OHCHR seminar on the right to benefit from scientific progress

EIFL Open Access Programme Manager Iryna Kuchma has been invited to speak at a seminar organized by the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) – the United Nations office with primary responsibility for promoting and protecting the enjoyment and full realization of human rights for all.

The ‘seminar on the right to benefit from scientific progress and its applications’ was mandated by the Human Rights Council and will be a two-day panel discussion on October 3-4, 2013. 

EIFL's presentation is scheduled for the second panel on October 4, 2013 and will be entitled “Access to information, technology and knowledge”. 

The presentation will address the importance of access in the context of the right to enjoy the benefits of scientific progress, the economic, technical and legal barriers to access as well as best practices in this area. EIFL’s advocacy for open access policies will also be presented. 

Background

In November 2011, EIFL responded to the Consultation on the ‘right to enjoy benefits of scientific progress and its applications’ announced by the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights. 

Read EIFL’s response to Question 5:

What legal, administrative, policy or other measures have been adopted/are under consideration to eliminate barriers to scientific communication and collaboration, such as censorship, restrictions on access to the Internet or on free availability of scientific literature and journals?

The consultation provided an opportunity for EIFL to contribute its views to the Independent Expert’s annual report to the Human Rights Council, presented in May 2012. 

The results can be viewed in the Report of the Special Rapporteur in the field of cultural rights, Farida Shaheed: The right to enjoy the benefits of scientific progress and its applications.

Location