SUSI, the new Open Access archive of USI publications

It is called SUSI (https://susi.usi.ch) and collects the academic output of USI researchers online, guaranteeing free access in accordance with its Open Access policies of scientific publishers. The renewal of the platform, an evolution of the previous RERO DOC portal coordinated by the USI Libraries, promotes visibility and searchability of the results of research conducted by the university.

This is the first important step, which will be followed by others: in fact, the introduction of the SUSI infrastructure will allow, in the coming months, the development of other functionalities related to agile coordination of USI researchers' publications in the framework to meet the goals set by the Swiss National Open Access Strategy, which aims to achieve 100% of Swiss academic publications with open access by 2024. An ambitious goal that is central to knowledge sharing and scientific and economic innovation.  

SUSI is hosted on the SONAR platform and is a project co-funded by swissuniversities. USI Libraries have participated in its development since 2017 together with Fondation RERO+, HES-SO (Haute école spécialisée de Suisse occidentale) and FHGR (Fachhoschule Graubünden). The USI institutional repository, active from 2005 to this day at RERO DOC, has found in the SONAR platform a suitable solution to current needs, both technological and data management. The mode of depositing publications remains unchanged.

It is a priority for USI to ensure that the results of its research are disseminated locally, nationally and internationally as efficiently as possible. Open Access to scientific research results is based precisely on the principle of knowledge as a common good: the results of publicly funded academic research should, therefore, be publicly, promptly and freely accessible, allowing them to be reused by third parties without restriction. In identifying with these principles, USI joined, for example, a conspicuous number of scientific organisations, libraries, universities and research institutes in 2016 by adhering to the Berlin Declaration on Open Access. In addition to this, similar to other Swiss academic institutions, the University shares and pursues the goals set by swissuniversities' Swiss National Open Access Strategy, to which major research funding bodies, such as the Swiss National Science Foundation, also subscribe.

Researchers who need additional information can contact the Libraries of Università della Svizzera italiana:

• Email: [email protected]
• Campuses Lugano information: https://en.bul.sbu.usi.ch/information/open_access
• Campus Mendrisio information: http://biblio.arc.usi.ch/it/pubblicare_e_depositare/open_access