Over the past 20 years, higher education systems in wealthier countries have embraced narrow rankings systems which purport to evaluate and recognise global excellence but in fact exclude many of the discoveries and insights of universities in countries in the Global South.

**The intersections between less privileged groups are easy to overlook – but essential to understand in order to develop a clearer picture of equity, diversity, and inclusion. ** For example, a person who is both a woman and non-white may experience bias and discrimination relating to each of those characteristics separately, or in combination. Specific issues may also arise only for people who have both of these characteristics.

Curtin University researchers will help create a new international data trust to improve the measurement and analysis of open-access (OA) books, which will be delivered through a US$1.2 million (AUD$1.75 million) project funded by The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation.

Open Access and Open Data are critical elements of effective vibrant scholarly communication systems. However, they are not sufficient on their own to guarantee that universities remain relevant and engaged. To unlock the potential for the production and mobilisation of knowledge, universities must democratise access to be not only a knowledge taker but also a knowledge maker.

A new alliance of researchers led by Curtin University will work together to improve the way research is shared, charting new pathways for the future of universities around the world.

Curtin Mauritius recently hosted a workshop for the Curtin Open Knowledge Initiative (COKI), attended by global experts on research evaluation, data science and scholarly communications. The attendees discussed empowering universities to work with local and global communities in the production of knowledge, and how to broaden the impact of higher education and research.