#OAWeek2025: Language, Visibility, and Access – A Brazilian Perspective on Openness

On October 7, 2025, we welcomed Luciana Mara Silva from the Universidade do Estado de Santa Catarina (UDESC) in Brazil to the University Library of the Hamburg University of Technology (TUB). As part of her work, she supports researchers with questions about publications, the UDESC repository, and other topics related to research and science. The UDESC repository works similarly to TUHH Open Research – it makes the university’s research results visible and freely accessible.

During a tour – supplemented by a preliminary round of discussions – Luciana Mara Silva reported on how open science and open access are being implemented in Brazil, what role repositories play in this, and what connects them to this year’s Open Access Week motto, „Who Owns Our Knowledge?“ Throughout, we were accompanied by her colleague Dayanne Dornelles (coordinator of the UDESC University Library) and a translator. We had prepared seven questions for the discussion, among other things.

We meet Luciana in the entrance area of the TUB. Around us is the typical everyday life of a library: students on their way to their workplaces, quiet voices at the service point. She begins:

1. What does open science mean to you personally and for your work at UDESC?

For me, open science represents a fundamental change in the way we produce, share, and democratize scientific knowledge. At UDESC, we encourage researchers to publish in high-impact scientific journals and promote the wide dissemination of research results through our institutional repository.

In my daily work, this means ensuring that UDESC’s theses, dissertations, scientific articles, and other academic publications are accessible not only to the academic community, but also to the entire society that funds public research.

As we walk through the library, we pause between the research computers and the pick-up shelves. Behind us, someone is quietly typing on a keyboard. Luciana explains:

2. How is open access being implemented in Brazil? Are there any particular opportunities or challenges?

Brazil has a positive outlook and is constantly evolving with the support of government agencies such as IBICT, CAPES, and funding agencies.

Opportunities:

• Growth of the Brazilian network of digital repositories
• Increasingly consolidated institutional guidelines
• Cooperation projects such as IBICT

Specific challenges:

• Limitations of technological infrastructure
• Need for profound cultural changes in the academic community
• Limited resources for implementing comprehensive policies
• Questions about the financing and sustainability of repositories

We now enter the rotunda of the TUB, a tall, glass-enclosed room filled with daylight. The pastel-colored furnishings stand out against the light-colored walls, and the room sounds more open, with a slight echo. Every now and then, we hear the rustling of a newspaper. Luciana lets her gaze wander around the room before she says:

3. What role do repositories such as UDESC play in the visibility and accessibility of research results?

Institutional repositories represent the starting point for the open access movement and play a crucial role in the democratization of knowledge. The UDESC repository:

• Preserves the intellectual heritage of the university for future generations
• Increases the visibility of Santa Catarina’s research at the national and international level
• Democratizes access to publicly funded knowledge
• Strengthens institutional identity through the systematic organization of academic production
• Facilitates research discovery through integration with national platforms

Our repository is not only a digital archive, but also a strategic tool for managing the university’s intellectual output.

We are still in the rotunda, where students are currently working on a puzzle provided by the library. Luciana Mara Silva watches them briefly before we talk about the motto of Open Access Week 2025.

4. The theme of this year’s Open Access Week is „Who Owns Our Knowledge?“ How would you answer this question?

This is a provocative question that is extremely relevant in the current context. It invites us to reflect on power, control, and the democratization of knowledge.

Scientific knowledge, especially that which is publicly funded, must belong to society. We must not allow commercial, technological, or linguistic barriers to restrict access to knowledge. We must strengthen public infrastructures for scientific communication and interinstitutional partnerships.

On the way to the magazine, we got into conversation with several colleagues from TUB. A colleague from media relations talks about her work with TUHH Open Research (TORE). Luciana listens with interest and in return tells her about her experiences at UDESC.

The topic of language barriers also comes up, and Luciana explains how these affect the visibility of research from Brazil.

5. Language plays an important role in science. What experiences have you had with language barriers? Do they affect the visibility of research from Brazil?

Language barriers are one of the challenges facing Brazilian science. It is important to preserve and value the thematic, linguistic, and cultural diversity of Brazilian science – it is what gives it its unique identity. With the emergence of generative artificial intelligence, the loss of linguistic diversity is a cause for concern, and we must take action. Promoting multilingual abstracts and metadata is one example of this.

We now enter the TUB magazine, a quiet area where books are lined up close together on tall shelves. At the other end, subdued light falls through the windows. Luciana’s gaze wanders to the now decommissioned book transport system. When asked, I briefly explain how it works before we continue between the shelves. As we walk, Luciana talks about her experiences interacting with colleagues in Europe and reflects on the importance of international networking – later in the week, she will also attend the Open Science Conference in Hamburg.

6. How important is international exchange for the further development of open science? What did you take away from your visit to TUB Hamburg?

International exchange is essential to accelerate the adoption of best practices in open science. Collaboration includes:

• Sharing experiences on policies and infrastructure
• Learning about models for repository sustainability
• Developing international interoperability standards
• Building collaborative research networks

In the distance, we hear a colleague who is probably taking some books off a shelf. Luciana takes a quick look at the quiet aisles between the tall shelves before talking about her impressions of open access and open science activities in Europe:

7. When you think about open access and open science activities in Europe, what is the first thing that comes to mind? Are there things that particularly strike you here, or that are different from Brazil?

First impression: Europe takes a more systematic approach and has a consolidated infrastructure for open science. Investments in technological infrastructure and human resources are evident.

At the same time, Europe can learn from our creativity in contexts with limited resources. Both sides can collaborate on issues of linguistic and cultural diversity in science.

This visit offers a unique opportunity to strengthen the bridges between our academic communities and to move forward together on the path to global and open science.

Back in front of the entrance to the university library, opposite the TUHH’s Audimax II, we say goodbye to Luciana Mara Silva. We talk briefly about her plans for the coming days in Hamburg before she attends the Open Science Conference. We thank her warmly for the insightful conversation and the insights into the Brazilian perspective on open science and open access. The exchange once again highlights how valuable international networking is for the further development of open science – especially in a week that focuses on open access to knowledge under the motto „Who Owns Our Knowledge?“

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