We are the Open Science Community established at SNSPA, a group of enthusiasts of the Open Science movement committed to promoting transparency, reproducibility, and accessibility of research outputs, so that Open Science can become the new standard for academic research. We also see Open Science as a FAIR response, grounded in the FAIR principles and based on openness, to the needs of all members of society.

We aim to build a network of Open Science mentors who can support colleagues in understanding and applying good Open Science practices in their research.

We want to transform this initiative group into an active and sustainable community that contributes consistently to the adoption and consolidation of Open Science practices across our university. 

We aim to become catalysts for transforming the institutional culture of research, so that open science becomes a sustainable and standard practice, supported by an adequate infrastructure, facilitated by accessible and intuitive processes, strengthened by a committed community, incentivized by reward mechanisms, and supported by clear and binding institutional policies.

Who are we? 

OSC@SNSPA is the institutional Open Science community of the National University of Political Studies and Public Administration (SNSPA), Romania. It functions as a bottom-up, interdisciplinary community of practice dedicated to promoting Open Science principles across research, education, and academic support structures.

The community brings together researchers, academic staff, doctoral students, students, and administrative and research support personnel interested in fostering openness, transparency, and reproducibility in research.

OSC@SNSPA is aligned with the principles of the International Network of Open Science and Scholarship Communities (INOSC), participating in the broader international movement to embed Open Science into research culture and institutional practice.

How do we plan to take action? 

Open Science may seem difficult to approach at first, particularly when its benefits are not yet fully understood and its various components appear fragmented or unclear. Even experienced researchers may be reluctant to adopt these practices, sometimes because of perceived costs, as in the case of Open Access publishing.

For this reason, the Open Science Community aims to provide ongoing support through resources, guides, training programmes, events, activities, and initiatives designed to facilitate learning, clarification, and further exploration, regardless of each person’s level of experience or starting point.

The mission of the OSC@SNSPA Community of Practice is to foster the development of an institutional culture of Open Science at SNSPA by connecting researchers, academic staff, doctoral candidates, and research support staff across the university. The community promotes collaboration, knowledge exchange, the sharing of good practices, capacity building, and the adoption of open, transparent, reproducible, and responsible research practices, thereby contributing to the integration of Open Science principles into the university's research and innovation activities.

What does the community aim to achieve?

The OSC@SNSPA Community of Practice aims to:

• Promote an institutional culture of Open Science by raising awareness and encouraging the adoption of Open Science principles and practices across the university.

• Foster collaboration and mutual learning by creating a collaborative space for researchers, academic staff, doctoral students, and research support staff to exchange knowledge, experiences, and good practices.

• Strengthen Open Science capacities through training, peer learning, and the development of skills related to Open Access, FAIR research data, transparent, reproducible, and responsible research practices.

• Support the institutional uptake of Open Science by contributing to the development and implementation of institutional policies, initiatives, and services that advance Open Science at SNSPA.

How do we work together?

The OSC@SNSPA Community of Practice operates in accordance with the following principles:

1. Open and Voluntary Participation

Who can participate?

The community is open to all members of the SNSPA academic community who are interested in Open Science. Membership is voluntary and based on joining the community through a membership form that reflects participants' interests in Open Science principles and practices.

2. Bottom-up Initiative and Engagement

How is the community shaped?

The community encourages members to actively identify needs, propose and develop initiatives, organize activities, and establish thematic working groups. Members are encouraged to take ownership of the community by contributing according to their interests, expertise, and availability. They are free to propose new initiatives and engage in areas of interest that align with the community's mission and objectives, thereby contributing to its organic and sustainable development.

3. Collaboration and Knowledge Exchange

How do we learn and work together?

The community fosters interdisciplinary collaboration and promotes the exchange of knowledge, experiences, and good practices, providing an environment for mutual learning, professional development, and the co-creation of solutions that advance Open Science.

4. Inclusion and Diversity

Who is welcome?

The community values diversity in disciplines, perspectives, expertise, and professional experience. Participation is encouraged regardless of academic position, professional role, or previous experience with Open Science.

5. Transparency and Openness

How do we operate?

The community promotes open communication and transparent, participatory decision-making processes based on dialogue, consultation, and shared responsibility.

6. Respect and Integrity

How do we interact with one another?

Community members interact in a spirit of mutual respect, collaboration, fairness, research integrity, and ethical conduct, in accordance with the values of Open Science and the Community Code of Conduct.

7. Responsibility and Impact

Why do we do what we do?

