This document discusses open access and its growth. It defines open access as free, immediate availability of scholarly works without payment barriers. Open access allows any user to read, distribute, and use works for lawful purposes. The open access movement has grown since the 1960s and key developments include the rise of the internet and open licensing. Open access provides benefits to researchers, educational institutions, businesses, and the public. The document promotes self-archiving works in open access repositories and publishing in open access journals to further open sharing of knowledge.