A/HRC/32/37 C. Open educational resources 85. Open educational resources are teaching, learning and research resources that reside in the public domain or have been released under an intellectual property licence that permits others to use them freely and for different purposes. 86. First discussed at the UNESCO Forum on the Impact of Open Courseware for Higher Education in Developing Countries, held in Paris from 1 to 3 July 2000, open educational resources are understood to be all teaching, learning and research materials in any medium, digital or otherwise, that reside in the public domain or have been released under an open licence that permits no-cost access, use, adaptation and redistribution by others with no or limited restrictions. Open licensing is built within the existing framework of intellectual property rights as defined by relevant international conventions and respects the authorship of the work.44 87. Open educational resources capture the idea that knowledge is a public good that should be freely shared by all and not restricted for private profit. This concept was further developed at the World Open Educational Resources Congress, held in Paris from 20 to 22 June 2012, on which occasion the 2012 Paris Open Educational Resources Declaration was adopted. The signatories to the Declaration called upon States to support, promote and make greater use of open educational resources. 88. A number of initiatives and foundations support the development and dissemination of open educational resources. The Open Educational Resources Commons provides access to digital learning materials for all levels of education in English. Teaching materials and textbooks for all subjects are available for pre-primary to secondary schools, as well as for university courses and adult education. The Open Education Consortium is a non-profit global network of educational institutions, individuals and organizations that collaborate and develop open educational materials, including textbooks and courses in 26 languages, particularly in the sciences and technology. The UNESCO Institute for Information Technologies in Education acts as a as a centre of excellence and provider of technical support and expertise in the area of information and communications technology usage in education. XII. Digital technologies and the forces of privatization in education 89. Digital technologies necessarily involve private partners and agencies that collaborate with universities, both public and private, on the procurement and operationalization of not only hardware but also software. The use of digital technologies in education has led to more consumer-oriented attitudes in universities and is resulting in the commodification of knowledge and the valuing of information in economic terms rather than for its social and cultural significance. Sponsored by a range of entities, including individual proprietors and profit-seeking businesses, private institutions of higher education now constitute the fastest-growing segment of higher education. Corporate funding of higher education raises questions of academic independence, as well as ethical questions. Universities are moving away from their social function. The commercialization of education could divert attention away from the classical type of higher education by accumulating advantages in the most advanced countries and institutions, by discriminating 44 16 2012 Paris Open Educational Resources Declaration. See also OECD, Open Educational Resources: A Catalyst for Innovation.