Digital Repository of Ireland and Higher Education Authority staff at the NORFest 2023 in the Royal Irish Academy. Left to right: Aislinn Conway, Áine Madden, Lisa Griffith, Michelle Doran, Claire Lanigan, Deirdre Quinn, Daniel Bangert and Shane Walsh.

Introduction

Ireland’s National Open Research Festival 2023 took place as an in-person event on 2-3 November, 2023 in the Royal Irish Academy, Dublin. This inaugural Festival from Ireland’s National Open Research Forum (NORF) was delivered with the support of the Digital Repository of Ireland (DRI) and the Royal Irish Academy (RIA) and the expertise of the Festival Programme Committee. Funding for the event was provided by the Higher Education Authority (HEA).

Established in 2017 to drive the national agenda for open research, NORF provides a space for communication, consultation and cooperation among key stakeholders in the research system regarding strategic issues and overarching policies and procedures on open research. 

The Digital Repository of Ireland (DRI), headquartered at the Royal Irish Academy (RIA), is the coordinating organisation for the National Open Research Forum (NORF). 

Festival Aims

Open Research (also known as Open Scholarship or Open Science) is an approach to the research process that increases openness, availability and accessibility across all parts of the research lifecycle.   

In November 2022, NORF launched Ireland’s National Action Plan for Open Research 2022-2030, prepared and delivered under Impact 2030: Ireland’s Research and Innovation Strategy. The plan is closely aligned with international developments in open research and serves as a roadmap for the implementation of open research across Ireland, outlining national goals and coordinated actions that will assist the research system as a whole to better support open research practices. 

In the implementation of this National Action Plan, special attention will be paid to groups that may be particularly vulnerable during a process of transition or change, such as Early Career Researchers. The plan therefore takes a holistic approach, emphasising the need to align systems of research reward and assessment with open research principles, and foregrounds a theme of establishing a culture of open research.

Ireland’s annual National Open Research Festival (NORFest) provides a forum for the research community to present and discuss work related to Ireland’s transition towards open research. The Festival’s inaugural event brought together a broad range of international stakeholders to communicate the value and diversity of open research practices, to exchange ideas and experiences, and to identify and explore synergies. 

As described in the National Action Plan: “Open research requires collective action. The transition to a national open research environment is a shared responsibility across the research system, with local efforts required to implement policies, infrastructure and incentives within research performing and research funding organisations.”

To reflect this, NORFest 2023 focused on the broad themes of the National Action Plan, including institutional, disciplinary and community-led initiatives at the local, national or international level. An exciting and engaging programme was offered which included a keynote talk titled “Opening Science” by Chelle Gentemann Programme Scientist at NASA on NASA’s Open Science programme and the US Year of Open Science, a panel discussion focusing on Early Career Researcher perspectives of open research and research assessment, thematic lightning talks, workshops, and more.  

The event was aimed at researchers, research support professionals and infrastructures, representatives of policy, research funding organisations, research performing organisations, the library sector, enterprise and other key stakeholders in the research system across Ireland. Participation from research funding organisations and Early Career Researchers was particularly welcomed.  

Programme Committee