OpenCon 2017

In this panel, we'll hear from initiatives led by students and early career academic professionals which are catalyzing progress on Open Access, Open Education, and Open Data around the world. We'll hear their inspiring stories, from Canada to Nepal, of sparking change. We'll also find out where they found support, what challenges they faced, and their words of advice for participants.

Carol will discuss the project “Assessing Current Practices in Review, Promotion and Tenure (RPT) Across the United States and Canada” departs from the belief that the adoption of open access and other open science principles among academics would be more widespread if ‘being open’ was explicitly rewarded in career progression of university professors. In the case of Canadian and American institutions of higher education, career progression generally takes the form of reviews of faculty’s work, promotions, and the achievement of tenure—a permanent, lifetime, position at an institution that cannot be terminated, except under crucial circumstances. The importance placed on the RPT process by all faculty suggests that changes in the policy documents and guidelines that inform these practices may provide the impetus for behavioral change, leading to broader interest and adoption of open access values. In the context of a broad and ongoing project, this presentation will focus in some of the results of the content analysis of 864 RPT guidelines and forms of 129 institutions across the US and Canada. These finding will hopefully provide baseline knowledge for thinking in actualized ways of effecting change towards a greater opening of research in North American universities.

Laurent will speak about the BulliedIntoBadScience campaign. The #BulliedIntoBadScience campaign was initiated after several attempts to influence publishing practices at the University of Cambridge and in the UK. However, it seems at times impossible for academics, early stage and more senior, to change a broken system that is, sadly, just accepted by most. I'll share some of the background of the #BulliedIntoBadScience campaign and reflect on early career researchers' challenges in fighting for a more ethical environment.

How do you build a university culture of open science, one that isn't motivated by top-down policies, but  shared understandings of knowledge production and communication?  Robin Champieux will talk about the work she's been doing with students, early career researchers, and faculty to engage and build grassroots support for open science and the outcomes it can drive through educational opportunities, partnerships, and community events.  She will speak to the rewards and challenges of leading an open advocacy initiate with inspiring, but often unconventional successes and how she and her collaborators are thinking about the future of their work.