What role for open and collaborative science in development? - University World News

" ... ‘Open development’ is an umbrella term that encompasses open source software, open access to research outputs, open educational resources, open innovation, and open data in various domains, including governments. The term is a broad proposition that open models and peer-based production, enabled by pervasive network technologies, non-market based incentive structures and alternative licensing regimes, can result in greater participation, access and collaboration across different sectors. These interactions may in turn create new social benefits in areas as diverse as education, health, science and knowledge production, governance and citizen participation and small and medium enterprises [3]. A key understanding of ‘Open Development’ is that while technologies are not the sole driver of social change, they are deeply embedded in our social, economic and political fabric. We therefore need to understand ‘openness’ within the context of a complex socio-technical framework. Development agencies such as the World Bank, Department for International Development in the United Kingdom and UNESCO are paying close attention to the ‘openness’ agenda and are supporting a variety of initiatives and policy development in these areas. Many large funding agencies around the world are also supporting open access and open data policies, with the understanding that openness maximiaes the return on funding investment through greater uptake and reuse of research results [4]. The International Development Research Centre, or IDRC, of Canada has been at the forefront of this trend, with key funding programmes designed to support researchers and organisations in the global South to investigate the nature and quality of openness and its impact across different sectors and socio-economic contexts [5]. The IDRC also provides resources and intellectual support for network building to share best practices, and to strengthen local research capacity and leadership in relevant areas of policy development. The Open and Collaborative Science in Development Network – OCSDNet – is one of the key openness initiatives supported by the IDRC. The project is being jointly coordinated by iHub based in Nairobi, Kenya, and the Centre for Critical Development Studies at the University of Toronto Scarborough, and supported by an international team of expert advisors [6] ..."