The Case for International Sharing of Scientific Data Report Release

The Board on International Scientific Organizations (BISO), and the U.S. Committee on Data for Science and Technology (US CODATA) under the Board on Research Data and Information (BRDI), in consultation with the Committee on Freedom and Responsibility in the conduct of Science (CFRS) of the International Council for Science (ICSU), organized a 2-day international symposium in Washington, DC on 18-19 April 2011. We are pleased to announce the release of the proceedings of the speaker presentations from that meeting, The Case for International Sharing of Scientific Data: A Focus on Developing Countries. It is available electronically at: http://www.nap.edu/catalog.php?record_id=17019 . The main objective of the symposium was to gain better understanding of the data access and sharing situation in the developing world, with a focus on barriers, opportunities, and future actions. There are various hurdles to the access and sharing of scientific data collected by governments or by researchers using public funding. Such obstacles include scientific and technical; institutional and management; economic and financial; legal and policy; and normative and socio-cultural barriers. Some of these difficulties are possible to diminish or remove, whereas others seek to balance competing values that impose legitimate limitations on openness.