🟣Open Science - LERU

What is Open Science?

Below is a comprehensive set of definitions and explanations for the eight LERU pillars of Open Science, drawn from LERU’s publications and interpretations by member institutions. These are the currently accepted frameworks for how research-intensive universities (such as the University of Copenhagen) should conceptualize and implement Open Science.

Pillar	Definition / Core Elements	Key Challenges & Considerations	Sources / Further Reading
FAIR Data	Data that are Findable, Accessible, Interoperable, and Reusable: implies use of persistent identifiers, rich metadata, standard formats, open access (as much as possible), and clear licensing or usage conditions.	Ensuring metadata quality, balancing openness vs privacy / confidentiality, establishing domain standards, avoiding “dark data” or data silos, data stewardship capacity.	LERU “Open Science and its role in universities” (leru.org); LERU “Implementing Open Science” (leru.org)
Research Integrity	Upholding ethical, transparent, and accountable conduct in all stages of research: e.g. avoidance of misconduct, reproducibility, clear authorship, data provenance, and conflict of interest handling.	Reconciling openness with confidentiality (e.g. sensitive human data), ensuring truthful reporting and correction, embedding integrity training, handling errors transparently.	LERU “Implementing Open Science” (leru.org); LERU “Open Science and its role” (leru.org)
Next Generation Metrics	Alternative or expanded metrics beyond traditional bibliometrics — incorporating open science contributions (data, software, altmetrics, societal impact) to assess research quality more holistically.	Avoiding misuse or overemphasis on metrics, discipline differences, gaming risks, ensuring fairness, integration into evaluation and promotion systems.	LERU “Open Science and its role” (leru.org); LERU “Implementing Open Science” (leru.org)
Future of Scholarly Communication	Transitioning the modes of producing, reviewing, disseminating, and archiving research outputs: e.g. open access publishing, preprints, open peer review, interoperable repositories, new publishing models.	Economic sustainability (publishing costs), publisher business models, copyright and licensing, discipline norms, repository interoperability.	LERU “Open Science and its role” (leru.org); LERU “Implementing Open Science” (leru.org)
Citizen Science	Involving members of the public (non-specialists) in scientific research (data collection, analysis, idea generation), thereby enhancing engagement, inclusivity, and societal relevance of research.	Quality control, training, ethical considerations, data validation, incentives, governance of citizen contributions, diversity and equity in participation.	LERU “Open Science and its role” (leru.org); LERU “Implementing Open Science” (leru.org)
Education and Skills	Ensuring that researchers, students, and support staff have the competencies to deploy Open Science practices: e.g. training in FAIR data, open publishing, reproducible workflows, integrity, and metadata standards.	Resource allocation, embedding in curricula, continuous updating (keeping pace with evolving tools and standards), motivating uptake among established researchers.	LERU “Implementing Open Science” (leru.org); UCL summary of 8 Pillars (University College London)
Rewards and Incentives	Reforming academic recognition and reward systems to value open science practices (data sharing, reproducibility, code, public engagement) on par with traditional outputs like papers.	Institutional inertia in promotion criteria, resistance from researchers accustomed to classical metrics, aligning incentives with quality rather than quantity, balancing discipline differences.	LERU “Open Science and its role” (leru.org); LERU “Implementing Open Science” (leru.org)
European Open Science Cloud (EOSC)	A federated digital ecosystem that enables seamless access, management, analysis, and reuse of research data across Europe, connecting institutional infrastructures, services, and standards.	Technical interoperability, governance across institutions/countries, sustainability, data sovereignty, legal and policy harmonization, adoption and integration with institutional systems.	LERU “Implementing Open Science” (leru.org); LERU “Open Science and its role” (leru.org)