You may need to use work of others such as text, graphs, tables and illustrations in your own work for publication. To do this you need to ensure that you have the necessary permission.
When you are publishing your work, the publisher will require you to sign an undertaking that you have obtained all relevant permissions to use work of others in your own work.
If you can not locate a permission or licence statement for the material you want to use, try details of the author, publisher or sponsoring body to contact. You should make the request to use the material as early as possible as it can take some time to track down the owner and receive a reply.
For more information regarding uploading and sharing your articles to online repositories, see The University of Queensland's Social Network and Copyright page, here.
You can also check the conditions of sharing particular articles to avoid contravening articles' usage rights. To check the sharing conditions of a particular article, navigate to the How Can I Share It? website and enter the DOI of the article you would like to check.
If the material you wish to use is published by a STM signatory publisher, then you may be able to use the material without seeking permission from the STM signatory publisher, so long as conditions are adhered. You can discover whether a publisher is a STM member, here.
Insubstantial portions
Insubstantial portions such as quotes may be used and published without the need to gain permission from the copyright owner. This can be as much as a few sentences from a book or journal article. You must always acknowledge the creator & source. If a substantial amount is used, permission should be sought.
When copyright has expired
Material is in the Public Domain when the copyright period has expired, generally the lifetime of the creator plus 70 years, ie. if the creator died after 1 January 1950 their works are still protected by copyright. Works in the Public Domain, may be reproduced without having to gain permission, you must identify the creator & source.
Creative Commons licence
Materials licensed under a Creative Commons (or another open access) licence may be used according to the licence conditions.
Websites
All material on the internet is protected by copyright. Most sites allow you to print a copy for your personal, private, non-commercial use. Unless the site states otherwise you can not include this material in your publication without permission when making it available to the public. Where possible you can provide links.
When you have identified the copyright owner, write to them to ask for permission to use the material, its details and how you intend to use it, and include a copy of the material.
Obtain permission in writing - email is fine, and keep copies of permissions gained. Ensure that the copyright owner knows if you intend to make the work open access.
Here is a link to a sample letter that you can use to draft your permission letter.
In situations where you cannot obtain permission you may need to rethink your use of other's work. You need to:
Send an email to Charles Sturt University Copyright
Charles Sturt University acknowledges the traditional custodians of the lands on which its campuses are located, paying respect to Elders, both past and present, and extend that respect to all First Nations Peoples.
Charles Sturt University is an Australian University, TEQSA Provider Identification: PRV12018. CRICOS Provider: 00005F.
