A Plan to Develop Open Science’s Green Shoots into a Thriving Garden

Abstract

Over the past several decades, the movement for open science, which promises a more inclusive, efficient, and trustworthy way of conducting and disseminating scientific research, has grown. Driven by the belief that openly sharing knowledge in all its forms—papers, data, software, methods, and more—can help address a raft of societal quandaries (including, though not limited to, systemic inequity and public mistrust in science), the adoption of open science principles has become increasingly mainstream. In the last five years, the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy; the governments of Ireland, Colombia, Spain, France, and the province of Quebec; higher education coalitions in the United States, Africa, South America, the United Kingdom, and Europe; professional societies and associations; and philanthropic funders have all taken steps toward strengthening policies for and reducing barriers to open science. Moreover, science and research ministers representing the member states of the Group of Seven and the Group of 20 have doubled down on their governments’ commitments to invest in open, equitable, and secure strategies for research and development throughout the world.