The Open Knowledge Hub project brings together knowledge producers and intermediaries, particularly those in developing countries, to work together collaboratively to address gaps and inequalities in the availability and accessibility of development research. In particular the project focuses on using Open Knowledge approaches – emerging technology and standards from the Open Access and Open Data movements.
The first phase of the project was supported by the DFID-funded Global Open Knowledge Hub (GOKH) programme and delivered by the Open Knowledge and Digital Services team at the Institute of Development Studies (IDS) based in the UK. IDS convened a core group of ten partners to share knowledge and experience, develop the applications, and open up their content for use in the Hub.
The Open Knowledge Hub platform (okhub.org) is the product of this collaboration. It primarily consists of a database of partners’ open-licensed content about development research documents with a set of supporting tools to make it easier for that content to be shared and repackaged – either between the project partners or by third parties.
The starting point of the Open Knowledge Hub project was the belief that the adoption of so-called ‘Open Knowledge’ approaches had the potential to improve the impact of research evidence on development outcomes and address inequalities in the visibility, accessibility and uptake of diverse knowledge about development.
This paper describes what was learned about the drivers and motivations for knowledge organisations to engage with Open Knowledge approaches. It also addresses the issues and barriers to engagement that, it is argued, threaten to undermine these potential benefits. The paper looks at both direct learning from the project and external research evidence accumulated during the work undertaken.