Open Educational Resources Advocacy Toolkit by Council of Australians University Librarians is licensed under CC BY 4.0 except where otherwise stated.
You'll need to know who your potential partners and stakeholders are to successfully implement your OER advocacy action plan. Partners will be able to support and contribute to your advocacy plan through the sharing of information, resources and capabilities. Stakeholders can include anyone who will have an influence on OER outcomes or will be affected by OER initiatives. The diagram below provides an overview of OER advocacy partners and stakeholders.
'OER Advocacy Partners and Stakeholders' in the CAUL OER Advocacy Toolkit by CAUL, licensed under a CC BY 4.0 licence.
Below is a list of key partners you'll need to include in your OER advocacy action plan. You can find more in-depth information on identifying your key allies for OER creation and adoption in Target Your OER Advocacy.
Libraries often have key services, infrastructure and expertise that can help further OER initiatives. Library staff may have insight into key issues through their provision of resources and interactions with staff and students.
You want faculty to use OER in their courses. Faculty need to be aware of the benefits and support OER implementation to become OER practitioners.
Learning designers work with faculty to build course content. Having allies in this community will help to spread the message and ensure greater implementation.
Resources used in courses affect student success and wellbeing. Understanding their experiences and raising awareness of OER in this group is crucial to the success of your action plan.
Administrative staff, leaders, heads of schools and directors set priorities for their units and can share information relevant to OER.
Governance staff are responsible for the overall direction of strategic planning in the organisation, create policies and control finances. It's important to build awareness and support for OER in this leadership group so that OER is considered a part of the strategic goals.
Committees carry out policy and administrative work for the organisation and can influence strategic planning decisions. There may be multiple committees that are important to your OER advocacy goals. Teaching, academic program and student committees all have a role in the advancement of OER.
Cummings-Sauls, R., Ruen, M., Beaubien, S., & Smith, J. (2019). Open partnerships: Identifying and recruiting allies for open educational resources initiatives. In A. Wesolek, J. Lashley & A. Langley (Eds.), OER: A field guide for academic librarians (Editor’s cut). Boise State University. https://boisestate.pressbooks.pub/oer-field-guide/chapter/open-partnerships-identifying-and-recruiting-allies-for-open-educational-resources-initiatives/