POLICY CONCERNING THE USE AND PUBLICATION OF DATA

The OOT’s aim is that the data and information that it gathers be widely accessible, not only to members of the organisation, but also to other people and organizations. By so doing, the OOT seeks to enable the development of ornithology as a whole, facilitate the monitoring of bird populations, to protect endangered species, and to favour scientific research. The OOT also seeks to ensure its own long-term development and the protection of the interests of the individuals or organizations who have contributed to the gathering of these data.

The OOT wishes to encourage the members of its organization (either past or present), and other individuals outside the organization, to publish results or findings based either wholly or partly on the data of the OOT, in scientific reviews or any other appropriate media.

USE OF DATA OR INFORMATION FROM THE OBSERVATORY

Unless otherwise stated, the data provided by the OOT to a given researcher/author are to be used solely for the means identified in the Data Use and Publication Agreement (e.g., in a stipulated publication, thesis, presentation or poster). If the researcher/author wishes to use the same data for means other than those specified initially, he/she must draw up a new Data Use and Publication Agreement with the OOT, or there must be a mutual agreement as to the modification of an existing Agreement. None of the data provided by the OOT can be distributed to a person that is not identified by the Agreement.

PROCESS OF APPROVAL

Before any data can be made available to a researcher/author, the OOT must receive a completed copy of the Access to Data and Data Use & Publication Agreement form (Section 1 only). This should include a written proposal (maximum of 2 pages) outlining the nature and the subject of the research, and the type of data required. If the request is judged to be acceptable, Section 2 of the form, which deals with the cost and conditions of use (if applicable), will be completed and returned to the demander for acceptance of the conditions and for signing. The data requested will be delivered once the form has been signed and the costs (if applicable) paid.

Approval of the OOT’s partners – Before data from the OOT can be made available to a researcher/author, it is the responsibility of the OOT’s director to assure that the Access to Data and Data Use and Publication Agreement requested is not in conflict with any other current Agreement, understanding or contract binding the OOT to its partners.

COST OF DATA

AUTHORS (IN THE CASE OF A CONTRIBUTION BY A MEMBER OF THE OOT TO THE PROJECT)

If a request for data includes a research or publication proposal that foresees a significant contribution by a member or members of the OOT, then the details concerning the role of the members must be clearly specified in the Data Use and Publication Agreement. Moreover, the researcher/author, together with the management of the OOT, must clearly establish in the Data Use and Publication Agreement, the list and order of the authors of the publication covered by the Agreement. The aim of this stipulation is to (1) assure that all persons involved in the proposed project and in the preparation of the manuscript are treated fairly, (2) to avoid any misunderstanding concerning the list and order of the authors, and (3) to respect other current Data Use and Publication Agreements or any other understandings binding the OOT with one or more of its partners. The researchers/authors accept to submit, for approval by the management of the OOT, the final list of authors of the publication (or other production) before its official submission/publication. In order to take into account changes that may occur during the course of a given project, the list and the order of the authors can be modified with regards to the original Agreement with the consent of both parties.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

In the case of a publication (or other production) by a member or members of the OOT that is wholly or partly based on data or findings resulting from the work of the OOT, the researchers/authors involved must agree to indicate all the OOT’s partners. The list of partners will be established according to the years with which the data are associated. The list will be provided by the management of the OOT and specified in the Data Use and Publication Agreement. In the case of a publication (or other production) by persons outside the OOT, that is wholly or partly based on data or findings resulting from the work of the OOT, the researchers/authors accept to indicate the source of the data or information as follows: Observatoire d’oiseaux de Tadoussac (OOT), corporation Explos-Nature.

REVISION OF TEXT

As a matter of courtesy, the OOT request that all scientific papers and reports based on data or findings from the OOT be submitted to the management for revision before their submission for publication. This is particularly important when the discussion or the conclusions pertain to the work of the OOT, or to the policies and practices or one of its partners, and moreover, when one of the members of the OOT is a co-author of the publication. It is vital that the researchers/authors understand that the publication of results linked either to the work of the OOT, or to the policies or practices of its partners, is a delicate subject, and particularly so when a member of the OOT is one of the co-authors. Nevertheless, the management of the OOT and the corporation Explos-Nature cannot, in any way, be held responsible for the results, discussion, conclusion or recommendations that may result from the use, treatment or analyses, in whole or in part, of the data or other information provided by the OOT to individuals or organizations outside the OOT.

PUBLICATION COSTS AND REPRINTS

Unless some agreement has been made beforehand, the publication costs and the costs of reprints are the responsibility of the researchers/authors. The OOT wishes to keep to a minimum or, if possible, avoid any costs linked with publication. Nevertheless, the OOT recognises that certain manuscripts may be submitted to scientific publications that charge a fee for each page published. In this case, the contribution of the OOT to the cost of publication will be at the discretion of the director of the OOT. The costs could be met in totality by the OOT in the case where the manuscript is, to a large part, produced by employees of the OOT, or in the case of a project done by the OOT. In such cases, the authors must acknowledge the financial contribution made by the OOT in the Acknowledgements section. The researchers/authors undertake to provide a hard or soft copy of their publication (or other production), which will be deposited in the OOT’s archives.

COPYRIGHT

The OOT maintains the copyright on all data provided to the researchers/authors in all cases other than when these rights have been transferred to one of the OOT’s partners.

PUBLICATIONS BY PAST EMPLOYEES

Past and present members of the OOT are encouraged to publish any studies that they have completed while at the OOT, but, as for any other person, they must conform to the procedure outlined above (the establishment of a Data Use and Publication Agreement). The contribution of a past employee in the publications resulting from his work will normally be negotiated with the director of the OOT.

RESOLUTION OF CONFLICTS

In the case of a conflict (e.g., linked to the list or the order of authors of a publication), each person implicated must justify his or her opinion by writing (maximum 2 pages) to the director of the OOT. The director will then choose two qualified and independent people to act as judges. The director will preside over the arbitration committee. However, if the director is concerned in the conflict, a third qualified and independent person will replace him. In the case of the list and order of authors of a publication, the arbitration committee will base its decision on the contribution of each person, assessed over five aspects of research: the conception of the project, the development of the sampling protocol, the collection of data, the analyse of the data, and the preparation of the manuscript. The person who obtained funding for the project will not necessarily be an author unless, that is, they have actively participated in the research. The chairman of the arbitration committee will remain neutral, but will have the final say in the case where the committee does not achieve unanimity. Those persons in conflict accept that the decision of the arbitration committee is final.

THE REVOCATION OF PRIVILEGES

Any researcher/author who fails to respect the above policy or the terms of the Data Use and Publication Agreement may be denied further access to the OOT’s dataset.