digital assistant, staff timesaving options and a bespoke large language model) and look in more detail at the roll out of a Library-specific AI and the challenges and engagements that this involved.

REGISTER HERE

Speakers

.

Chris Loveday

Vice Principal (Business Services) | Barton Peveril Sixth Form College

Vice Principal / AI Author & Consultant / AI in Education Strategy Panel Member & Chair of CFO/COO Panel / SFCA Funding & Finance Committee Member/AI Edify Innovation Panel Member / SFCA (2025) & ISBL (2024) Award Winner

.

Adam Say

Library Manager | Barton Peveril Sixth Form College

Library Manager at Barton Peveril Sixth Form College. Previously worked in a range of roles across Hampshire Public Libraries before moving on to work in Higher Education at the University of Surrey and in Further Education at Highbury College (now part of City Of Portsmouth College). Chair of the Wessex Group’s Librarians’ and Learning Resource Managers’ Curriculum Support Group and a member of the UKSG Education and Events subcommittee. Presented for CILIP, BETT, UKSG and other organisations.

Learning outcomes

• Overview and awareness of AI projects at Barton Peveril Sixth Form College

• Understanding of range of staff and student agents now available

• Specific knowledge and walkthrough of Library AI, it’s development and challenges and future plans

Subject level and previous knowledge required

Introductory and non-intensive, no previous knowledge or experience required.

Attendee Information

To help you prepare for UKSG webinars, you may like to read the Notes for Participants:

UKSG Webinars Notes for Participants 2026

To test your system ahead of time, please visit https://support.goto.com/webinar/system-check-attendee

Follow UKSG on X @UKSG #UKSGwebinar

Registrations

This is a free webinar and is open to members and non-members of UKSG alike – Please note that advance registration is required.

REGISTER HERE

Unable to attend? Register anyway and we will send you a link to a recording of the webinar after the event. If you have already registered and are subsequently unable to attend, please do not cancel your registration – only active registrations will receive the recording in a follow-up e-mail.

Accessibility

UKSG wants to provide the best possible experience for all our delegates, making presentations as accessible and inclusive as possible. Our intention were possible is to strongly encourage our speakers to provide auto generated closed captioning for both live and recorded events as well as to make sure their slides are as easy as possible for all people to read. In addition we can provide auto generated transcripts post event for each of the recorded sessions.

If you have particular accessibility needs or questions about this webinar, we welcome you to contact Samira Sotomayor.

Feedback

The UKSG webinars are great for me – they offer a wide range of topics and are very well prepared. I never experienced any technical difficulties. Due to the austerity measures brought by the recent worldwide events the training budget in my institution was frozen, so the fact that UKSG webinars are free is really a boon too!
Anonymous

The UKSG webinar was fantastic – well-organized, timely, accessible, and with an array of presenters that had insight into the topic
Anonymous

Great to squeeze in so much useful knowledge and information without having to go out to a conference. I could enjoy taking it in with a sandwich at my desk! I felt very empowered afterwards.
Emma Thompson, Glasgow Caledonian University

NB: UKSG reserves the right to alter or vary the programme due to events or circumstances beyond its reasonable control without being obliged to refund monies.

Contact

This is a free webinar – Please note that advance registration is required.

Please take a look at our code of conduct

Cancellations

If you have already registered and are subsequently unable to attend, please do not cancel your registration – only active registrations will receive the recording in a follow-up e-mail.

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FREE UKSG webinar: The Open Access – AI Conundrum: Does Free to Read Mean Free to Train?
2026-02-05 12:00 - 13:00
This is a fantastic opportunity to listen to expert speakers with no travelling required. This is a free webinar – Please note that advance registration is required. This webinar will be recorded and all registrants will receive a link to the recording after the session.

When

Thursday, February 5, 2026From 12:00 GMT to 13:00 GMT

..

