STM publisher Elsevier, Netherlands, has announced that it is now offering its entire collection of books and journals on its online platform ScienceDirect, as well as access to its abstracts and citation database Scopus to innovators in 105 countries for free or little cost through the ARDI (Access to Research for Development and Innovation) programme.
Elsevier's contributions cover a vast array of scientific subject fields, with ARDI focusing on the use of mathematics, engineering, life sciences and physical sciences content by academic and research centers and government institutions, such as patent offices. Elsevier has provided access to select journals since it first participated in the programme in 2009.
ARDI is coordinated by the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) as part of the Research4Life program, a public-private partnership that includes United Nations agencies WIPO, the World Health Organization (WHO), the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), and the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), the International Association of Scientific, Technical & Medical Publishers (STM), leading academic libraries, and technology partner Microsoft.
In developing countries, local innovation is important to the success of national economies. Young scientists and their research institutions need to access the latest developments in technology found in scientific and technical literature before patenting and commercializing their inventions. However, without sufficient access to journals, their ability to learn from scientific information is limited; efforts are slow and arduous. Through ARDI, developing countries are given direct access to high-quality published content from several publishers allowing select academic and research institutions to develop and innovate more effectively, and patent offices to protect and reward innovation more efficiently.
