Research Partnership

Our ambition as a library is to go beyond being a service provider to work in partnership with our academic community

Open Research

Something about Open Research services

Open Research Spaces

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Open Research Spaces: How a library can foster an

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.

Events spaces in use

Event spaces

Safepod

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Research Culture week

Research culture week

Lancaster University Open Journals

In January 2025, we launched Lancaster University Open Journals a service managed by the Library for hosting academic open access journals. The service supports a variety of journals and is available for Lancaster University staff to produce journals, conference proceedings and other publications.

We have developed this service to make it possible and easy for colleagues who wish to develop scholar-led open access journals to host their publications and manage their journal workflows on the platform for free. The service removes the need for colleagues to pay expensive annual subscription fees (usually between £1200 to £1500) for hosting services and ensures their long-term preservation without the need to continuously find sources of funding.

Experience of a Journal Editor

Dr Stanley Blue, Editor-in-Chief of the Journal of Practice Theory, discusses how Lancaster University Open Journals has supported their publication

Black text saying Reimagining Research Practices

Reimagining Research Practices: Towards a Sustainable, Ethical, and Inclusive Future

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 departments and services within Lancaster University, including LICA, the Library, LEC, Psychology, and Research Services.

Within this interdisciplinary team, Prof Carlos Lopez-Galviz and Dr Nuri Kwon from ImaginationLancaster in LICA explore the inclusion perspective by working closely with Elaine Sykes and Louise Zambianchi at the Library, and two Education Fellows, Dan Craddock and Valerie Seymour. The project aims to explore and enhance our understanding of research practices to make them more inclusive and supportive of marginalised or disadvantaged communities.

 

To find out more contact Project Manager Catriona Gold: c.gold@lancaster.ac.uk

Principles of Open Research

Info on University Principles of Open Research

Orange text saying 'OBF'

Open Book Futures Project

Led by Lancaster University, Open Book Futures (OBF) is a £5.8 million funded project that will develop and support organisations, tools and practices that enable both academics and the wider public to make more and better use of books published on an Open Access basis. In particular, the project, which is also supported by Lancaster University Library, aims to achieve a step change in how community-owned Open Access book publishing is delivered.

Open Access books are made freely available on the internet without access restrictions. They are available to anyone with an internet connection, anywhere in the world, which increases the opportunities for research to be read, discussed, and cited. They have the potential to reach wider and more diverse audiences who might lack the resources to purchase it otherwise. Lancaster University is committed to ensuring that the outputs of our research are made readily available to anyone who would benefit from them.