The original promise of an Open Access model of publishing was to make research outcomes available to the public who paid for the research to have taken place through publicly funded research grants. As a result, the movement toward OA publishing has taken on a life of its own as a commercial publishing strategy, driven by many factors. Yet, how are we actually doing in fulfilling one of the fundamental promises of OA—actually getting research findings into the hands of the public, policymakers, and practitioners in a usable format that actually affects change, rather than just making research findings more accessible to researchers? The two goals are quite different! This webinar will discuss motivations and models and present case studies about how to deliver on the promise to make research outcomes truly accessible and actionable. Addressing this “Last Mile” of research communication is critical to informing and empowering those who make policies and laws, which influence responsible corporate and personal behavior, and who help shape public perception.

The pandemic united us in ways we'd never experienced. It blurred the lines between silos and helped us realize shared experiences where we may have thought "disparate" was a better descriptor of roles in the publishing community. We realized that we all want best-in-class in collaboration, problem-solving, and inclusion, even though our environment sometimes makes it difficult for us to imagine seeing eye-to-eye. || Speakers: Michele Avissar-Whiting; Dominque J. Moore; Ben Mudrak; Jennifer Regala; Alexa Colella; Willa Liburd Tavernier