Open Science and Data

Open and secure data lie at the heart of a trustworthy, innovative and globally competitive research system. As digital technologies rapidly transform the way knowledge is produced, shared and used, the responsible governance of data has become both an unprecedented opportunity and a complex challenge. For Europe’s academies—whose missions include safeguarding scientific quality, promoting evidence-informed policymaking, and enabling cross-border collaboration—these developments have profound implications. Ensuring that data can be shared openly where appropriate, and protected rigorously where necessary, is essential to advancing science as a global public good while upholding ethical, legal, and societal responsibilities. 

European academies have long played a leading role in these debates. They bring together interdisciplinary expertise, long-term perspectives, and an independent voice that is crucial for navigating the evolving landscape of data access, data security, intellectual property, and digital research infrastructures. Through ALLEA, they have contributed to shaping policies that balance openness and protection, enable innovation, and reinforce public trust in science. 

Through its coordinated activities, ALLEA aims to: 

• Amplify the collective voice of European academies in shaping policies for open and secure data. 

• Provide guidance for researchers, science managers and policymakers on best practices in data sharing, data protection, and intellectual property. 

• Support the development of sustainable infrastructures that enable responsible data use across all disciplines. 

• Promote the values of science as a global public good, making research outputs as open as possible and as closed as necessary. 

• Ensure coherence between Open Science ambitions, data security requirements, and legal frameworks. 

With its longstanding engagement and cross-disciplinary expertise, ALLEA continues to help Europe move towards a research ecosystem that is open, trustworthy, secure and prepared for the challenges of the digital age. These activities are building on long standing experience and scientific excellence in and across the European academies. For almost 30 years, the ALLEA Permanent Working Group on Intellectual Property Rights (IPR) provided authoritative guidance on how copyright, patents and related frameworks influence knowledge creation and dissemination. Their work emphasised that appropriate protection of inventions and creations is vital for fostering innovation, supporting technology transfer, and ensuring that academic research can effectively serve society. 

At the same time, ALLEA’s work on Open Science helped advance Europe’s transition toward more transparent, reproducible and collaborative research practices. This included exploring the implications of digital publication, promoting FAIR data principles, strengthening open access, engaging with data management challenges in the humanities and social sciences, and addressing ethical and legal questions associated with opening research outputs. The Task Force highlighted the importance of publishing not only final results but also protocols, data sets, software, and other early-stage outputs, while also recognising the need to reform research culture and invest in sustainable infrastructures. 

Together, these activities built a robust knowledge base on how data can be shared in ways that maximise scientific benefit while protecting sensitive information, respecting intellectual property, and maintaining research integrity.