The community is committed to strengthening the institutional culture of Open Science at SNSPA and to creating value for its members, the university, and society by promoting open, transparent, responsible, and high-quality research practices.

What defines us?

The OSC@SNSPA Community of Practice shares a set of common values that underpin collaboration, participation, and the development of an institutional culture of Open Science.

Openness

We believe in open access to knowledge, the free exchange of ideas, and the promotion of Open Science practices for the benefit of the academic community and society at large.

Collaboration

We believe that progress is driven by collaboration, interdisciplinary dialogue, and the exchange of knowledge, experience, and good practices.

Inclusion

We believe that every member of the community can contribute their experience, perspective, and expertise. We foster an open, participatory, and accessible environment for all those interested in Open Science.

Trust

We believe that relationships grounded in trust, transparency, and mutual respect are the foundation of an active and sustainable community of practice.

Integrity

We are committed to upholding the highest standards of research ethics and integrity and to promoting rigorous, transparent, and reproducible research practices.

Responsibility

We believe that each member contributes, through active engagement and a sense of responsibility, to the development of the community and to strengthening an institutional culture of Open Science.

Continuous Learning

We believe that learning is a continuous process grounded in curiosity, the exchange of experience, and professional development. The community provides a space where members learn from one another and grow together.

What we do?  / How do we put our mission into practice?

The OSC@SNSPA Community of Practice:

• organizes workshops, seminars, and training sessions on Open Science topics, such as Open Access, Research Data Management (RDM), FAIR research data, and reproducible research;

• develops thematic working groups addressing key areas of Open Science, including Open Access, Open Data, Open Educational Resources (OER), and Citizen Science;

• organizes community events that encourage collaboration and the exchange of knowledge, experiences, and good practices;

• develops practical resources, guidelines, and recommendations to support the implementation of Open Science at SNSPA;

• collaborates with institutional stakeholders and participates in initiatives that contribute to the development and implementation of Open Science policies and practices.

• ROMANIA -The White Book of the Transition to Open Science

• FRANCE-Second French Plan for Open Science

• SLOVENIA - Decree on the implementation of scientific research work in accordance with the principles of open science

• SPAIN - The National Open Science Strategy (ENCA) for 2023-2027  

• SWEDEN - The national guidelines for open science 

• SLOVAKIA - National Strategy for Open Science 2021-2028

• SNSPA Open Access Policy

• SNSPA Open Science Policy 

• SNSPA Open Science Strategy 

• Personal Data Protection

• SNSPA Code of University Ethics and Professional Conduct

• Reference Documents

The SNSPA Open Science Core Community was established within the CONCERT@SNSPA project, funded by the Ministry of Education through the Institutional Development Fund allocated for 2025. The project aims to create a community comprising members from all academic structures of the university, with the purpose of promoting Open Science and addressing questions from researchers, academic staff, and students about Open Science.

The Extended Open Science Community will bring together academic, academic support, and non-academic staff with a strong interest in Open Science, both from a theoretical perspective—its principles, values, and components—and from a practical perspective—the implementation of Open Science practices, maximising their benefits, and reducing barriers.

OSC@SNSPA members include the members of the Core Community, joined throughout the project and beyond by colleagues from the university’s academic structures, as well as from its non-academic departments. 

OSC@SNSPA supports the technical and organisational infrastructure needed to make Open Science practices possible and sustainable at SNSPA. This includes institutional repositories for research outputs and data, access to relevant scientific databases, data management tools and services, and clear policies and standards that guide researchers in applying FAIR principles. We work to ensure that this infrastructure is accessible, well-documented, and continuously improved through collaboration with the university's academic and technical departments. 

Workshops, webinars, and training sessions dedicated to promoting Open Science good practices at SNSPA.

• POLITICAL SCIENCE AND INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS

• PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION

• LAW

• COMMUNICATION AND MEDIA

• MANAGEMENT

• SOCIOLOGY

• PSYCHOLOGY

• TECHNOLOGY AND DIGITAL TRANSFORMATION

• Open Research Methods

• Open Science – Benefits

• Transformative Agreements

• Open Peer Review

• Research Planning

• Data Collection

• Data Processing and Analysis

• Data Publishing and Sharing 

• Data Preservation

• Data Reuse

This dictionary was developed within the framework of the FDI-2025-0250 CONCERT@SNSPA project by the Documentation Experts and Open Science Delegated Experts, as a practical resource for understanding the terminology used internationally in the field of Open Science.

The dictionary was compiled by consulting similar resources available online, which are listed in the Bibliography.