Scholarly Communications encompasses every aspect of the creation of any work that communicates and disseminates ideas, knowledge, and data.
Traditionally, it pertains to the creation of new research articles, using previous research as a base of knowledge. Once the new research article is published and its knowledge spread across academia, other researchers can use that research article as a base for further research.
This is overall flow of knowledge is known as the research lifecycle and is discussed further below.
In order to optimize the dissemination of new knowledge, open access is paramount.
Open Access is the idea that everyone in the world should not have to pay to read the articles and other forms of knowledge produced by researchers. Before open access gained prominence, most research articles were locked behind paywalls stifling the dissemination of research and the growth of knowledge.
There are many different types of Open Access and which one you chose to use when publishing your research article will depend on many factors.
(image from https://canterbury.libguides.com/c.php?g=894027&p=6640992)
You can learn more about Open Access in Dalhousie's Open Access LibGuide.
Image from Georgian College