What’s your job title and how long have you been at Loughborough?

I currently hold two positions at Loughborough University. I am the Copyright and Licensing Manager and Senior Library Assistant for the Open Research Team in the Library. I started at Loughborough in April 2022.

Why did you choose to work in Open Research?

Free access to research is important to me, as is a free education system. There are many walls, especially paywalls in the way for research and I want to be part of the movement that works to take those walls down.

Tell us what a typical day in your job looks like?

As I have two roles, I have split them equally. The morning is reserved for copyright, as it can be a more complex area. I tend to handle complex queries, have meetings with staff or students, create teaching material, update the copyright website and create social media events to drive copyright advocacy.

In the afternoon, I am one of three cataloguers, and I catalogue the research outputs of our staff. Think journal articles, conference proceedings, book chapters and books and so on.

What’s your favourite thing about working in a library?

Due to health issues I have been working more from home than in the library office. When I am in the office, it is a great time to reconnect with colleagues. I really like working with my team. We all help each other out, and it’s fun to work together on projects like setting up displays for Open Research events or getting ready for Open Research conferences.

What’s the most exciting development in Open Research that you’ve seen?

For me everything is exciting, as it means that research becomes more open and more widely available.  

What’s one thing you wish everyone knew about Open Research?

That Open Research is there to make things easier to access, to reproduce but also to make research more transparent. One idea on one part of the globe might spark an entire green revolution in another part of the world. It also allows people to connect through research.

Tell us something you do outside of work that we might not know about?

I enjoy photography and drawing. I am also an avid reader, which might not be such a surprise as I work in a library.

If you could have any superpower, what would it be and why?

Teleportation. Cuts down on my carbon footprint and makes it easier to visit my family, which lives across Europe.