This post is an extract from the Global Young Academy Connections magazine issue 12, which was published in May 2024.

The Open Science movement aims to make scientific research more accessible, transparent, and collaborative, and touches upon all aspects of scientific life, from data stewardship and publishing structures, to AI and legislation. With these goals in mind, the Global Young Academy's (GYA) Open Science working group (OS WG) engages in diverse initiatives designed to promote these principles and practices across the global scientific community.

The goals of the OS WG are multifaceted, and aim to raise awareness among early-career researchers (ECRs) about OS, promote inclusivity in research communication, facilitate international and interdisciplinary collaboration, influence policy to reflect the interests of young scientists, and align OS policies with the UN SDGs. These goals underscore the GYA's vision of science as a global public good and highlight the role of OS in achieving a more equitable global society.

In 2023, the GYS’s OS WG launched the Open Science First Fridays lecture series. These monthly discussions provide a platform for scientists and the public to engage with current topics related to OS, ranging from the use of AI tools like ChatGPT to the development of OS policies. These sessions are not only informative but also serve to foster a community of practice around OS issues.

In addition to promoting dialogue among scientists, the OS group fosters exchanges between scientists and other stakeholders in the scientific process, including publishers and government organizations. Over the past few years, the OS group has formed strategic partnerships with publishers at the forefront of the OS movement, including the Public Library of Science (PLOS), eLIFE, and F1000. Indeed, the European Commission launched the Open Access publishing platform Open Research Europe (ORE) in 2021, and the GYA has been a part of the consortium, led by F1000 Research, from the beginning.

Our involvement with ORE has resulted in multiple workshops and outreach activities. For example, Our 2021 Annual General Meeting (AGM) and International Conference of Young Scientists "Trust in Science"  included a panel discussion on the topic during our "Building Trust with Open Science" session. Further, our 2023 International Conference "Technological Innovations for Discovering Solutions to the World’s Greatest Current Challenges" in Kigali, Rwanda, featured the session "Scientific Publishing: A global perspective from early-career researchers on open access dissemination of scientific discovery & data sharing", during which open access publishers such as PLOS, eLife, and Nature were discussed alongside ORE.

The Rwanda workshop led PLOS and the GYA to issue a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) establishing cooperation between the two organizations. The purpose of the MoU is to create a strategic partnership between the parties to increase awareness of OS, its principles, and its implementation into practice. The GYA’s Open Science working group strives to raise awareness of Open Science principles and approaches among young scientists and to provide input into Open Science policies from a diverse, international perspective. We're excited about the work that PLOS is doing and are looking forward to closely collaborating on initiatives to make science more effective, equitable, and accessible. Such collaborations are focused on exchange as well as creating OS solutions that are equitable and accessible globally, ensuring that the perspectives of ECRs are incorporated into the development of OS practices. Indeed, during the 2023 GYA AGM and International Conference of Young Scientists in Kigali, the OS WG organized a "lunch with the editors" event, during which ECRs were able to informally discuss the present and future publication landscape with the editors of Nature and PLOS ONE.  

Through its activities and goals, the GYA is working towards a future where science is accessible to all and where young researchers are empowered to lead and innovate in the OS domain. In 2024, the OS WG looks forward to harnessing its established partnerships to hold targeted discussions about the improvement of the publishing landscape in light of OS principles and continuing its Open Science First Fridays sessions.

Photo by Katerina Pavlyuchkova on Unsplash