OARE: UNEP enabling academic institutions in developing countries to access scientific information

Nairobi, 07 November 2007 - More than 50 members from the University of Nairobi, Geography Students Society (UNGSS) participated in one day training on the Online Access to Research in the Environment (OARE) organized by UNEP, in Nairobi on November 7, 2007. The objective of this training was to enable participants acquire the necessary skills to access the wide range of scientific knowledge available on OARE portal.

By enabling local institutions access scientific information published by the leading publishing houses in the World, UNEP is strengthening developing countries capacities to tackle the environment challenges affecting them.

OARE was launched late 2006 by UNEP in partnership with Yale University, International Association of Scientific Technical and Medical Publishers, over 340 international publishers and prestigious scientific societies and associations to provide developing countries access to one of the world’s largest collections of environmental science research online.

OARE launched the first phase of its activities late in 2006, opening its doors to 70 of the least developing nations. In 12 months, 550 public institutions and local non governmental organizations enrolled each receiving access to scientific literature worth a US annual retail subscription value in excess of $1.5 million, that represents approximately 75 percent of the world’s most prestigious and highly cited scientific research in the environmental sciences.

The second phase of OARE, which was launched recently, will enable more than 37 new countries to join the OARE consortium.

Enabled by technology and guided by shared vision, the OARE consortium is increasing in the number and diversity of its participating organizations and in the richness of its scientific holdings. The partners encourage developing-country organizations to explore the resources available in OARE, and encourage institutions interested in joining the consortium to contact them to learn more about how they might contribute to the OARE mission.  Institutions enroll in OARE by completing the online registration form available on the OARE website at www.oaresciences.org or writing to oare@oaresciences.org.