Workshop: Access to science & scholarship

Access to science and scholarship: building an evidence base to support the future of open research policy 

Scientific progress hinges on robust systems for curating, vetting, validating, and sharing research. Funder policies are increasingly driving openness and transparency of research results with varying degrees of success. As the January 2026 implementation date for the new Office of Science and Technology Policy’s public access requirements approaches, how can we ensure that current and future policies lead to the most effective and trustworthy ways to share research? Can the research community develop and fund a research agenda to understand how these changes will impact the research process leading to an understanding of how to most effectively further the open science agenda?

This solutions-focused workshop is funded by the National Science Foundation. It convenes a diverse group of experts for intensive discussion on the open questions provoked by changes in the research communications enterprise. The participants will work together to advance a research agenda that can inform the development of new policies and practices in open science communications.

WHEN: Friday September 20th, 8:30am to 4:30pm

AGENDA (in progress)

8:30 - 9 Breakfast and Coffee

9 - 9:15 Welcome and Opening Remarks
Phillip Sharp, Institute Professor and Professor of Biology Emeritus, Intramural Faculty, Koch Institute, Massachusetts Institute of Technology

9:15 - 9:45 Keynote Address
Speaker to be announced

9:45 - 10:45 Access and Evolving Business Models
How have access paradigms and evolving business models reshaped the landscape of scholarly communication? Subscription-based models are being supplanted by various open access frameworks -- how do these models affect the availability and dissemination of research, and what new models are emerging at the intersection of academic and commercial interests? Are any of these models sustainable over the long term? How does each model shift market dynamics and the balance between larger commercial publishers, research societies, and independent/university presses?
Moderator: Rachel Burley, Chief Publications Officer, American Physical Society
Panelists: Curtis Brundy, Associate University Librarian for Scholarlay Communications and Collections, Iowa State University

10:45 - 11:15 Coffee and Networking Break

11:15 - 12:15 Research Data Access, Curation, and Storage
The management of research data is a cornerstone of the scientific method. This session will scrutinize current practices and policies around data access, curation, and storage, assessing their adequacy in the face of escalating data volumes and complexity. Is there a role for publishers to play in ensuring progress toward open data practices? What are the real costs of such policies? We'll discuss the need for robust, scalable infrastructures to support data sharing, the challenges of ensuring data quality and reproducibility, and the role of data in enhancing the transparency and utility of scientific findings.
Moderator and panelists to be announced.

12:15 - 1:00 Lunch

1:00 - 2:00 Future of Peer Review
Peer review stands as the gatekeeper of quality in scholarly publishing and the research community overwhelmingly values the improvements it brings to the literature. As science is both growing and moving toward more transparent, open practices, how is this affecting the peer review process? New models are arising, particularly around the use of preprints, which both accelerate the pace of research dissemination but has also rais questions about quality control. We will consider alternative models of peer review, the potential for crowd-sourced and post-publication review, and the integration of technology to streamline the review process.
Moderator: Daniela Saderi, Cofounder and Executive Director, PREreview
Panelists: John Inglis, Executive Director Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory Press and cofounder of bioRxiv, medRxiv
Further panelists to be announced

2:00 - 3:00 Communications Infrastructure
As we venture deeper into the digital era, the infrastructure underpinning scientific communication becomes increasingly vital. The workshop will investigate the current state of this infrastructure, including digital repositories, scholarly databases, and communication networks. We will discuss the requirements for a robust, secure, and flexible infrastructure that can support the diverse open science needs of researchers, librarians, and publishers.
Moderator: Roger Schonfeld, Vice President, Libraries, Scholarly Communication, and Museums, Ithaka S+R
Panelists: Lori Ann Schultz, Senior Associate Vice President, Research Administration at the University of Texas, San Antonio

3:00 - 3:30 Coffee and networking break

3:30 - 4:30 Opportunities for Furthering Open Science: The final panel of the day will reflect back on the information and suggestions presented during each session to explore the horizon for open science. What opportunities are available for broadening the reach of open science practices? What are the next steps – what can be done to support better, data-driven policies and practices to improve the value, speed, and reliability of scientific research? We will also consider the policy implications, funding mechanisms, and international collaborations needed to support a sustainable and inclusive open science ecosystem.
Moderator: Amy Brand, Director and Publisher, The MIT Press; Cofounder Knowledge Futures Group
Panelists: Phillip Sharp, Institute Professor and Professor of Biology Emeritus, Intramural Faculty, Koch Institute, Massachusetts Institute of Technology; Brian Hitson, Director, U.S. Department of Energy, Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI); Sudip Parikh, Chief Executive Officer and Executive Publisher Science Family of Journals; Lisa Janicke Hinchliffe, Professor/Coordinator for Research Professional Development, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign Library.
Further panelists to be announced

WHERE: The American Academy for the Advancement of Science, 1200 New York Ave NW, Washington, DC 20005

Participation is by invitation only. If you have received an invitation and are able to attend, please complete the registration form:

Registration form