Multifaceted Workshops to Envision the Future of Open Science With Society

Abstract

This paper details three multifaceted workshops that were held in Japan to envision the future co-evolution of open science and transdisciplinary research theories. A method of unconference, in which participants decide topics of group talk for themselves, was applied in every workshop with a sequential improvement. The first and third workshops comprised eleven research experts of environmental sciences and informatics as participants, while the second workshop was attended by 37 participants who represented research communities, libraries, central and local governments, industries, and non-profit organizations. These workshops highlighted the necessity to conventionalize open research data policies in the context of each research domain. It seems that vague anxiety against unintended use might obstruct the promotion of open research data. There are two functions of citizen science-the co-development of data infrastructure and the actions for social transformation. The deliberation also revealed the importance of bridging agents who facilitate the bidirectional interaction of knowledge systems between research communities and other societal sectors were essential. A capacity building of bridging agents was demanded.