There is a new seamless, one-click link to scholarly research in the Dag Hammarskjöld Library catalogue.  Just look for the pink PDF icons in your results list to instantly retrieve open-access articles.

While UN staff and delegates continue to work remotely, the Dag Hammarskjöld Library is committed to enhancing means and technologies that will improve access to electronic resources for its clients.

Look for the pink PDF icon

A recent improvement is the addition of open access content in the Dag Hammarskjöld Library catalogue. The links are supported by the Unpaywall database, a non-profit service that has indexed over 27 million open access scholarly articles.

Several studies have established that nearly half of the research papers that people look for online are available for free, but these are not always easy to find.  The Unpaywall tool helps to bridge this gap.

There is no need to do anything special to use the new tool.  Just look for the pink PDF icons in your results list when searching the library catalogue and click the icon to instantly access your open-access article (see an example of the pink icon above).

Breaking down the paywall

Advocates for open access seek to increase the availability of free scholarly research online, which too often is locked behind expensive “paywalls”. 

Open access is an international movement that promotes the free sharing of knowledge in society without barriers. The movement pushes back against a profit-driven scholarly publishing market dominated by a handful of mega-publishers.  

Subscription prices for academic journals have risen exponentially over the past several decades. This has resulted in an environment where increasingly only the privileged few can access scholarly information.

Championing the open access movement

The right to share in scientific advancements and its benefits is enshrined in Article 27 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, and access to information has been recognized as a key driver in achieving the Sustainable Development Goals. 

Goal 16, target 10 prioritizes public access to information for all, while Goal 10 calls for the reduction of inequalities and inclusion of all. 

To promote these goals the Dag Hammarskjöld Library has been a champion of the open access movement and has hosted two conferences on open access in 2018  and on open science in 2019.