How We Promote and Represent Regional Open Science at Global Events

Open Science has become a central topic in the international area, sparking discussions about how to make research more accessible, transparent, and collaborative. This approach aims to democratize knowledge and promote more equitable participation in the scientific process.

However, for researchers in Latin America and other regions of the Global South, implementing Open Science principles can present significant challenges that deepen inequalities in the global recognition and distribution of knowledge.

Recently, we had the opportunity to participate in international events that addressed these issues: the eLife webinar titled “Promoting Open Science in and from the Global South” and the event organized by Don’t Use This Code, where communities involved in the NASA Transforms to Open Science initiative shared experiences and perspectives on Open Science training through virtual cohorts. We also participated in the First Latin American Open Science Forum. These experiences inspired us to reflect on the importance of representing and raising visibility for Latin American perspectives in global Open Science.

Transforming Towards Open Science from Latin America

Highlighting the region’s challenges in implementing Open Science practices can help build a complete understanding of local research realities. We also want to emphasize the actions MetaDocencia is taking to promote the Open Science transformation that the region needs:

- Language Barrier(s): The predominance of English in global science limits the full participation of Latin American researchers.

At MetaDocencia, we work to reduce this barrier by contextualizing knowledge and regional practices in Spanish. However, we are aware that many local, Indigenous, and multilingual languages are not yet included in our efforts, besides other languages spoken in our region, such as Portuguese and French. In this sense, collaborative Contextualization work helps lower the language barrier with Spanish, enabling us to design and implement virtual training cohorts for Spanish speakers that cover all five modules of the Open Science Introduction course designed by NASA.

- Limited Resources: Insufficient funding and limited technological infrastructure for organizing, storing, and accessing research data, as well as processing it, are central to understanding the local context. Additionally, the lack of interoperable platforms and established data management practices remains a significant challenge in the region.

Our open, free, Spanish-language training courses help build scientific and technical capacities responsibly, accessibly, and with a local perspective.

- Publication Costs: The predominant model excludes many researchers in the Global South, limiting their ability to participate fully in the international production and dissemination of their research; it often forces them to stand out exceptionally to justify fee waivers.

Developing local case studies like the Permanent Household Survey (EPH) allows us to continue building capacities within and for Latin America. Additionally, sharing Open Science in Action stories, such as the PsiNet LAB case, contributes to recognizing efforts beyond traditional publication frameworks.

Moreover, expert reflections on global topics and their regional impact, like A rtificial Intelligence and Education: More Questions than Answers or Thinking Critically about Artificial Intelligence and Education, bring valuable insights to the discussion. Bilingual publications on topics of interest in other media, such as Artificial Intelligence and its impact on our work areas enhance the discourse and contribute to this conversation: Generative AI poses ethical challenges to Open Science, a comment for Nature Human Behaviour.

- Lack of Coordination: A disconnect exists between scientific-technical levels and decision-makers, which affects the effective implementation of Open Science policies and influences local and regional collaboration networks.

MetaDocencia’s Community Hive, which aims to showcase and link the efforts of more than 20 fellow communities, demonstrates that science is a collaborative, networked endeavor. This space fosters interactions among individuals from diverse backgrounds and varying levels of engagement, facilitating projects that bridge communities of practice with institutional environments.

Additionally, Consulting work, such as supporting other communities in developing their governance and sustainability for Open Science projects, strengthens inter-community collaboration.

- Resistance to Change: The transition to new practices, such as shared infrastructure management or data management practices, is often hindered by conflicting interests, information asymmetry, and the inertia of traditional models.

In this regard, the regional Open Science Plenaries ( Plenary 1 and Plenary 2 recordings) that close each edition of Latin America Transforms to Open Science (ALTa), as part of our Training pillar, help socialize and promote new initiatives and opportunities among those involved in science and technology across different regions, who may share common interests and challenges. Participation in events with simultaneous translation, such as csv,conf 2023, also contributes to spreading new ideas and connecting spaces and key players in regional Open Science initiatives.

Highlighting Local Production

Despite the challenges mentioned, Latin America has a rich tradition of innovation in Open Science, often promoted under difficult conditions with limited resources and high institutional instability. Shared infrastructures, such as those found in Argentina with the National Systems of Large Instruments, are examples of how resources can be used efficiently.

The development of shared systems and cooperation in strategic areas offers a concrete path forward for advancing open science in the region Creating networks and sharing expensive equipment are opportunities to strengthen regional capacity. In this sense, various MetaDocencia fellow communities are working to advance research through shared resources, such as the High-Performance Computing Center (CCAD-UNC), CabanaNET, and Latin America Bioimaging, to name just a few.

However, these achievements rarely receive the attention they deserve in the global scientific context. International events provide us with an excellent opportunity not only to showcase our work but also to use every chance to bring other regional initiatives and projects into the spotlight.

Enhancing visibility in these productions and spaces not only bridges the recognition gap but also ensures that our voices are heard and valued equally. Moreover, it serves to acknowledge that our achievements arise not in isolation, but through robust support networks, collaborations, and shared opportunities.

Building Networks

Participation in global events should serve as a platform to build and strengthen collaborative networks.

We must work to ensure that knowledge distribution is fair and equitable, promoting collaboration that is neither paternalistic nor extractivist. Instead of limiting our interactions to a donor-recipient dynamic, we should foster collaborative networks that value and recognize mutual contributions.

At MetaDocencia, we develop open, reusable, and accessible educational resources that reach a global Spanish-speaking community. We build regional scientific, technical, and research capacity. Our approach prioritizes Spanish-speaking communities and localizes open scientific and technical practices for international use. In this sense, our pillars Training, Contextualization, and Community are investments in further strengthening Open Science and transforming opportunities from the region through communities of practice.

Acknowledgments

This publication was made possible thanks to a grant from the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative (DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.7386372) NASA grants 80NSSC23K0854 (DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.8215455), 80NSSC23K0857 (DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.8250978), and 80NSSC23K0861 (DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.8212072), and grant DAF2021-239366 and grant DOI https://doi.org/10.37921/522107izqogv from the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative DAF, a fund advised by the Silicon Valley Community Foundation (Funder DOI 10.13039/100014989).

Did you like this publication? You can reuse it freely under CC BY 4.0 license, just remember to cite it. Formoso, J., Rajngewerc, M., Ascenzi, L., & Ación, L. (2024). How We Promote and Represent Regional Open Science at Global Events. Zenodo. https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.14188392