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Scientific knowledge and the public good Rights, Responsibilities and CommunityDriven Governance Ginevra Peruginelli, National Research Council of Italy Reclaiming knowledge: why Diamond Open Access matters, Decembre 11th, 2025
Market vs Commons Two incompatible logics (Samuel Moore) The goal of commons-based publishers is not to make money, but to enable research communities to shape and share their work as they wish https://doi.org/10.3998/mpub.11781635
Different legal dimensions Research outputs ▪Who owns the rights? ▪Who controls them? ▪Who benefits? Editorial venues •Who owns each journal title? •What is the legal relationship between the journal and the publisher? •What are the rights and responsibilities of editors?
The 2 paradoxes of scholarly communication "Every time you submit an article or run a Journal you make a choice" 1 —Research Outputs (Copyright paradox) Public funding →Your research You transfer copyright →all rights go to the publisher Result: Public knowledge becomes private property 2 —Editorial Venues (Ownership paradox) Research community →Your collective work (peer review, editorial labour…) You transfer journal ownership →legal control shifts to the publisher Result: Community-built journals become private property
Three pillars framework RIGHTS Legal ownership & control RESPONSIBILITIES GOVERNANCE Collaboration AI-generated image
PILLAR 1: Rights The constitutional paradox of copyright Human right •Art. 27 Universal Declaration •Art. 15 Int. Covenant ESC Rights •Science as fundamental right -Inalienable right to open or to “liberate” scientific texts Current reality •Publicly funded research •Copyright transferred to publishers •Paywalled from public
Legal tools to retain rights The infrastructure already exists Rights Retention Strategy Coalition S mandate - CC BY required 7 EU countries: Germany, Netherlands, Belgium... Authors retain control + enable reuse Example: Germany §38(4) UrhG: After 12 months, authors can freely republish funded research - national law overrides publisher contracts Secondary Publishing Rights Creative Commons Licences
PILLAR 2: Responsibilities Distributed, not individual Universities Mandatory institutional policies, contract audits, invest in alternative infrastructure Researchers/learned societies Understand what you sign, retain rights, but collective action needed Funders Impose rights conditions (Coalition S Plan S, Horizon Europe mandates) Governments Legislate to protect public knowledge (secondary publishing rights) Care ethics: Recognise invisible labour (peer review, editorial work) as commons requiring collective care, not commodity for extraction
PILLAR 3: Community-Driven Governance Market logic •Product •Pay •Competition •Speed •Private governance •Value extraction Commons logic •Collective knowledge •Mutual care •Collaboration •Quality •Democratic governance •Shared value AI-generated image
