‘Open science and open access set to become the norm’

From now on, all new books and journals written, edited or published by BK City staff will have to be open access publications. As a result, all knowledge generated by the faculty will be accessible to anyone with an internet connection. In an effort to close the gap between academia and practice, TU Delft and the Dutch government are consulting with various publishers to try to make existing publications open access too.

BK City and TU Delft have spent the past few years trying to make articles and books freely and digitally accessible to all. Something that began as a bottom-up initiative by academics has now risen above activism. The current Dutch government even included the topic as a key objective in its coalition agreement: ‘Open science and open access are set to become the norm in scientific research’. The parties funding scientific research, such as the H2020 and the Netherlands Organisation for Scientific Research (NWO), are also demanding ‘open access’ as a condition for providing research grants. 

Architecture and the Built Environment has a direct relationship with the public and the professional field. There is widespread interest in architecture and design, and the impact of the professional field is huge. Open access will bring research and practice closer together, strengthening the connection. Paywalls erected by publishers no longer form a problem. It will be easier to share knowledge, and this wider availability of digital information will lead to more citations. TU Delft Open serves as a publisher of digital publications, with the option of ordering printed publications on demand at reasonable prices. BK Books is an online library that stores all the books and journals written, edited or published by BK City staff. Existing printed publications will also be offered in open access. Examples include OverHolland by VanTilt publishers and the nai010 Imagine series.