From ICommons wiki

Proposed framework for implementation of the Rio Framework on Open Science in South Africa

This project will form part of Commons-sense II, a project to develop the concepts of alternative intellectual property rights frameworks in Africa. Below follows the project overview. Initial workshops with Science Commons will take place in February, 2007. Project overview

Title: Commons-sense II: African innovation and exploration around access to knowledge and an African Intellectual Property Rights (IPR) Research Agenda

This is a project, initiated by a partnership led by the University of the Witwatersrand Learning Information Networking and Knowledge (LINK) Centre, the African Commons Project (ACP), Science Commons and the Southern Africa Regional Universities Association (SARUA) to build and develop an African ‘Access to Knowledge’ research agenda with a particular focus on the scientific and research commons in Africa. Commons-sense II will lead a debate about the research priorities of a new network of African intellectual property development experts, building a solid partnership across the continent, and developing useful resources and discussion points that are firmly rooted in African developmental priorities. In so doing, the Commons-sense II project will continue to empower African voices in the global Access to Knowledge and Science Commons debates in order to build African intellectual property policy into a mechanism for growth, innovation and development.

Duration: 12 months starting October, 2006

Objectives:

The general objective of this project is to deepen the understanding of the possibilities and challenges offered by commons-based approaches to knowledge production in Africa.

More specifically:

1) to develop an African research agenda to guide future studies into the viability, relevance and implementation of alternative intellectual property rights management and policy development posited by the global Access to Knowledge and knowledge commons campaigns;

1) to develop the capacity of a core team of researchers in African universities to undertake research into intellectual property policy alternatives by facilitating collaborative discussion around the development of an African Intellectual Property Research Agenda, which will culminate in a meeting of 20+ researchers from African countries who will set the agenda in terms of direction, deliverables and expectations for the next five years.;

1) to examine the role of ‘open access’ and Science Commons legal frameworks in developing an African Science Commons in universities and research institutions;

1) to scope out the research and development terrain of African actors affected by intellectual property issues, in order to identify the key issues surrounding intellectual property in developing African countries;

2) to build the capacity of African intellectual property research by identifying and connecting researchers, intellectual property specialists, advocacy representatives and activists within the African context so that they can begin developing region-specific frameworks around intellectual property issues;

3) to analyse the relevance of digital ecosystems to the African publishing sector.

Abstract:

This 12-month project aims to develop the groundwork for a vibrant, prolific regional network of researchers investigating African intellectual property policy alternatives for broad-based economic growth and development over the next 5 years. The main outputs of the project include:

a) An African research agenda proposing areas of priority for African intellectual property researchers and scholars over the next 5 years;

b) A strategic plan for developing a peer-reviewed African open access intellectual property journal that will publish the results of the network’s research;

c) A comprehensive, collaborative 2006/7 edition of the ‘African Digital Commons Guide’ which will examine the progress made in growing the ‘commons’ movement in Africa over the past year, and analyse priority areas outlined by the research agenda;

d) The development of an “Open Knowledge Charter” explaining the viability, relevance and tools necessary for implementing African Science Commons policies in Southern African universities as well as a set of directions for achieving the benefits and limiting the potential threats to open access and open research for distribution and workshopping among SARUA members;

e) An analysis of the relevance of the commercial contract (developed during Commons-sense I Open Business Model project) in the development of digital ecosystems.

Administrative information

Project leader: Heather Ford Executive Director, iCommons