Where

OnlineUnited Kingdom

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About the Event

The Open Access movement, originally designed to democratise human access to research, now faces unintended consequences as AI systems extensively use freely available academic content for training large language models. While Creative Commons licenses permit such use, researchers primarily chose open access to maximise human readership, not to provide free training data for commercial AI companies. This creates significant risks for academic ecosystems, including “citation laundering” where AI outputs obscure original sources, disrupting knowledge attribution and academic career incentives. This talk highlights the need for urgent policy discussions to address how AI training on open-access content may undermine the research system’s foundational principles of transparency, attribution, and knowledge traceability, while, at the same time, imposing the increasingly unmanageable cost of open-access transformational agreements on underfunded higher education providers.

REGISTER HERE

Speakers

.

Stephanie Decker

Professor of Strategy, Vice Dean of British Academy of Management Fellows College | University of Birmingham

Stephanie Decker is Professor of Strategy at Birmingham Business School and holds prestigious fellowships of the Academy of Social Sciences (FAcSS) and the British Academy of Management (BAM). She is known for her work at the intersection of history and management studies and has published widely on African business history. She currently serves as the Co-Vice Chair for Research & Publications at the British Academy of Management (BAM), and previously as a co-editor and joint editor-in-chief at Business History. At BAM, she leads on Open Access policy and is one of the editors of the forthcoming White Paper series on AI.

.

Caroline Ball

Community Engagement Lead | Open Book Collective

Caroline Ball is the Community Engagement Lead for the Open Book Collective, a charity working to bring together open access book publishers, publishing service providers, and libraries to work toward a sustainable future for open access books. Her previous roles include academic librarian, copyright and licensing advisor, and lecturer in publishing, as well as voluntary work as co-founder of the #ebookSOS campaign. She is also an active Wikipedian, was awarded the UK Wikimedian of the Year award in 2020, and currently serves on the Wikimedia UK board of trustees. Her research interests centre on knowledge equity, information ethics, and systemic barriers and biases in dominant knowledge systems.

Learning outcomes

• Consider systemic impacts of AI intermediation in knowledge production• Critically assess the impact of OA mandates in the age of AI• Reflect on the impact of disruptive technological innovations

Subject level and previous knowledge required

General knowledge of publishing and information governance systems required.

Webinar recommended readings

https://scholarlykitchen.sspnet.org/2025/04/15/guest-post-the-open-access-ai-conundrum-does-free-to-read-mean-free-to-train/

Attendee Information

To help you prepare for UKSG webinars, you may like to read the Notes for Participants:

UKSG Webinars Notes for Participants 2025

To test your system ahead of time, please visit https://support.goto.com/webinar/system-check-attendee

Follow UKSG on X @UKSG #UKSGwebinar

Registrations

This is a free webinar and is open to members and non-members of UKSG alike – Please note that advance registration is required.

REGISTER HERE

Unable to attend? Register anyway and we will send you a link to a recording of the webinar after the event. If you have already registered and are subsequently unable to attend, please do not cancel your registration – only active registrations will receive the recording in a follow-up e-mail.

Accessibility

UKSG wants to provide the best possible experience for all our delegates, making presentations as accessible and inclusive as possible. Our intention were possible is to strongly encourage our speakers to provide auto generated closed captioning for both live and recorded events as well as to make sure their slides are as easy as possible for all people to read. In addition we can provide auto generated transcripts post event for each of the recorded sessions.

If you have particular accessibility needs or questions about this webinar, we welcome you to contact Samira Sotomayor.

Feedback

The UKSG webinars are great for me – they offer a wide range of topics and are very well prepared. I never experienced any technical difficulties. Due to the austerity measures brought by the recent worldwide events the training budget in my institution was frozen, so the fact that UKSG webinars are free is really a boon too!
Anonymous

The UKSG webinar was fantastic – well-organized, timely, accessible, and with an array of presenters that had insight into the topic
Anonymous

Great to squeeze in so much useful knowledge and information without having to go out to a conference. I could enjoy taking it in with a sandwich at my desk! I felt very empowered afterwards.
Emma Thompson, Glasgow Caledonian University

NB: UKSG reserves the right to alter or vary the programme due to events or circumstances beyond its reasonable control without being obliged to refund monies.

