UNESCO’s open science team has completed the next stage of its work, publishing the first edition of their Open Science Outlook report. This document continues along the same trajectory as UNESCO’s 2021 Recommendation on Open Science.
The Open Science Outlook is a thorough and thoughtful report that clearly articulates UNESCO’s vision. While this vision is different than the one articulated in OSI’s April 2023 evidence-based open policy recommendation (where instead of seeing the world of open science through the lens of what’s compliant and what isn’t, we can instead focus on what researchers need, what’s needed for open research, what’s being built and used, and what’s working), these two perspectives are complementary, and can blend together to make effective policy. UNESCO’s strategic thinking can be enhanced by understanding what’s actually happening in the world of science (including non-compliant open science developments), and OSI’s evidence-based approach can be enhanced by understanding more about the strategic needs of open science.