Open Educational Resources

Open Educational Resources

Open Educational Resources (OER) are learning, teaching and research materials in any format and medium that reside in the public domain or are under copyright that have been released under an open license, that permit no-cost access, re-use, re-purpose, adaptation and redistribution by others.

Open license refers to a license that respects the intellectual property rights of the copyright owner and provides permissions granting the public the rights to access, re-use, re-purpose, adapt and redistribute educational materials.

The Recommendation on OER, adopted by UNESCO鈥檚 General Conference at its 40th session on 25 November 2019, is the first international normative instrument to embrace the field of openly licensed educational materials and technologies in education. The on OER serves as a complimentary guidance to the recommendation, which examines how to effectively integrate AI and emerging technologies to advance the creation, adaptation, and dissemination of OER.

To support Member States implementation of the 2019 Recommendation on OER, UNESCO established the OER Dynamic Coalition. The OER Dynamic Coalition aims to support networking and sharing of information to create synergies around the 5 areas of action of the recommendation: (i) building capacity of stakeholders to create, access, re-use, adapt and redistribute OER; (ii) developing supportive policy; (iii) encouraging inclusive and equitable quality OER; (iv) nurturing the creation of sustainability models for OER, and (v) facilitating international cooperation.

Dubai Declaration on Open Educational Resources

Dubai Declaration on Open Educational Resources (OER): digital public goods and emerging technologies for equitable and inclusive access to knowledge

The Dubai Declaration on OER was formally adopted on November 20, 2024, during the 3rd UNESCO World OER Congress, themed Digital Public Goods: Open Solutions and AI for Inclusive Access to Knowledge.鈥

This declaration is the outcome of an extensive and collaborative effort aimed at advancing the implementation of the UNESCO 2019 Recommendation on OER.

OLD - The 3rd UNESCO World OER Congress, 19 and 20 November 2024, Dubai, United Arab Emirates

The 3rd UNESCO World OER Congress, 鈥楧igital Public Goods: Open Solutions and AI for Inclusive Access to Knowledge' (19鈥 20 November 2024, Dubai U.A.E.) was hosted by the Mohammed Bin Rashid Knowledge Foundation and was aimed to enhance global cooperation and innovation in Open Educational Resources (OER)  in the framework of the 2019 UNESCO Recommendation on OER. 

For more information: oerrecommendation@unesco.org

2019 UNESCO Recommendation on Open Educational Resources (OER)

Supporting universal access to information through quality open learning materials

The ICT Competency Framework for Teachers Harnessing OER Project

Digital skills development for teachers

Join the UNESCO OER Dynamic Coalition Membership Form
Explore the UNESCO OER Dynamic Coalition Portal

OER and knowledge and skills acquisition: What is the UNESCO OER Recommendation?

This extract gives an overview of the different policy areas of the OER Recommendation and illustrates the potential of OER in building inclusive societies as well as the main stakeholders.

Facts and Figures

4,517
participants

have engaged in OER events since 2020

700
members

by the end of 2024 in the OERDynamic Coalition, spanning 90 countries, including 16 SIDS.

78
Member States

submitted national reports

Documents

Beyond blockchain
Camilleri, Anthony F.
UNESCO
2024
Policy brief on next generation web technologies and their impact on OER
0000390533
Guidelines on the implementation of the OER Recommendation Action Area 1: Building the capacity of stakeholders
UNESCO
2024
0000389031
Guidelines on the implementation of the OER Recommendation Action Area 2: developing supportive policy
UNESCO
2024
0000389032
Guidelines on the implementation of the OER Recommendation Action Area 3: Effective, Inclusive and Equitable Access to Quality OER
UNESCO
2024
0000389037
Guidelines on the implementation of the OER Recommendation Action Area 4: Nurturing the creation of sustainability models for OER and monitoring progress
UNESCO
2024
0000389038
Guidelines on the implementation of the OER Recommendation Action Area 5: Promoting and reinforcing international cooperation
UNESCO
2024
0000389039
The 2019 UNESCO Recommendation on Open Educational Resources (OER): supporting universal access to information through quality open learning materials
UNESCO
2022
UNESCO
0000383205
The ICT Competency Framework for Teachers Harnessing OER Project: digital skills development for teachers
UNESCO
2022
UNESCO
0000383206