Contact

This is a free webinar – Please note that advance registration is required.

Please take a look at our code of conduct

Cancellations

If you have already registered and are subsequently unable to attend, please do not cancel your registration – only active registrations will receive the recording in a follow-up e-mail.

Share this Event

Please help us by letting your colleagues and friends know about our event. Thank you.

Share Tweet Post

The UKSG 49th Annual Conference and Exhibition: Glasgow
2026-03-30 08:00 - 2026-04-01 13:30
The UKSG Annual Conference is a major event in the scholarly communications calendar which attracts delegates each year from around the world – librarians, publishers, content providers, consultants and intermediaries. The conference combines high-quality plenary presentations, lightning talks, workshops, posters and breakout sessions with entertaining social events and trade exhibition.

When

Monday, March 30, 2026 – 08:00 BSTtoWednesday, April 1, 2026 – 13:30 BST

Where

Scottish Event Campus (SEC)GlasgowG3 8YW, United Kingdom

Venue Photos

About

Sponsors

Programme

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About the Event

Registration

Registration is now open – click here to make your booking

We look forward to welcoming everyone to Glasgow!

Programme

Please scroll down for the latest programme information.

Sponsorship Opportunities

Content Online are handling the sponsorship again this year – please contact Albert Morian albert@contentonline.com or sign up to our mailing list here. You can view the sponsorship brochure here.

Exhibition

Bookings for the exhibition is now open – https://uksg.jewelion.com. You can download the floorplan here

The 2026 Exhibitor Manual can be found here. All exhibitors can find supplier information for catering, electrics, furniture, IT and signage etc here

Accommodation

Accommodation is not covered by the delegate fee.  The official online accommodation bookings service is now open – click here to view and book a range of hotels. Accommodation is sold on a first come, first served basis and will be available until 13th March, however we recommend securing your accommodation as soon as possible.

Map of Glasgow hotels.

The Glasgow Convention bureau also provide a booklet containing special delegate offers and discounts for a variety of local tours and restaurants – this can be found here

Travel to Glasgow

More information on how to get to the SEC can be found here

ScotRail offer a special discounted train ticket for delegates travelling between the city centre and the SEC by train. The Conference Rover costs just £5 for up to 5 days’ travel. More information.

The Glasgow Convention bureau also provide a booklet containing special delegate offers and discounts for a variety of local tours and restaurants – this can be found here

Your access needs

We’re committed to running accessible training and events. We want you to feel welcome, included, and able to fully engage in our sessions.

To help us, please share any access needs you have when prompted by our booking form. We may be in touch to ensure we’re making the right adjustments.

We plan to have a quiet room (no meetings or calls please), more details will follow nearer the time of the event.

From information is available from the Accessible Travel Hub providing information and resources about accessible travel in Scotland – click here

Further information on access facilities for the city of Glasgow can be found here.

If you have any more questions or need more information please do not hesitate to contact events (at) uksg.org.

Conference App

The conference app will be available nearer the conference, all registered delegates will receive and email with details on how to download the app. More details on the event app can be found here.

The app includes information on:

sessions and speakers (build your own programme)

delegates lists

sponsors and exhibitors

maps

take part in ‘The Passport Game’ with a chance to win £100 in vouchers

additional information/logistics

polls, Q&A, session chat

community/networking pages including ice breaking area’s.

John Merriman Award/Sponsored Places

More details on sponsored places will be available shortly.

