Open Science in Latin America and the Caribbean: a strong tradition with a long journey ahead

Organized by UNESCO in partnership with the Open Science Forum for Latin America and the Caribbean (Foro CILAC), the Regional Online Consultation for Latin America and the Caribbean on the UNESCO Recommendation on Open Science brought together more than 60 experts from Latin America and the Caribbean on Wednesday 23 September 2020.

The activity was followed via streaming by more than 2000 online participants who connected simultaneously from across the region. Attendees included officials from the governing bodies in charge of science and technology policy in UNESCO's Member States, international, regional and national scientific institutions, academies of science and organizations promoting open science, among other stakeholders.

Open Science is a global movement that aims to make science more accessible, democratic, transparent and beneficial to all. To build a global consensus on Open Science, and in line with the decision taken by the UNESCO General Conference in November 2019 to develop the UNESCO Recommendation on Open Science, the Organization is conducting a series of regional and thematic consultations following an inclusive, transparent and consultative process that involves all countries and stakeholders worldwide and taking stock of the different regional perspectives.

The objective was to provide a platform for receiving contributions and inputs to the UNESCO Recommendation on Open Science in Latin America and the Caribbean from scientists, policy makers, innovators, publishers and other stakeholders.

In her welcoming remarks, Shamila Naira-Bedouelle, UNESCO Assistant Director- General for the Natural Sciences, highlighted that the Latin American and Caribbean region has a long tradition of open science initiatives and acknowledged that those present at the Consultation belonged to regional institutions that have been working to promote the notion of Open Science for many years. She also recalled as a milestone the Panama Declaration on Open Science, signed in 2018, in the framework of the CILAC Forum, and confirmed that

"It is clear that for the countries of Latin America and the Caribbean, Open Science is very relevant and this consultation process will be a means to achieve greater regional and international scientific cooperation". She added that: "Open Science will contribute to the redistribution of global research and ensure that all countries can access science and technology, from emerging to developed economies", and emphasised "We need to level the playing field".

Renowned scientist Fernanda Beigel (Argentina), Chair of the Open Science Advisory Committee, was acknowledged for her support, flexibility and willingness to join the group of 30 leading scientists working on the Recommendation. The Open Science Advisory Committee is the body responsible for coordinating the process of developing the Recommendation at the global level.

During her presentation, Lidia Brito, Director of the Regional Bureau for Sciences in Latin America and the Caribbean, added the importance of open science for the right to science, for sustainable development and inclusion, in order not to leave anyone behind in the development process.

The activity was organised around three axes:

• open access,
• open data,
• citizenship and science,

as they are considered to be the focus of the current debate in the region.

The panel on open access began by highlighting Latin America and the Caribbean as the region in the world that has achieved the highest percentage of open access scientific production published within it.

"This is thanks to the collaborative work of editorial teams, journals, university libraries developing university repositories and journal portals. These initiatives are led by the region's public universities and scientific organizations, and are financed by public funds, without commercial intermediation," said Dominique Babini of the Latin American Council of Social Sciences (CLACSO).

The participation of representatives from the Ministries of Science and Technology of Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica and Uruguay, who made up the second panel focusing on open data, showed the growing importance of data in society in general and in open science in particular. "Without interoperable and reusable data, open science is not possible" said Wouter Shallier, Chief of the Hernán Santa Cruz Library of ECLAC (Chile), its moderator. Government representatives shared their progress on specific laws and policies on open data, followed by panelists from other sectors of society who were able to complement it with valuable, diverse and divergent perspectives.

The final panel was moderated by Mariano Fresolli of the Centro de Investigaciones para la Transformación (CENIT), who expressed the limited recognition and space given to the region's long tradition of participatory action. It is also worth noting the active participation of ministerial representatives from the English Caribbean countries, who a few days ago held their own online consultation with a view to making a coordinated contribution to the Latin American and Caribbean regional position. Existing gaps in the three axes of the Consultation and the urgent need for capacity-building in the region in order to properly accompany the process were highlighted, among others.

In her closing statement, Shamila Naira-Bedouelle thanked participants for their contribution, congratulated the exchange and pointed out the importance of the Latin American and Caribbean region in the global context, not only for its advances in open science, but also for providing fertile ground for its application, for example in water, ecosystem and biodiversity issues, since open science is fundamental for the sustainable development of the region and the world. She called on everyone to continue their efforts, stressing that we are only at the beginning of a long journey that has just begun.