• May 28, 2025

Linking Open Science and Gender Equality: Comprehensive Analysis from the OPUS Interactive Workshop
This report examines the complex relationship between open science and gender equality based on insights from the OPUS Interactive Workshop held on 27 May 2025.

The findings reveal that whilst open science can serve as a predictor for gender equality in organisations, the relationship is not always causal or unambiguous, being heavily dependent on cultural and institutional contexts. Key evidence demonstrates that when organisational culture is unfavourable to gender equality, open science initiatives may not predict positive changes and could even correlate negatively with equality outcomes.

Workshop Overview and Strategic Objectives
The OPUS (Open and Universal Science) Interactive Workshop brought together more than 20 participants online, including project partners, researchers, professionals, experts in open science and gender equality, policymakers, HR managers from research-performing organisations, and programme managers from research funding bodies. The workshop served as a platform for critical reflection on European Commission recommendations for research evaluation whilst identifying implementation barriers and co-developing practical recommendations.

Primary Workshop Objectives
The workshop established four core objectives that guided all discussions and outcomes:
● Critical Reflection: Examining key recommendations for research evaluation to promote both open science and gender equality
● Barrier Identification: Mapping obstacles to implementation at policy, organisational, and individual levels
● Practical Development: Creating actionable recommendations for the European Commission and research organisations
● Integration Framework: Embedding openness, transparency, and equality into scientific practice

OPUS Project
The OPUS project, funded by the European Commission’s Horizon programme, employs a comprehensive three-tiered stakeholder engagement approach:
● Diverse Consortium: Comprising researcher organisations, research-performing organisations (RPOs), research-funding organisations (RFOs), industry organisations, and open science experts
● Community Validation: Extensive stakeholder engagement sessions to gather input and validate key deliverables
● Expert Oversight: Advisory Board providing specialist guidance and maintaining connections with the broader research community

Evidence Base: Complex Interactions Between Open Science and Gender Equality
Research Findings and Evidence Blocks
Raminta Pučėtaitė from Vilnius University presented three distinct evidence blocks that challenge simplistic assumptions about open science automatically promoting gender equality:

Block 1: Predictive Relationship
Open science can predict gender equality in organisations by enabling data-driven frameworks and creating more transparent processes for evaluating individual academic merits. This perspective emphasises how open science practices can reduce bias in evaluation systems through increased transparency and accountability.

Block 2: Context-Dependent Limitations
Cultural and institutional context plays a determining role in outcomes. When organisational or national culture is unfavourable to gender equality, open science initiatives do not predict positive changes; rather, they may be negatively interrelated with equality goals. This context-dependency suggests that open science alone cannot overcome deeply embedded cultural barriers.

Block 3: Limited Implementation Effects
Open science may have no effect on gender equality when implemented in restricted ways, particularly when understood solely as open access publishing without broader institutional transformation. This finding underscores the importance of holistic approaches addressing systemic issues.

Disciplinary and Cultural Variations
The workshop highlighted significant variations across different contexts¹:
● Disciplinary Patterns: Gender patterns in open science participation vary by disciplinary field and context
● Publication Behaviours: Women may publish more in open access journals in some settings, whilst men are more likely to share primary data in others
● Trust Factors: Willingness to engage in open science activities is shaped by interpersonal and cultural factors specific to each environment

Global and European Policy Contexts

UNESCO’s Global Perspective on Gender Equality

UNESCO representative Juliana Chaves Chaparro provided crucial global context, emphasising persistent gender equality challenges despite decades of policy attention:

Key Global Statistics:
● Only one-third of researchers worldwide are women
● Particularly severe underrepresentation in physics, artificial intelligence, and emerging technologies
● Women comprise only 12% of members in national science academies globally
● Women face greater challenges obtaining research grants and project coordination roles
● Severe underrepresentation in STEM fields across both developed and developing countries

The Persistent “Leaky Pipeline”:
The workshop highlighted how women’s participation in research decreases dramatically at higher career stages, with UNESCO data revealing concerning trends across the research ecosystem.

Human Rights Framework:
UNESCO’s approach frames participation in science as a fundamental human right rather than merely a policy preference, calling for:
● Ambitious measures to remediate past inequalities
● Equitable and open access to scientific literature and data
● Transparent, gender-sensitive performance appraisals considering all aspects of academic work
● Recognition of family-related career interruptions

European Union Policy Implementation

Aurelija Novelskaite from Vilnius University outlined the EU context, revealing significant implementation gaps:

Horizon Europe Gender Equality Framework:
● Mandatory gender equality plans introduced as eligibility criteria in 2020
● Integration of gender dimensions into research content and innovation processes
● Promotion of gender balance among researchers, expert groups, and decision-making bodies

Implementation Challenges:
● Many institutions treat requirements as “box-ticking exercises” lacking genuine implementation
● Gender equality plans often created as formal documents without substantive changes in organisation’s management practices
● Significant variation in implementation quality across member states

Critical Policy Gap:
Research conducted by the Gender Action project found that most European Commission policy documents focusing on open science fail to provide directions, recommendations, or guidelines for integrating gender equality considerations into open science activities.

