Post-secondary Sector Unites on Copyright to Declare that ‘Fair Dealing Works’
Ottawa - 21 February, 2023 - Student leaders, post-secondary institutions, academic staff, librarians and copyright experts across the post-secondary sector are coming together to stand up for educational rights in copyright law. Today, stakeholders across the post-secondary sector are launching the Fair Dealing Works campaign.
The coalition is urging the government to maintain educational fair dealing provisions in the Copyright Act, emphasizing the current balance that fair dealing helps to maintain between creators and users of educational materials.
“Students believe in a balanced approach to educational fair dealing,” said the Canadian Alliance of Student Associations’ (CASA) chair, Christian Fotang. “Any increase in barriers to accessing educational materials will only hinder students’ ability to learn and conduct research.”
The Fair Dealing Works campaign brings together Universities Canada, Colleges and Institutes Canada (CICan), the Canadian Association of Research Libraries (CARL), the Canadian Alliance of Student Associations (CASA), the Canadian Federation of Students (CFS), the Canadian Association of University Teachers (CAUT) and the Canadian Internet Policy and Public Interest Clinic (CIPPIC) in a partnership towards the shared goal of maintaining fair copyright laws in the educational context.
Copyright must work for everyone who uses it; those who learn and those who create culture, research and scientific knowledge. Ensuring a balance in copyright law, which protects the rights of both users and creators, is key to a fair and durable copyright system which benefits all Canadians.
“Students really see the importance of educational fair dealing,” said CASA’s Executive Director, Mackenzy Metcalfe. “Students will feel the impact of a change immediately, and believe that the preservation of this is an important aspect in .”
The Fair Dealing Works campaign has launched a website to provide accurate information on the current state of copyright law and to highlight the benefits fair dealing provisions offer in universities, colleges and research libraries across the country.
The extension of copyright term limits from 50 to 70 years has already weakened the appropriate user-creator balance in Canada. As the Government of Canada considers further copyright reforms, the post-secondary sector is united against any change to educational fair dealing that could destabilize this balance and have adverse impacts on the quality and affordability of post-secondary education in Canada. Canadians want copyright law which continues to work for everyone and that is why Fair Dealing Works!
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Contact:
Max Greer
Communications and Creative Content Officer
(289)-214-8608
About CASA:
Established in 1995, the Canadian Alliance of Student Associations (CASA) is a non-partisan, not-for-profit, national student organization composed of 23 student associations. With its partnership with the Quebec Student Union (QSU), CASA represents a total of 365,000 students across Canada and presents a national student voice to the federal government. CASA advocates for a Canadian post-secondary education system that is accessible, affordable, innovative, and of the highest quality.