The John Merriman award is supported by the generous sponsorship of Taylor & Francis Group

With thanks to our sponsors

Platinum Sponsors

Gold Sponsors

More details on sponsors can be found here

Programme

Monday 30 MarchTuesday 31 MarchWednesday 1 AprilBreakout sessionsWorkshops

Time

Programme

Speakers

08.00

Registration opens alongside refreshments and exhibition viewing

10.00

Opening of the Conference

followed by Presentation of Awards

Charlie Rapple

Kudos/Chair of UKSG

See Biography
Charlie Rapple is co-founder of Kudos, which works with researchers, funders, publishers and universities to ensure research is more widely found, understood, used and cited. With a background in scholarly publishing technology and marketing, she is passionate about ensuring research is more effectively communicated. She is currently serving as Chair of UKSG, having previously served as Vice Chair, Treasurer, Chair of the Marketing Subcommittee, and co-founder of KBART. She is a member of the Editorial Board for UKSG Insights, a blogger in the Scholarly Kitchen and a Fellow of the UN’s SDG Publishers Compact. Charlie has a BA in the History of Art and Architecture from the University of Bristol, and a postgraduate MDip from the Chartered Institute of Marketing.

10.20

Plenary 1

Achieving sustainable, widespread adoption of Open Access for books – Andrew Barker, Tom Morley

This plenary will pay tribute to the work of the late Elaine Sykes, Head of Open Research at Lancaster University, whose commitment to equitable publishing leaves an enduring legacy. Achieving sustainable, widespread adoption of Open Access for books requires urgent, systemic collaboration and cultural shift within institutions. At Lancaster University we have recognized the need to be more strategic in our approach to funding alternative publishing models and to effectively ‘put our money where our mouth is’ with regard to diversifying the publishing landscape. This plenary will illustrate how we have approached the operational and strategic implications of this ambition.

A fox in the henhouse? University presses, corporate takeovers, and implications for the future of scholarly books – Kira Hopkins

Andrew Barker

Lancaster University

See Biography
Andrew Barker has been Library Director at Lancaster University since September 2019. Prior to that he held a number of senior roles within a wide range of UK universities, including both Russell Group and Post 1992 Institutions. Within these institutions he has been responsible for all aspects of library leadership. Throughout his career in HE Andrew has also worked visibly, and actively, across the sector, often working closely with publishers on projects and advisory boards. He was a trustee of UKSG between 2014 and 2022, and was chair of its trustee board 2018 and 2022, he is currently Co-chair of SCONUL.

Tom Morley

Lancaster University

See Biography

Tom is currently undertaking a secondment as the Research Culture and Open Monographs Lead at Lancaster University Library. Within this role he leads and coordinates programmes of activity to develop an Open Research Culture as well as exploring options to facilitate open monograph publishing. In his substantive post he works across the areas of Open Access, Research Intelligence and Research Data Management to coordinate and deliver a range of projects, services and initiatives as an Open Research Officer. Tom is also co-editor of the UKSG e-News.

Kira Hopkins

Copim Open Book Futures / Birkbeck University

See Biography

Kira Hopkins works on Opening the Future, a part of Copim Open Book Futures. Previously, they worked at Ubiquity, a born-OA publishing house in London as a book editor and journal account manager, after completing a PhD in Archaeology.

12.00

Lunch and Exhibition Viewing

Sponsored by

12.00

Poster Session 1

How Wolverhampton’s Digital Strategy Advanced Accessibility at Scale – Aine Rice

Closing the Gender Gap: Peer Review at Nature Portfolio

We report on gender representation in the Nature Portfolio across multiple stages of the publication journey, considering who is submitting to our portfolio, what impact we make in our editorial decisions, and the impact of peer reviewers. We have considered author self-reported gender data for 215,000 submitted articles across Nature Portfolio journals, 42,000 of which have also been matched to reviewers self-reported gender data. Our analysis provides an opportunity to understand the potential impact that editors have at key stages of the process.

Áine Rice

Vitalsource

See Biography
Aine works closely with libraries and academic teams across the UK and Ireland to support smarter, more sustainable approaches to digital content. She believes librarians are the lynchpin of institutional teaching and learning experiences, connecting students with the right resources, at the right time, and in the right way. At VitalSource she leads engagement through various frameworks. She helps institutions navigate flexible access models, evidence-based procurement, and innovation through partnerships, from adaptive learning to the next wave of textbook access and OER discovery.

