Dear colleagues,
We’re happy to share with you updates related to Open Access and Open Research Data tools and events, as well as the latest news from the swissuniversities Open Science Programme.
Subscribe to this newsletter here and follow us on LinkedIn and Twitter for updates in the meantime.
Would you like to announce your OA or ORD event or share an update from your Open Science project? We invite you to send us your news item to by the first Monday of each month (e.g., 4 Dec 2023 for the December Newsletter).
Many thanks and best regards,
The Open Science Team at swissuniversities
FROM THE OPEN SCIENCE PROGRAMME
Open Access Strategy Review 2023-2024
The purpose of the Open Access Strategy Review is to evaluate and revise the strategic parameters of the current OA Strategy, which was elaborated by swissuniversities and the SNSF and was adopted in 2017. The revised version will reflect the experiences made in recent years and provide an updated basis to drive forward the Open Access transformation. A central concern is the development of a coherent vision of this transformation for the Swiss higher education landscape to ensure a sustainable and long-term development of the open access landscape – as was set out in the OA strategy of 2017.
The strategy review is being conducted under the leadership of the Open Science Delegation and in coordination with the SNSF as a partner of the strategy. A first draft of the updated OA strategy was presented to and discussed in the Open Access Alliance as part of an internal consultation within swissuniversities on 9 November 2023. In the afternoon of 31 January 2024, the revised OA strategy will be presented and discussed as part of the external consultation process. More information will follow soon.
Open Call for Open Access Communication & Awareness Raising Projects
With this call, you can fund Open Access communication and awareness raising activities with a national and/or a regional scope.
Proposals can be submitted on a rolling basis, the requirements are outlined here: Open Action Lines for the 2023 Open Access Call for Projects
More information on the relevant action lines, see the Open Access Implementation Plan.
Newly funded projects:
ORD Action Line B5.3: Establishment of a Network for Data Stewardship
The Swiss Research Data Support Network (SRDSN) project has been approved for funding under the call for Action Line B5.3 of the ORD Action Plan. The project involves 31 partners and aims to create a network that fosters inter-institutional exchange, initiates collaborations, and addresses the needs of various institutions and research communities. The network will also serve as a contact point for questions on data stewardship and ensure medium and long-term international alignment. More information on the project, which will start on 1 January 2024, can be found in this document.
ORD Action Line C2.1: Developing good practices for RDM training at higher education institutions
One project has been approved for funding under the Action Line C2.1 of the ORD Action Plan: The goal of the project ROADS, Reusing Openly Accessible research Data for Student theses, is to explore and test the possibilities of utilizing collected data in new contexts. The project aims to popularise a methodological approach where reusing research data for theses, term papers and other student assignments is at the core of the scientific work. The project will start on 1 December 2023, more information can be found here.
Swiss Open Research Data Grants (CHORD) Track A 3rd Call: 6 new projects
On 1 January 2024, six new projects, supported by the CHORD programme, will be launched with the objective to develop and promote ORD practices. Track A projects aim at exploring, conceptualizing, prototyping, or building up ORD practices to improve research capabilities and support research communities (cf. the CHORD website). The list of approved projects, including their abstracts, can be found here.
Swiss Open Research Data Grants (CHORD) Track C 2nd Call: 8 new projects
Track C of the CHORD programme enables researchers to contribute to existing open communities built on ORD principles, validate their integration into existing infrastructures, and focus on their potential to improve scientific impact and technical quality (cf. the CHORD website). eight projects have been approved in the second call and will start their work on 1 January 2024. The list of approved projects, including their abstracts, can be found here.
Updates from ongoing OA and ORD projects:
Regulatory Framework
In March 2022, the Open Science Programme launched the call for tenders Regulatory Framework (action line 3.2.2 of the OA Implementation Plan) which foresaw a comprehensive legal analysis focusing mainly on an alternative approach for a secondary publication right. Information about the call and procurement procedure are published here.
