Monitoring Open Science: it takes a village! Sharing common Principles with the Open Science Monitoring Initiative (OSMI)

Abstract

In May 2023, the G7 Science and Technology Ministers emphasized the need for a shared framework for monitoring Open Science. While Open Science policies and practices have seen growing international support, monitoring efforts remain fragmented across national and institutional levels. Various dashboards and tools - such as the French Open Science Monitor, Germany’s Open Access Monitor, the COKI Dashboard in Australia, and the Open Access Monitor in Korea… - showcase both innovative thinking and varied approaches, but lack a unified global framework.

Despite multiple important guidelines, such as the UNESCO Recommendation on Open Science, the POSI, or the recent PathOS Indicator Handbook, no shared, global framework exists. Our proposed Principles aim to fill that gap by offering guidance that supports comparability, interoperability, and responsible reuse of monitoring indicators.

To co-create and refine the first draft, an international workshop was held at UNESCO in December 2023, gathering over 50 experts from institutions, including CERN, NASA and CWTS. Following intensive collaborative drafting, a global consultation process amplified by UNESCO was a success, with an open call for participation that received contributions from more than 150 people from 40 countries across the world. This first collaborative effort was the spark for the creation of OSMI. 

The Principles of Open Science Monitoring are organised around three core pillars:

1. Relevance and significance: all open science monitoring initiatives should be well-defined, relevant, and adaptable to diverse research contexts. They should support evidence-based policies and decisions, be developed through inclusive and participatory collaborative processes, and reflect the diversity of disciplines and stakeholders. Ensuring modularity, transparency, and consistency allows for reliable assessment while accommodating different needs and practices.
   
   
2. Transparency and reproducibility: open science monitoring should, wherever possible, prioritize the use of open, transparent, and reproducible information, including metadata. It should further draw on infrastructures and methodologies that adhere to shared, agreed-upon principles and rely on publicly accessible data sources.
   
   
3. Self-Assessment and responsible use: open science monitoring initiatives should aim for continuous improvement through regular self-assessments and alignment with these Principles of Open Science Monitoring. Importantly, open science monitoring should be used to understand and incentivise open science practices. It should not be used in isolation to evaluate individual researchers but instead as part of a multifaceted approach to assist institutions, stakeholders, academic and non-academic communities in understanding and improving their research practices.

We believe that common monitoring Principles, which consider the variety of approaches on a global scale, are essential to advance our knowledge of the prevalence and impact of Open Science. This presentation will introduce OSMI and the Principles of Open Science Monitoring.