The strategy at Masaryk University focuses on integrating citizen science and open source principles into its educational and research framework. By engaging the academic community, the university aims to educate and involve staff and students through workshops, open access publications, and interdisciplinary collaboration. For example, faculty are encouraged to build citizen science projects into their curricula and dissertations. The approach fosters a culture of transparency and active participation.
To support these initiatives, dedicated infrastructure like platforms for managing projects and secure IT systems for data sharing are established. Training sessions on open source software and access to cloud computing resources ensure that technical barriers are minimized, facilitating smooth operation of open science projects.
External collaborations are pivotal, with efforts to form partnerships with community members, local schools, and other universities. These collaborations extend to industry and government, creating synergies for applied research, policy alignment, and joint funding opportunities. For instance, student exchange programs and participation in international networks are advocated, broadening the university's reach in the open science arena.
The strategies
⛳️ Strategy 1: Engage the academic community
- Organise workshops to educate staff about citizen science and open source benefits
- Collaborate with departments to identify applicable projects for citizen science
- Encourage faculty to incorporate open source tools in course curricula
- Create a committee to oversee citizen science initiatives
- Facilitate regular seminars with guest speakers on open science
- Integrate citizen science projects into thesis topics
- Encourage publication in open access journals
- Motivate faculty to utilise open data repositories
- Promote interdisciplinary collaboration for diverse project inputs
- Launch internal communication campaign to raise awareness
⛳️ Strategy 2: Establish infrastructure and support
- Develop a dedicated platform for managing citizen science projects
- Provide training sessions on using open source software
- Create a repository for sharing open access resources
- Designate technical support for open science projects
- Implement a system for tracking and reporting project outcomes
- Allocate funding for open science initiatives
- Develop templates for project documentation
- Facilitate access to cloud computing resources for data analysis
- Ensure IT infrastructure supports secure sharing of open data
- Establish partnerships with technology providers for software access
⛳️ Strategy 3: Foster external collaborations and partnerships
- Identify potential community partners for citizen science projects
- Build relationships with local schools to engage students
- Collaborate with other universities in the region on open science
- Engage industry partners for applied research opportunities
- Coordinate with government agencies for policy alignment
- Participate in international open source networks
- Host events to showcase collaborative successes
- Encourage student exchanges with institutions focusing on open science
- Create a mailing list for sharing open science opportunities
- Secure external funding through joint grant applications
Bringing accountability to your strategy
It's one thing to have a plan, it's another to stick to it. We hope that the examples above will help you get started with your own strategy, but we also know that it's easy to get lost in the day-to-day effort.
That's why we built Tability: to help you track your progress, keep your team aligned, and make sure you're always moving in the right direction.
Give it a try and see how it can help you bring accountability to your strategy.
