Workshop

The community development activities of the National Research Data Infrastructure for and with Computer Science (NFDIxCS)––a consortium within the German National Research Data Infrastructure (NFDI)-–illustrate the importance of aligning open science services with institutional policies, strategic and governance objectives. NFDIxCS aims to identify, define and deploy an infrastructure for the operation of services that store complex domain-specific data objects from the vast field of Computer Science (CS) and to implement the FAIR principles across the board.

With a vision of strengthening international engagement, a discussion session series was initiated to foster international dialogue on the adoption, implementation and sustainability of open science across diverse research environments, with particular attention to emerging research environments. The series seeks to provide a platform where researchers, policymakers, data stewards, infrastructure providers and funding organizations can exchange experiences, discuss common challenges and jointly develop recommendations for advancing open science through international collaboration.

We employed a methodology based on the Delphi method as a guiding approach for community consultation. A complete Delphi study typically consists of several iterative rounds. Through facilitated discussions, participants identify areas of consensus and disagreement, prioritize key actions and contribute to recommendations that can inform future policy development and international collaboration.

The first round of the discussions was held during the open science conference 2025 (OSC2025). This inaugural session explored the readiness of emerging research environments to adopt open science concepts and practices. Participants identified a broad range of implementation barriers, including limited digital infrastructure, shortages in skills and capacity building, fragmented governance and the absence of coherent institutional and national open science policies. The discussion demonstrated that sustainable open science cannot be achieved through technical solutions alone; it also requires institutional commitment, strategic visions, governance support and long-term investment in research capacity.    

Building upon these findings, the second discussion session is designed as an interactive workshop that shifts the focus from identifying challenges to exploring how open science policy and institutional strategies can strengthen the resilience of research in emerging research environments. The overarching objective is to explore how open science policies and institutional strategies can contribute to more resilient, sustainable and internationally connected research environments. We argue that well-designed policies and strategic frameworks are fundamental enablers of sustainable and resilient open science ecosystems. However, their value extends beyond expressing institutional commitments.  Policies need to be actionable and practices so that researchers and other stakeholders can effectively translate them into concrete activities and best practices. Effective policies can establish governance structures, clarify institutional roles and responsibilities, guide sustainable research data and software management practices and coherent long-term vision for trusted research infrastructures and open services.

The expected outcomes include a community-informed set of recommendations for policymakers and research institutions and a roadmap for subsequent rounds and future international community engagement.

Participants are encouraged to bring examples and insights from their local institutions regarding open science policies, priorities and key barriers.