Within Aurora, Open Science is developed through two closely connected dimensions. The first concerns Open Science and Citizen Science, with a focus on research culture, participation, public engagement, science communication, training and societal impact. The second concerns Open Science infrastructures and support, including research data management, repositories, FAIR principles, metadata, bibliometrics, open research information and technical support services. 

Together, these two dimensions allow Aurora to connect research, education and society, while supporting researchers, doctoral candidates, professional staff and institutional actors in developing open, responsible and participatory research practices. 

Open Science and Citizen Science 

Aurora’s activities in Open Science and Citizen Science have been developed mainly under the framework of the Aurora 2030 programme and within T10.2. Science and Society. The objective is to strengthen Aurora’s capacity to connect research, education and society through Open Science, Citizen Science, public engagement, science communication, co-creation and societal impact. 

 Since 2023, Aurora has promoted a shared reflection across the network on how Open Science and Citizen Science are understood, implemented and supported in different institutional and disciplinary contexts. A major step was the 2024 survey on Open Science and Citizen Science practices, which gathered around 420 responses across Aurora universities. The survey helped identify existing practices, needs, challenges and opportunities for further collaboration. 

 The Science and Society team has also contributed to the identification and discussion of best practices within Aurora universities, with the aim of making visible concrete experiences that can be shared, adapted and scaled across the alliance. These activities have supported the emergence of an interdisciplinary and international community of practice around open, participatory and socially engaged research. 

A further important strand of work has concerned training. The Science and Society team designed and delivered a training course on Open Science and Citizen Science for doctoral candidates, attended by more than 100 PhD students from different Aurora institutions. The course addressed key themes such as Open Science principles, Citizen Science, FAIR data, research ethics, scholarly communication, open-source software, licensing, repositories, peer review and public engagement. 

Work undertaken by this team has also connected Aurora with wider European and national debates, including discussions linked to the European Commission’s initiatives on the European Research Area, the European University Association, the European Citizen Science Association and the Italian Rectors’ Conference, within the framework of the Observatory on Open Science. 

Open Science Infrastructures and Support 

Aurora’s Open Science activities are also supported by work on infrastructures, services and technical frameworks, developed under the Aurora 2030 programme and within T5.3. Support and Infrastructure for Open Science. This area focuses on the practical conditions that allow Open Science to become part of everyday research practice. 

Relevant activities include support for research data management, FAIR principles, repositories, metadata, persistent identifiers, open research information, bibliometrics and the interoperability of research-related systems. These elements are essential for making research outputs findable, accessible, interoperable and reusable, and for supporting institutions in the transition towards more open and transparent research environments. 

The work on infrastructures and support complements the activities of the Science and Society team. While the former focuses primarily on technical, infrastructural and support-related dimensions,  the latter addresses the cultural, educational, participatory and societal dimensions of Open Science and Citizen Science. The two areas are therefore distinct but closely connected: infrastructures and support services provide the enabling conditions for Open Science, while training, public engagement and communities of practice help researchers and institutions use these tools in meaningful and socially responsible ways. 

Best Practices 

Aurora promotes the sharing of best practices as a way to make Open Science and Citizen Science more visible, concrete and transferable across the alliance. 

Within the Science and Society team, best practice presentations have offered Aurora universities the opportunity to showcase initiatives related to Open Science, Citizen Science, public engagement, participatory research, open educational resources, research support, repositories, training and societal impact. These meetings have allowed participants to compare institutional experiences, identify common challenges and discuss possible models for adaptation in different contexts. 

The best practice approach is particularly important because Open Science and Citizen Science are implemented unevenly across institutions and disciplines. By collecting and discussing examples from within the Aurora network, the alliance can support mutual learning, strengthen institutional capacity and encourage new collaborations among researchers, doctoral candidates, support staff and public engagement professionals. 

Trainings and Seminars 

Training and seminars are a central component of Aurora’s Open Science activities. They help transform general principles into practical knowledge, shared competences and reusable educational resources. 

Since 2024, the Science and Society team has developed a training programme for doctoral candidates and early-career researchers on Open Science and Citizen Science. The programme has addressed both conceptual and practical dimensions, including Open Science policies, Citizen Science methodologies, FAIR data, open research practices, open-source software, licensing, repositories, peer review and responsible research. 

In parallel, Aurora has organised and continues to develop seminars and training activities related to Open Science infrastructures and support, including topics such as research data management, repositories, metadata, bibliometrics, open research information and FAIR-oriented workflows. 

Future activities may build on these experiences through new cycles of seminars, further best practice presentations, training modules for doctoral candidates and professional staff, and the development of shared Aurora resources such as toolkits, practical recommendations and blended educational formats. These activities will contribute to consolidating an Aurora community of practice in Open Science and Citizen Science and to strengthening the alliance’s capacity to promote open, participatory and socially relevant research.