Mapping Policies and Building Resilience 

The opening keynote by Maja Hoić (Institute for Development and International Relations, Croatia) set the stage by mapping Open Science policies across the EU. Her research revealed how policy maturity closely aligns with EU accession timing – with early members focusing on modernisation, while enlargement countries use EU frameworks as blueprints for transformation.  

✳️ Maja Hoić framed Open Science as both an epistemological shift and a form of European science diplomacy, strengthening trust and collaboration across borders: 

✨ “Open Science can be interpreted as both an epistemological and a diplomatic enterprise – reshaping knowledge production while embodying Europe’s values of openness and collaboration.”✨ 

✳️ Expanding the discussion, Jeroen Bosman (Utrecht University) explored resilience in Open Science, drawing analogies from ecosystems. He identified five phases – prevention, protection, resistance, flexibility, and repair – illustrating how open science can “weather the storm” of political, social, and technological disruption: 

✨ “Resilience is the capacity of a system to absorb disturbance and reorganise so as to retain essentially the same function – to keep its identity intact even under pressure.”✨ 

Local Action, Global Vision 

✳️ From Croatia to Lithuania, discussions reflected a shared European mission. Julija Baniukevič (Research Council of Lithuania) presented the OPUS Ambassadors Network, part of a Horizon Europe initiative reforming researcher assessment through open science principles. Lithuania’s pilot programme achieved 68% open-access publishing and trained 20 open science ambassadors: 

✨ “Openness requires opening hearts – building trust within the community and between researchers and policymakers.”✨ 

✳️ Complementing these national perspectives, Liise Lehtsalu (RDA Europe) highlighted global collaboration in data stewardship, describing the Research Data Alliance’s work to make research data FAIR (Findable, Accessible, Interoperable, Reusable): 

✨ “True progress in open science depends on connecting local action with global collaboration – and that is precisely where RDA Europe makes the difference.”✨ 

Open Access and the Ethics of Transparency 

A strong theme of equity and responsibility ran through the publishing and ethics sessions. Jane Buggle (Institute of Art, Design + Technology, Dublin) showcased the Irish Open Access Publishers (IOAP) Community of Practice, advocating Diamond Open Access – publishing without author or reader fees: 

✨ “True openness in publishing is not just about removing paywalls – it’s about creating communities that share responsibility for knowledge.”✨ 

✳️ From Ireland to Germany, Renate Voget (Max Weber Foundation) introduced the SeDOA project, advancing Diamond OA infrastructures across Europe and building networks through OPERAS and openaccess.nrw. 

✳️ Meanwhile, Vygintas Aliukonis and Prof. Dr Eugenijus Gefenas (Vilnius University) discussed the ethical dimensions of openness, tracing the evolution of transparency from voluntary principle to moral duty in biomedical research: 

✨ “Transparency has become an ethical imperative – openness is no longer optional but essential to integrity in research.”✨ 

Education, Creativity, and the Human Side of Openness

Several presentations explored the human and cultural dimensions of open science. 
✅ Sakshi Anand (Maynooth University) offered a moving perspective on bioeconomy education through music, using rhythm and melody to make sustainability education experiential: 

 ✨ “Music gives sustainability a rhythm – a language that reaches hearts before it reaches minds.”✨ 

✳️ Gintarė Kriaučiūnaitė-Lazauskienė (Vilnius University) turned to Open Science in Marketing Research, showing how openness enhances creativity, transparency, and social responsibility in a field often dominated by proprietary data: 

✨ “Open Science should not be seen as a limitation to creativity – it is the framework that gives creativity meaning, accountability, and impact.”✨ 

Monitoring, Data, and the Future of Open Science 

📌 Technical and policy aspects were explored by Laetitia Bracco (Université de Lorraine), who presented principles of Open Science Monitoring, and discussed how indicators for research data and software can help institutions measure progress while maintaining openness and accountability. 

✳️ Together, these sessions highlighted the importance of infrastructures, governance, and community engagement – ensuring that open science remains not just an aspiration but a sustainable, measurable practice. 

Celebrating Openness: The Vilnius University Open Science Awards 

✅ The day concluded with the Vilnius University Open Science Awards, where nominees showcased their initiatives promoting transparency, collaboration, and public engagement. The awards were presented by Irena Krivienė, closing a day rich in dialogue, ideas, and shared purpose❗ 

✨ The conference reaffirmed that the future of science is open – not only in access but in spirit: grounded in trust, community, and creativity ✨ 

Published 2025-10-29