Marios Karouzos

Springer Nature

See Biography

Marios Karouzos is the Head of Publishing Strategy – Reviews, News & Opinion for the Nature Portfolio, mainly working on the publishing strategy of the Nature Portfolio hybrid and subscription journals. Marios is an astronomer by training and worked as a researcher before joining Springer Nature in 2016 as one of the launch editors of Nature Astronomy. Marios co-chairs the Springer Nature SDG working groups network and the Springer Nature Women employee resource group

13.30

Breakout Session – Group A

For further details of breakouts click here

13.30

Workshop 1

14.30

Breakout Session – Group B

For further details of breakouts click here

15.30

Refreshments and exhibition viewing

16.00

Breakout Session – Group C

For further details of breakouts click here

17.00

Lightning Talk 1

From Shakespeare to Eurovision – engaging users with Library eResources – Elaine Blair

From blog posts to Instagram stories via database lucky dips and Theatre Thursday, we have explored various tools and activities to enhance user engagement with eResources. This session will outline the work of the eResources Promotion Group at the Andersonian Library, University of Strathclyde which was established in March 2024. The aims of the group are to increase awareness and usage of Library eResources by University staff and students, deliver value for money on purchased eResources and investigate promotion tools and avenues

Reimagining research practices to address sustainability, ethical and inclusivity concerns. Introducing the CREDIT (Community REsearch DIgital Toolkit) to inspire researchers to involve and engage communities in their research – Louise Zambianchi

The “Reimagining Research Practices: Towards a Sustainable, Ethical, and Inclusive Future” project is a 2-year initiative funded by the Wellcome Trust, bringing together various academic departments and Professional Services within Lancaster University, including the Library and Research Services. Its aim is to explore and enhance our understanding of research practices to make them more inclusive and supportive of marginalised or disadvantaged communities. The presentation will give an overview of the project and explore one of the outputs of the project: the CREDIT (Community REsearch DIgital Toolkit) to inspire researchers to involve and engage communities in their research.

Netherlands University Presses (NUPs): Publishing on our own terms – Margreet Nieborg

Elaine Blair

University of Strathclyde

See Biography
Elaine has worked as the Science Faculty Librarian at the University of Strathclyde since 2005. She has a particular interest in promoting the Library and its electronic resources. Previous roles include Engineering Librarian at the University of Leeds and Mailbase User Support Officer at the University of Newcastle.

Louise Zambianchi

Lancaster University

See Biography

Louise Zambianchi has over 20 years’ experience of working in academic libraries. She has been working in the area of Open Access in her role as Open Access Manager and is also currently the Acting Head of Open Research at Lancaster University in the UK. Her professional interests include open access publishing, providing a support service for research students and academic staff and development of skills and training. Louise has engaged in many Open Research groups such as Academic Libraries North, RCUK Open Access practitioners’ group (which shaped the new UKRI policy) and led the open access submission for Lancaster University to REF2021

Margreet Nieborg

University of Groningen

See Biography

Margreet Nieborg is Project Manager and Head of the University of Groningen Press (UGP), and a board member of the Association of European University Presses (AEUP). Trained as an educationalist, she has led several initiatives within the University Library, including the establishment of UGP in 2017. UGP operates as a Diamond Open Access press publishing journals, books and textbooks, and is an active member of the Netherlands University Presses (NUPs).

17.30

Exhibition viewing and reception

19.00

Supper and quiz or free evening

Sponsored by

This event is optional; however, booking is mandatory. Please secure your place when completing your registration.

Time

Programme

Speakers

08.00

Registration opens alongside refreshments and exhibition viewing.