Systemic Barriers and Implementation Challenges

Identified Barriers to Integration
Workshop participants identified several interconnected barriers preventing effective integration of open science and gender equality:

Policy Development Barriers:
● Low participation by researchers and funding organisation representatives in shaping open science policies
● Minimal involvement of practitioners in national and supranational research policy development
● Limited awareness of open science practices at early stages of the scientific life cycle

Institutional Implementation Barriers:
● Superficial compliance with formal gender equality plans without real action
● Cultural resistance in contexts where open science and gender equality are not mutually reinforcing
● Inadequate integration of gender equality roles in open science action plan development

Data and Evidence Barriers:
● Lack of disaggregated data hindering targeted interventions
● Insufficient sex- and gender-segregated indicators in assessment frameworks
● Limited monitoring of differential impacts across various groups and contexts

Intersectional Challenges:
● Underrepresented groups beyond women face additional barriers
● Migrants, LGBTQI individuals, and people with disabilities encounter specific obstacles
● Multiple identity factors compound existing inequalities

Early Career Researcher Specific Barriers:
The workshop identified unique challenges facing early career researchers (ECRs):
● Vulnerability Concerns: Fear of retribution for critical open peer reviews
● Experience Limitations: Lack of experience in predicting research workflows for pre-registration
● Competitive Pressures: Concerns about exposure and vulnerability in competitive academic environments
● Resource Constraints: Prohibitively high time commitments required for open science practices

Comprehensive Recommendations Framework

Gender Action Project Integration Recommendations
The workshop examined specific recommendations developed by the Gender Action project, organised into five priority areas:

1. Gender Mainstreaming and Policy Synergies

• Systematically integrate gender aspects across all prioritised policy areas
• Involve more gender experts in open science activities
• Ensure gender considerations are embedded in policy development processes

2. Knowledge and Awareness Building

• Collect and analyse disaggregated data on participation by gender and other identities
• Understand participation patterns and identify barriers
• Develop targeted interventions to address inequalities

3. Evaluation and Assessment Practices

• Explore how new metrics impact different genders across career stages, disciplines, and cultures
• Adopt multi-dimensional, transparent evaluation criteria
• Ensure transparency and openness in all evaluation practices and procedures

4. Research Practices Enhancement

• Encourage sharing of preprints on gender-related research
• Implement appropriate management of sex and gender data
• Make gender-related research more visible whilst respecting privacy and ethical considerations

5. Innovation Process Development

• Develop participatory innovation projects guaranteeing gender diversity
• Integrate gender considerations into research content
• Strive for equal distribution in research teams and leadership positions

Practical Implementation Strategies

Workshop breakout sessions identified concrete implementation approaches:

Institutional Integration Measures:

• Involve gender equality officers in designing and implementing open science action plans
• Develop sex- and gender-disaggregated indicators for all research assessment frameworks
• Promote visibility of women’s achievements through targeted communication and success stories

Training and Support Programmes:

• Provide targeted training for researchers and research evaluators on open science and gender equality
• Address work-life balance and family-care reconciliation as key issues
• Tackle self-confidence barriers among women and underrepresented groups

Collaboration and Networking:

• Foster collaboration with civil society organisations, women’s groups, and policymakers
• Use stakeholder mapping to identify and leverage supportive networks
• Broaden the impact of gender equality initiatives through strategic partnerships

Project Management and Implementation Framework

Task Prioritisation Using Eisenhower Matrix

Based on workshop outcomes, implementation priorities can be categorised as follows:

Urgent and Important:

• Addressing superficial compliance with gender equality requirements
• Developing disaggregated data collection systems
• Creating targeted support for early career researchers

Important but Not Urgent:

• Building long-term cultural change initiatives
• Establishing comprehensive training programmes
• Developing intersectional policy approaches

Urgent but Less Important:

• Updating existing policy documents to include gender considerations
• Creating immediate communication campaigns
• Establishing short-term monitoring systems

Neither Urgent nor Important:

• Routine administrative updates
• Non-essential documentation processes
• Peripheral stakeholder engagement activities

Collaboration Workflows and Governance

The workshop established clear role-based access controls for implementation:

