+27 21 959 2946library@uwc.ac.za
Open Access is the free, immediate, online availability of research articles coupled with the rights to use these articles fully in the digital environment. Open Access ensures that anyone can access and use these results to turn ideas into industries and breakthroughs into better lives (SPARC)
Green open access refers to the self-archiving of an article in a non-commercial subject repository or non-commercial institutional repository (usually after an embargo period). It is the Accepted Manuscript not the Final Published Version (see definitions for an explanation of different article versions) which can be archived. The Accepted Manuscript can be posted after a 12-month embargo for most IOP journals. However, certain partner titles published by IOP have different rules; please see Author rights for details. No contribution is made to the costs of publication by the author.
Gold open access is where an author publishes their article in an online open access journal. In contrast, green open access is where an author publishes their article in any journal and then self-archives a copy in a freely accessible institutional or specialist online archive known as a repository, or on a website.
In terms of the requirements set by funding bodies and individual institutions, both possibilities can be considered to be of equal value, with just a few exceptions.
University of the Western Cape,
Robert Sobukwe Road,
Bellville,
7535
Tel: 021 959 2946