09.00

Plenary 2

Preparing Disaster-Ready Library Leaders: Advancing Advocacy for Libraries and the Communities they Serve – Feili Tu-Keefner Denise Lyons, Marcia A Mardis, David McMenemy

Feili Tu-Keefner

University of South Carolina

See Biography
Dr. Feili Tu-Keefner is an associate professor in the University of South Carolina’s School of Information Science. Her work focuses on health librarianship, health informatics, and health communication, with expertise in disaster management and the role of public libraries in community resilience. From 2015 to 2024, she led six case studies demonstrating libraries’ contributions to emergency response and recovery. She is a founding member and academic advisor for the USC Certificate in Health Communication and also contributes to the iSchool’s Information Security and Cyber Leadership programs. Dr. Tu-Keefner is a WHO-certified infodemic manager trained by the WHO and U.S. CDC.

Denise Lyons

Kentucky Department for Libraries and Archives

See Biography
Denise Lyons serves as the State Librarian and Commissioner of the Kentucky Department for Libraries and Archives in Frankfort, Kentucky. She brings extensive experience in library administration and management, strategic planning, family literacy, and advancing library leadership and resiliency during disasters. Over the past 30 years, she has worked in a wide range of libraries and nonprofit organizations and remains active in several library associations. Denise holds a MLIS from the University of South Carolina and a MS in Public Services Management from DePaul University. She has also taught as a lecturer in the Information Science program at UNC Greensboro.

10.30

Refreshments and exhibition viewing.

11.00

Breakout Session – Group A

For further details of breakouts click here

11.00

Workshop 2

12.00

Lightning 2

Building a community for scholarly communications research from the front lines – Beth Montague-Hellen

Research conducted by practitioners is vital to ensuring that scholarly developments are grounded in reality and aren’t simply theoretical. Within the LIS and scholarly communications communities there is a lot of appetite for research, which isn’t surprising given how closely we work with researchers and research outputs. However, many people who would like to carry out research don’t have the formal training that an academic route provides, and often any training that is present is from a different discipline. This talk introduces a burgeoning community of researchers and the infrastructure that is being put in place to support them: online communities, training materials and a new seminar series for presenting research.

Small changes: taking back control of our universities through open software – Simon Bowie

Universities in the UK are hindered by exploitative corporate software ecosystems. For all the advancement of open research and open access, the use and distribution of open source software in universities and libraries has been neglected in favour of the proprietary software defaults provided top-down by our institutions. Despite progress on open access publishing and open data sharing, university workers still use closed software like Microsoft Word for writing, Microsoft SharePoint for document management, and Microsoft Teams or Zoom for communication and conferencing. I want to discuss the failures of proprietary software in UK Higher Education and advocate for us to take back control of our work using open source software.

Proprietary software companies are openly exploiting universities and we are doing nothing to challenge them. A 2019 report from the UK’s Department of Education (2019) sets out the Government’s vision for the use of technology in education (specifically in England but with a clear agenda for the rest of the UK) and clearly communicates to vendors that UK education is a market ripe for exploitation. In this talk, I will discuss some some individual changes that we can make to our software practices – using Zotero for reference management, using kMeet for videoconferencing, and using Zettlr for note-taking and academic writing – before expanding out to larger software changes – divesting from companies like Microsoft and moving away from proprietary software platforms like Elsevier’s Pure or the Ex Libris suite of academic library systems. By embedding open source software in our working practices, we can divest from expensive and unreliable corporate software and take back control of our university IT

Beth Montague-Hellen

The Francis Crick Institute

See Biography
Dr Beth Montague-Hellen started off academic life as a Molecular Biologist studying at Manchester University. The next 14 years were spent as a bioinformatician, accruing an MSc and a Phd on the way. Following this, Beth decided that supporting others to do excellent research was far more rewarding than actually doing the research and so moved into Libraries and Research Support. Beth takes an as open-as-possible, EDI focused approach to research support and is a big advocate for green OA alongside a completely transparent research cycle including radically open data and software sharing.

Simon Bowie

University of Edinburgh

See Biography
Simon Bowie is an open source software developer focused on community-owned and scholar-led open publishing infrastructures. His academic work focuses on open source software and open access publishing, posthumanism, the expression of irony and sincerity, and radical librarianship.

