Open by default
Something funny happens when people see the effects of open in their lives. They begin to demand it. We start expecting open policies and practices from our governments, our universities, and our employers. Today, people notice when those in power choose closed. Since the first CC licenses launched eleven years ago, a global community and movement have grown up around them and used them as an instrument for change in the world.
Creative Commons has long held that resources that are paid for with public funds should be licensed openly. We advise lawmakers worldwide on ensuring that works produced with government funds are licensed to allow maximum use by the public. In some cases, as with the US Department of Labor’s multibillion-dollar TAACCCT program, we’re helping institutions implement open licensing across billions of dollars of content, to ensure maximum use and reuse.
In the past year, we’ve been working with our partners in the open space to launch two important new projects, the Open Policy Network and the Institute for Open Leadership. Both projects are designed to help connect and empower individuals and organizations around the world who advocate for open policies. There’s too much work to be done for any one organization to do it alone. The more that we can coordinate with each other, the more effective we can be.
But open policy is about more than open licensing. We believe that whenever the scope, duration, or limitations of copyright law are under discussion, lawmakers should think carefully about how those decisions impact the public’s right to information, knowledge, and culture. That’s why this past year, we released a policy statement making our support for global copyright reform clear.
For people who have followed Creative Commons’ history, the statement shouldn’t come as a surprise. Many of our international affiliates and community members are strong voices for reform in their respective countries. In publishing this statement, we’re making it clear that we stand with our community in its demand for more user-friendly copyright law.
Except where otherwise noted, The future is open by Creative Commons is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
Image credits
- Globe / Edward Boatman / CC BY 3.0
- File Repair (copyright symbol added) / iconoci / CC BY 3.0
- Link / Matthew Exton / Public Domain
- Raised Hand / Stephen JB Thomas / CC BY 3.0
- Money / Alex Berkowitz / CC BY 3.0
- Gary Hamel / Libby Levi for opensource.com / CC BY-SA 2.0 (cropped and color adjusted)
- Arial view of Cape Town / Hilton1949 / CC BY-SA 3.0 (cropped and color adjusted)
- Brigham Young University faculty survey seeks to advance open education through academic libraries / Jessica Duensing for opensource.com / CC BY-SA 2.0 (cropped and color adjusted)
- Online Open Ed Resources & Open Licences / Giulia Forsythe / CC BY 2.0 (cropped and color adjusted)
- 200711 unesco / Bentley Smith / CC BY-NC-SA 2.0 (cropped and color adjusted)
- America Today / marsmettnn tallahassee / CC BY-NC-SA 2.0 (cropped and color adjusted)
The banner illustrations were created by Luke Surl. To the extent possible under the law, Luke has waived all copyright and related or neighboring rights under the CC0 Public Domain Dedication.
The “The future is open” logo is set in Akzidenz Grotesk Bold. This website is set in Roboto Slab.