The offer that was evaluated by the experts of the Open Science Program Reviewers Pool and was validated by the Delegation Open Science on September 23, 2022 (link).
The project was successfully concluded in October 2023 after a year's work. A final report prepared by the leading house and partner institutions was submitted to the Delegation Open Science. The report contains analyses and proposals for legal solutions concerning secondary publication rights and the OA as a regulatory challenge. Read the final report here.
Developing a certificate course in Data Stewardship
The University of Lausanne is partnering with seven other Swiss academic institutions, to implement a CAS (Certificate of Advanced Studies) in Data Stewardship as part of the project “Swiss Data Stewardship Environment: Profile – Training – Network” (SwissDS-ENV). This certificate course will contribute to a greater recognition of this emerging profile, while strengthening its skills and offering a new career opportunity in the field of scientific research. It will also create and coordinate a community of practice at the Swiss level.
SwissDS-ENV is funded by swissuniversities for two years (2023-2024). The project is part of action line B5.2 of the Swiss National Open Research Data Strategy and of the measures' plan about Data Stewardship.
For more information on the project and first results, check out www.unil.ch/swissds-env or contact Gérard Bagnoud, Gerard.bagnoud@clutterunil.ch and Marielle Guirlet, Marielle.guirlet@clutterunil.ch.
What is the second publication right and how is it currently regulated in Switzerland?
Within the project Regulatory Framework, CCdigitallaw of the Università della Svizzera italiana has released a short video that addresses these questions. The video is available on YouTube with a CC-BY license.
Additional training resources on second publication right, as well as other aspects of copyright an data protection can be found on the newly designed training pages on the CCdigitallawportal: https://www.ccdigitallaw.ch/training-materials/.
Documentation of the October lecture of the Swiss Year of Scientometrics SYoS
The SYoS lecture was held by Professor Emanuel Kulczycki on the topic of “Reframing scientometrics: How ontological understanding of science influences what we count and how we interpret it”.
The blog post on this second SYoS lecture including video recording and slides is now available: https://yearofscientometrics.ethz.ch/the-swiss-year-of-scientometrics-gains-momentum-with-the-second-lecture/
EVENTS
21 November: Open Research Data Workshop in St. Gallen
The PH St. Gallen and the PH Thurgau conduct a workshop on Open Research Data in collaboration with the University of Teacher Education in Special Needs, PH Schwyz and SFUVET. This is part of the PgB project ‘Data Stewardships at small and medium-sized universities of teacher education’ supported by swissuniversities.
The workshop is open to all and will focus on the legal framework for ORD as well as consent forms and legal foundations, guidelines and processes of ethics committees, and data management plans.
Venue: PH St. Gallen, Campus St. Gallen (Hadwig building), Language of the event: German.
Time: 13:30-17:30 (followed by an Apéro). Please register here: https://forms.office.com/e/v5USerEun2
For more information and updates on the event, please visit: https://www.phsg.ch/de/veranstaltung/open-research-data-workshop
6 December: Award Ceremony – National ORD Prize 2023
The National ORD Prize honors innovative practices in the field of Open Research Data. The Swiss Academies of Arts and Sciences are delighted to invite you to the first Award Ceremony for the National ORD Prize 2023.
Time: 17h30 doors, 18h start of event, December 6, 2023
Location: Grande Société, Bern (Theaterplatz 7)
Please register here and find further information here: ord.akademien-schweiz.ch
31 January 2024: Open Access strategy review – presentation in Berne
In the afternoon of 31 January 2024, the revised OA strategy will be presented and discussed as part of the external consultation round. In the morning, OA and ORD project representatives will be invited to share and discuss their experiences made in the context of the Open Science programme.
Invitations and more information will follow soon.
OPEN POSITIONS
Join Our Team: Exciting Job Opportunities at swissuniversities
Have a look at the open positions and internship opportunities in the areas of Higher Education Policy, Teaching, and Research and Development.
More information can be found here.