12.30

Lunch and Exhibition Viewing

12.30

Poster 2

Open Access, Open Metadata, Open Archiving: How to Liberate Metadata Flows across the OA Books Landscape – Hannah Hillen

With open access quickly becoming the standard mode of publishing scholarly publications, including monographs and edited collections, the integration of fully open and high-quality metadata into book production workflows, library cataloging systems, and long-term preservation solutions is gaining importance and urgency.

The poster will showcase metadata workflows of a variety of small and medium-sized scholar-led and university and library publishers from across the globe through the usage of Thoth Open Metadata, a non-profit open source platform providing innovative metadata management, hosting, and distribution solutions tailored to tackle the problem(s) of getting Open Access works into the wider book supply chain, ensuring their long-term sustainability.

Evolution of semi-automated workflows – Alison Hazelaar

Hannah Hillen

Thoth Open Metadata

See Biography
Hannah is Metadata & Publisher Outreach Specialist at Thoth Open Metadata. She works closely with small publishers, onboarding and supporting them in use of the Thoth platform and services, and works on building partnerships and implementing dissemination channels between Thoth and platforms throughout the global book supply chain. She has an MA in Library & Information Management and a background in cataloguing, archiving and preservation of print and digital material in academic libraries.

Alison Hazelaar

University of Leeds

See Biography
TBC

14.00

Plenary session 3

The Value and Impact of EDI-Focused Resource Lists – Alex Mormoris, Lizzie McCauley, The Open University

The Open University Library creates Curated Resource Lists covering EDI, sustainability and wellness topics. The lists have grown to cover 15 different topics, with 10 more underway. The goal is to promote diverse perspectives, so that users can incorporate them into their various research needs and interests.

This session will cover:– The history of the lists– How the direction was decided– Collaboration between the Library and OU institutional networks– The role that user feedback plays– The value and impact These lists enable iterative evolution of content offering and exemplify the importance of EDI.

Alex Mormoris

The Open University

See Biography
Alex Mormoris is an e-content manager within the content and licensing team at the Open University. He is also currently a student on the MA Librarianship and Information Science course at the University of Sheffield. He is also a founding member of the Mercian Global Majority community of practice.

Lizzie McCauley

The Open University

See Biography
TBC

15.00

Breakout Session – Group B

For further details of breakouts click here

15.00

Workshop 3

16.00

Refreshments and exhibition viewing.

16.30

Breakout Session – Group D

For further details of breakouts click here

17.00

Exhibition viewing

19.00

Gala evening reception

Sponsored by

Time

Programme

Speakers

08.00

Registration opens alongside refreshments and exhibition viewing.

09.00

Plenary 4

What the Scholarly Community Can- Must- Do About Digital Preservation – Alicia Wise

Disappearing Data: Responding to Government Web Content Takedowns – Toby Green

Alicia Wise

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See Biography
TBC

Toby Green

Coherent Digital

See Biography
Toby, Publisher, Policy Commons and Co-Founder of Coherent Digital, has 35+ years experience in scholarly, policy and professional publishing. Previously, he held a variety of senior roles with OECD Publishing and Elsevier Science. Besides the formal stuff, Toby has wrestled with data publishing and is now trying to tame grey literature. He is a regular speaker at publishing and librarian events in Europe and North America. He serves as expert advisor to the Open Research Community. Previously, he was a member of the Royal Society of Chemistry Publishing Board and Chair of ALPSP. https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9601-9130 https://twitter.com/tobyabgreen .

10.00

Breakout Session – Group C

For further details of breakouts click here

11.00

Refreshments and exhibition viewing

11.30

Breakout Session – Group D

For further details of breakouts click here

12.30

Plenary 5

What’s keeping librarians and CISOs up at night?

