A new guide offers practical support for the development and implementation of open science strategies at German universities and research institutions. It is aimed at researchers, teachers, science managers and science funding staff. The aim is to promote transparent and accessible research and teaching processes and to anchor Open Science (OS) as a strategic goal at institutional level. The document was created by the Berlin University Alliance, the Open Access Bureau Berlin (OABB) and the Helmholtz Open Science Office.
The Policy Cycle as a methodological framework
At the heart of the guidelines is the policy cycle, which structures the five phases on the path to an OS policy:
- Agenda Setting: in this phase, an awareness of the importance of Open Science is created and a strategic foundation is laid.
- Policy formulation: The policy is fleshed out by involving relevant stakeholders and taking institutional requirements into account.
- Decision and legitimization: The policy is discussed in committees, voted on and bindingly adopted to ensure broad acceptance.
- Implementation: The adopted policy is put into practice through training, resources and organizational measures.
- Monitoring and evaluation: The policy is continuously reviewed and adapted to ensure that it is up to date.
Checklists facilitate orientation and help to take institutional particularities into account.
Case studies and practical insights
Case studies show how it works in practice: examples from the Helmholtz Association, TH Köln, the University of Konstanz, the University of Potsdam and the Berlin University Alliance illustrate how open science policies can be successfully developed and implemented. It becomes clear how challenges can be overcome through open consultation processes, close cooperation and central contact persons. Regular monitoring and evaluation ensure the further development of the policies. The guide recommends tools such as bibliometric analyses and publication overviews for this purpose. The aim is to establish open science policies as a binding basis for transparency, reproducibility and cooperation in science.
Further information
The handout Open Science Policies can be found under the following link [German only]: https://oabb.pubpub.org/pub/zusammenfassung/release/1?readingCollection=d3895896