About FORM

The Forum for Open Research in MENA (FORM) is a non-profit membership organisation supporting the advancement of Open Science policies and practices in research institutions and research communities throughout the Arab world, by facilitating the exchange of actionable insights and the development of practical policies.

Established in 2021, our mission is to empower libraries, higher education institutions, research councils and policy makers to collaborate on activities, projects and resources that promote engagement with, and the generation of, open research – enabling them to better serve the needs of local research communities. Our stakeholders are libraries, higher education institutions, research councils, policy makers, and open science advocates from across the 22 Arab states. We have 16 institutional members and strategic partners, and a collaborative network of over 5,000 individuals from 2,220 institutions (in 110 countries).

Our Goals

Asset 3

SUPPORT

The advancements of Open Science ecosystems in HEIs and RLs across Arab world

Asset 4

CREATE

Accessible and localized resources relating to the implementation of Open Science policies and practises

Asset 2

ENCOURAGE

Collaborative community partnerships and cooperation between members and partners of FORM

Asset 1

CHAMPION

The development of RTL functionality in key open source and open science technological solutions

A catalyst for positive action, we aim to develop the foundational knowledge, build the human capacities and nurture the open science communities across the region, working with key stakeholders to develop and implement a pragmatic programme of policies and practises to support the transition towards more accessible, inclusive and sustainable research and education models across the Arab world.

  • Our first pillar of activity concerns localised capacity building – creating resources and organising activities to ensure that the foundational knowledge concerning the development and implementation of open science policies and practises is available for every research community and research institution in the region.
  • Our second pillar of activity focuses on community building – helping open science advocates from across the arab states form connections, establish communities, and build successful collaborations with each other and with communities and organisations elsewhere in the world.
  • Our third pillar of activity concerns the global visibility of Arab voices and viewpoints, and we serve as a conduit for connection and outreach between the Arab region and many of the major global scholarly communications and open science organisations.

Finally, combining our capacity building and community building activities, we have our Annual Forum, which takes place in a different Arab state each year and provides a valuable arena for librarians, researchers, government policy makers, universities and international experts to discuss and debate key themes and issues relating to the advancement of Open Science across the Arab world.

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