Research Performing Organisations (RPOs):

• Review policies and implicit framings regarding competition versus cooperation
• Implement employment policies addressing equity and equality
• Create training opportunities and encourage institutional learning

Research Funding Organisations (RFOs):

• Review incentive structures built into funding mechanisms
• Examine structural incentives embedded in funding procedures
• Develop funding criteria recognising diverse research outputs

Policymakers:

• Coordinate policy mechanisms supporting gender equality across all actions
• Create strategies to counteract gender-based violence in research environments
• Establish intersectional policy approaches addressing diverse backgrounds and career stages

Assessment Reform and Future Implications

Research Assessment Transformation

The workshop’s discussions have significant implications for ongoing research assessment reform efforts across Europe and globally. The Agreement on Reforming Research Assessment, signed by numerous European organisations in 2021, provides a framework for moving beyond traditional metrics-focused evaluation towards comprehensive approaches recognising diverse research outputs.

Evidence from OPUS Project Pilot Activities:

The OPUS project’s pilot activities in five organisations—three Research Performing Organisations (Nova University Lisbon, University of Rijeka, and University of Cyprus) and two Research Funding Organisations from Lithuania and Romania—are testing interventions and indicators integrating open science practices with broader assessment reform goals.

Critical Assessment Statistics:

Recent European Commission reports reveal urgent reform needs:

• 98% of EU research publications fail to integrate a gender dimension
• Women represent only 34% of EU researchers overall
• Current assessment systems fail to incentivise comprehensive open science practices or inclusive research approaches

Moving Beyond Superficial Compliance
The workshop findings suggest that successful integration requires fundamental transformation rather than superficial compliance:

• Cultural Transformation: Moving beyond “tick-box” compliance towards genuine institutional change
• Structural Change: Addressing interconnected barriers facing researchers from underrepresented groups
• Contextual Approaches: Recognising that different disciplinary and cultural contexts require tailored solutions

Future Directions and Policy Development

Immediate Policy Implications

As the OPUS project approaches completion in August 2025, the workshop outcomes will inform final policy briefs and recommendations:

Policy Framework Requirements:

• Explicit addressing of open science and gender equality intersection
• Cultural and institutional transformation focus rather than mere compliance
• Assessment system redesign recognising full spectrum of research activities

Implementation Support Focus:

• Addressing systematic biases disadvantaging women and underrepresented groups
• Moving beyond publication-focused metrics towards comprehensive evaluation approaches
• Recognising collaboration, transparency, societal engagement, and diverse research contributions

Long-term Strategic Directions

Monitoring and Evaluation Systems:

• Incorporate disaggregated data collection enabling understanding of differential impacts
• Assess whether interventions achieve intended goals or exacerbate existing inequalities
• Develop evidence-based approaches to policy refinement

Training and Support Programme Development:

• Address specific needs of early career researchers and underrepresented groups
• Recognise unequal distribution of barriers to open science participation
• Implement targeted interventions addressing path dependencies limiting future participation

Assessment System Redesign:

• Value the full spectrum of research activities whilst addressing systematic biases
• Move beyond publication-focused metrics towards comprehensive evaluation approaches
• Recognise collaboration, transparency, societal engagement, and diverse forms of research contribution

Strategic Recommendations

The OPUS Interactive Workshop definitively established that linking open science and gender equality requires substantially more than policy statements. The evidence presented demonstrates that genuine integration demands:

• Context-Sensitive Action: Recognising that relationships between open science and gender equality vary significantly across cultural and institutional contexts
• Genuine Implementation: Moving beyond superficial compliance towards fundamental cultural and structural transformation
• Comprehensive Approaches: Addressing interconnected barriers rather than treating open science and gender equality as separate initiatives

Strategic Implementation Framework
Based on workshop findings, successful implementation requires a multi-level approach:

Macro Level Actions:

• Embedding gender and diversity considerations at all stages of research assessment and policy development
• Creating policy coordination mechanisms supporting gender equality across all research actions
• Establishing evidence-based monitoring systems with disaggregated data collection

Meso Level Actions:

• Recognising and rewarding broader spectrum of research outputs and societal contributions
• Implementing comprehensive institutional change rather than superficial compliance
• Developing targeted support programmes addressing specific barrier patterns

Micro Level Actions:

• Providing comprehensive training for both researchers and evaluators
• Improving data collection and visibility of achievements across all groups
• Supporting grassroots initiatives and peer-to-peer support networks

The workshop’s comprehensive analysis provides a robust foundation for advancing both open science and gender equality objectives through integrated, evidence-based approaches that address the complex realities of contemporary research environments whilst promoting meaningful institutional transformation.