Springer Nature and CNIC Sign MOU for Open Data Collaboration
On September 8, the Computer Network Information Center (CNIC) of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS) and Springer Nature signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) in Beijing to strengthen cooperation on open data. This cooperation mainly revolves around open data, with various forms including reports, academic conferences, capacity building activities, communication and promotion, etc.
Research data is a collection of files that produced from, and support scientific research and development challenges like SDGs, including spreadsheets, documents, images, videos, etc. Public-funded research data should be open, accessible and reusable to accelerate scientific discovery and benefit society. Open data is a fundamental element of open science and a key factor in supporting research repeatability.
In recent years, CAS has paid more attention to the implementation and promotion of open science recommendations, issued several rounds of policies to guide the open data sharing, and encouraged researchers and data practitioners to participate in open science activities. Springer Nature, as a top international academic publisher, has rich practices in open science, and it has released the annual Open Data Status Report for 7 years. According to the MOU, Springer Nature and the CNIC will jointly produce and release a white paper on open data focusing on China’s scientific research this year, which will be released in November as part of the 2023 Open Data Status Report. In the future, two parties plan to hold annual round table discussion on open data, explore training cooperation around open data, and collaborate on publishing peer-reviewed thematic collections for the Scientific Data Conference, the cross-domain academic conference among data practitioners organized by the Chinese National Committee, Committee on Data of the International Science Council.
Prof. ZHOU Yuanchun, Deputy Director of CNIC, said: Open science is becoming an important development model and global consensus, and open data is the core component of open science. CNIC has conducted years of practical exploration in scientific data management and open data sharing, and has formed several innovative platforms related to open science recommendations, from general-purpose e-infrastructures to services supporting the transition from data to knowledge. We believe that this cooperation can help more scientists understand and participate in open data practice, and jointly promote the development of the global open research data enterprise.
