This post is part of a series in which we share more about what we’re working on and what we’re learning. Read our last update.
Have a question or comment about anything you see here? Get in touch! We’d love to hear from you.
On to the update …
What we are working on:
- The Open Infrastructure Fund pilot’s call for proposals is now open! Projects worldwide with the aim of strengthening the resilience and sustainability of open infrastructure can apply for 5,000-25,000 USD to support their work. The deadline for applications is July 31, 2023, and we’re aiming to host office hours for applicants in the next few weeks! Read our blog posts (English, Spanish) for more information, and please help spread the word!
- We welcome Sarah Lang and Daechan Kim to the team! As our Business Development and Partnerships Lead, Sarah will be working closely with our Executive Director Kaitlin Thaney to build support for our first fund, set to launch in 2024, as well as to further the development of our fundraising and business partnership strategy. We are also excited to have Daechan, a student at the Rochester Institute of Technology, join the team over the summer to research governance models for the open science cloud infrastructure project (see below). Additionally, Jerry Sellanga transitions to the new role of Engagement Coordinator, Networks, and starts full time this month.
- Our Research Team is starting interviews with project partners for the open science cloud infrastructure in Latin America and Africa project. In this project, we will be conducting initial research in governance activities and co-designing and piloting an early-stage governance and sustainability plan.
- The Engagement team is preparing for our upcoming workshop on building sustainable research infrastructure in Africa through exploring public-private partnerships, taking place alongside Open Repositories 2023 in June, in Somerset West, South Africa.
Who we are talking to:
- Our Executive Director Kaitlin connected with the participants at the Confederation of Open Access Repositories (COAR) Annual Summit in Costa Rica.
- Connie Clare, Research Data Alliance, to learn more about their work, including the new working group around research data infrastructure and their partnership with Oracle.
- Stewart Scott and Sara Ann, the Atlantic Council, to share our new funding call and discuss their plans for their upcoming funders roundtable.
- Natalia Manola, OpenAIRE, to understand more about the intention to charge for on-demand services in 2024 and their work on testing out various business models so far.
- Maurice York, Director of Library Initiatives for the Big Ten Academic Alliance, to discuss ways to increase adoption of community-governed, open infrastructure at the consortia level.
- Katharina Meyer and other grantees of the Digital Infrastructure Fund, to hear more about their research, upcoming funding call, and learnings from starting a fund to support the digital infrastructure ecosystem.
What we are reading/exploring:
A list of highlights is below — for a more comprehensive view, please check out the Open Infrastructure Tracking Project (also on Mastodon).
- Saudi universities entice top scientists to switch affiliations — sometimes with cash, Nature, May 2023.
- The European Council’s conclusion on transparent, equitable, and open access to scholarly publications, May 2023.
- G7 Science and Technology Ministers’ Communique, May 2023.
- Supporting diamond open access journals. Interest and feasibility of direct funding mechanisms, Quentin Dufour, David Pontille, and Didier Torny, May 2023.
Upcoming events/talks:
We look forward to meeting you at the following event!
- Open Repositories 2023, June 12-15, South Africa: Kaitlin, Jerry, and Engagement Lead Emmy Tsang will be attending and leading a workshop there.
- Kaitlin will be speaking with the Strategies for Open Collaboration in Library Consortia (SOCLC) Task Force on May 30 (virtual) on ways consortia leaders can support open infrastructure, building on the International Coalition of Library Consortia meeting (ICOLC)’s recent report, Strategies for Collaboration: Opportunities and Challenges to Build the Future We Need.