By James Morris, Science Europe

Last month, Science Europe hosted a webinar to launch a new report on ‘The Contributions of Open Science to Research Cultures.’ The report examines how open science practices contribute to research culture, drawing on a scoping review of academic and grey literature. Commissioned by Science Europe, the report is the result of a collaboration between the Centre for Science and Technology Studies (CWTS) at Leiden University and the Open and Reproducible Research Group at Know Center GmbH. 

The project explored the contributions and unintended consequences of open science in realising results that align with key research culture values such as equity, openness, integrity, care, collaboration, and autonomy, with the aim of informing future policy and research agendas. Building on the results of a 2024 Science Europe Member Survey on the topic, this work forms part of a strategic reflection on how open science and research assessment reform are interconnected, and how further synergies can be developed.  

During the launch webinar, a panel discussion was held on the role and importance of monitoring and evidence gathering for open science and research assessment reform, bringing together insights from key international initiatives, including: the Coalition for Advancing Research Assessment (CoARA), the Global Research Initiative on Open Science (GRIOS), the Open Science Monitoring Initiative (OSMI), and the Barcelona Declaration on Open Research Information.

Science Europe will now work towards a final report of this 3-year long project, providing strategic directions on the interconnections between open science and research assessment reform, and the role that initiatives such as CoARA and GRIOS play, collectively, in shaping R&I policies and practices of the future.

This review contributes to a growing evidence base that can inform responsible research policy and practice evolution, a topic that will be discussed at the CeRRA Conference in the Breakout Session on Research on Research Assessment (4 December, 10:30-12:00 CET).