DEC 13th 2017 Tomorrow there will be a discussion of the (first draft of) the Open Science Plan for Utrecht University. The plan is geared to implement the ambitions states in the Strategic Plan of Utrecht University and is much in line with the Nationaal Plan Open Science.

This is a great initiative! Many thanks for the Open Science Taskforce for creating this plan and inviting others to provide feedback and input.

The plan is very ambitious. As articulated at the first section of the plan:

“In essence, the development of open science practices entail no less than a culture shift in academic research and teaching.”

The plan formulates concrete goals for 2020 regarding:

1. Open Access Publications
2. Open & FAIR Research Data
3. Sharing code and software
4. Outreach and public engagement
5. Rewards and incentives

I really like the bold ambitions specified in the plan. In particular, the implementation of Project teams to implement the many facets of the plan. At the same time, this is where I think the plan could be more precise and concrete. How many teams of what size are necessary to achieve these goals? The plan speaks of many new academic job descriptions (data managers, data stewards, public engagement activities, open science trainers and facilitators, etc.). I much encourage the implementation of these new functions, but this will come at a cost. The feasibility of the plan hinges on how much UU is willing to spend. So, UU, put your money where your mouth is! Unfortunately, part 9 of the plan, ‘planning & budget’, is still *empty*. This chapter is crucial and my main feedback on the plan is to formalise this chapter (#hoedan):

1: Create a roadmap to the goals of the open science programma

2: Include a budget associated with this roadmap

Nevertheless, I am very enthusiastic about this initiative!

Let’s see if we can initiate this culture shift!