Rick Anderson

Brigham Young University

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Rick Anderson is University Librarian of Brigham Young University. He serves on numerous editorial and advisory boards and is a regular contributor to the Scholarly Kitchen. He has served as president of NASIG and of the Society for Scholarly Publishing, and is a recipient of the HARRASSOWITZ Leadership in Library Acquisitions Award. Rick is the author of three books, including Scholarly Communication: What Everyone Needs to Know (Oxford University Press, 2018), which has been published in three languages.

Susie Winters

Springer Nature

See Biography
Susie Winter is Vice President Communications at Springer Nature.

Susie joined Springer Nature from the Publishers Association, the trade association for the publishing industry in the UK where, as Director of Policy and Communications, she was responsible for developing and leading the PA’s work across the policy agenda as well as promoting the contribution made by the UK publishing industry at both a UK and European level.

Prior to that, she was the first Director General for the Alliance for Intellectual Property, working to ensure that the importance of IP rights to the UK economy is recognised. Having begun her career as a Press and Broadcasting Officer for the Liberal Democrat Party she then spent several years at communications consultancy Luther Pendragon.

13.15

Summary and Close

For further details of breakouts click here

Debate Club! Hearing Out the Other Side’ on Some Core Tensions in Scholarly Publishing

Beth Bayley

Karger

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TBC

The Sustain-agility game

Sustainability is increasingly critical in UK academic libraries, not only in environmental terms but also in ensuring long-term access to knowledge, responsible resource use, and inclusive service delivery. Libraries must adapt to changing demands while supporting institutional sustainability goals. In this workshop we will use a board game as the basis for exploring practical strategies for embedding sustainability into library operations and strategies. By considering sustainability in all its forms, librarians can help future-proof services, reduce risk, and contribute meaningfully to a more resilient and equitable academic environment.

Angela Jones-Evans

University of Gloucestershire

See Biography
TBC

Diamond Open Scholarly Communication fund PANEL

Sustainability is increasingly critical in UK academic libraries, not only in environmental terms but also in ensuring long-term access to knowledge, responsible resource use, and inclusive service delivery. Libraries must adapt to changing demands while supporting institutional sustainability goals. In this workshop we will use a board game as the basis for exploring practical strategies for embedding sustainability into library operations and strategies. By considering sustainability in all its forms, librarians can help future-proof services, reduce risk, and contribute meaningfully to a more resilient and equitable academic environment.

Louise Otting-Geevers

Delft University of Technology

See Biography
Louise Otting is the Collections & License Manager at Delft University of Technology (TUD) Library, where she negotiates with publishers for access to sources and publishing. In close collaboration with the Open Access Advisor and the diamond University Press (TU Delft Open Publishing), she writes the policies regarding collection & publishing management. She also manages the collection & publishing budget, which includes a dedicated OA fund and an Open Scholarly Communications fund. She contributes to several national and international groups like UKB, the national consortium, Library Advisory Boards and is dedicated to advance open, sustainable & equitable scholarly communication.

Pascal Braak

University of Amsterdam

See Biography
Pascal Braak is an open access specialist at the Library of the University of Amsterdam (UvA). He has a degree in Library Sciences and Law. He has managed several projects related to open access at the university, amongst others the UvA Diamond Open Access Fund for the last five years. He is member of the Open Access Working Group of the Dutch Consortium of University Libraries and of the Advisory Panel Open Scholarly Communication from OSNL.

Feedback

The conference was great and was organised really well. Everyone was really friendly and I gained loads from it.
Previous delegate

I thoroughly enjoyed the conference and look forward to returning next year.
Previous delegate

Contact

General queries – events@uksg.org

Sponsorship opportunities – albert@contentonline.com

Exhibition queries – Karina Hunt at KHEC – karina@khec.co.uk

Cancellations

The closing date for cancellations is Friday 27th February at 5pm GMT. after which date cancellations will note be eligible for a refund. Cancellations should be sent in writing to events@uksg.org

The UKSG code of conduct can be found here

The General UKSG booking terms and conditions can be found here

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