JST Policy on Open Access to Research Publications and Research Data Management (2017), Science Council of Japan

What is this about?

The JST Policy on Open Access to Research Publications and Research Data Management (2017), issued by the Science Council of Japan, promotes open science by making openness the default while allowing exceptions for ethics, privacy, intellectual property, and security. It requires open access to publications via repositories with minimal embargoes, Creative Commons licences, and persistent identifiers, and encourages FAIR data practices supported by data management plans. The policy defines responsibilities for researchers, institutions, and funders, and stresses infrastructure such as repositories and discovery services to ensure compliance. Monitoring focuses on the quality of openness metadata, reproducibility, and data or code sharing rather than publication counts. Equity is emphasized through zero-embargo access, reduced costs for authors, and multilingual communication, while responsible openness is supported by safeguards for sensitive data and governance oversight. Overall, the policy provides practical guidance for Japan’s research community while aligning with international open science efforts.

For whom is this important?

Funding institutionsResearch institutionsResearchers

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