From 23 to 25 March 2026, members of the EUPeace University Libraries Group and the EUPeace Open Science Group met at the University of West Bohemia in Pilsen to work on the EUPeace Fund project “Educating on Open Science and Open Infrastructures” and to develop joint educational initiatives for researchers, staff and students across the Alliance.
Strengthening collaboration on Open Science education across EUPeace
The meeting opened with the keynote “Who owns our knowledge infrastructure? Scholarly publications at the core of scientific sovereignty” by Pierre Mounier, Chief Strategy Officer of OPERAS, who discussed evolving publishing models, the risks of commercial Open Access, and the potential of Diamond Open Access as a community-governed alternative. In the following sessions, participants reviewed earlier cooperation formats and exchanged institutional practices on Open Science and library infrastructures. In their discussions, the group outlined possible joint educational initiatives, including a curated set of courses and workshops on core Open Science topics such as Open Access, Open Data, Citizen Science, licensing, and Open Infrastructures with materials that can be adapted for different disciplines and target groups.
A second focus was the link between Open Science and peace, justice and inclusive societies, with ideas ranging from closer cooperation with city libraries to a possible “Citizen Science Day” under a common EUPeace umbrella at all partner universities. Through opening the libraries as key university infrastructures for Citizen Science, these educational initiatives shall also emphasize the importance of Open Science and open infrastructures for peace, justice, and inclusive societies.
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