Collaborative Maastricht University team receives Open Science NL funding
A multidisciplinary team of researchers and support staff from Maastricht University has been awarded a €250,000 grant from Open Science NL for the project “Invisible knowledge work and the transformation and scaling of Open Science practices.” The project is led by Bart Penders (FHML).
The team brings together Cyrus Mody (FASoS), Ewout Meijer (FPN), Mariëlle Prevoo (UM Library), Yannis Stavrakakis (UM Library), Penelope Bollini (UM Library) and Bart Penders (FHML), and represents a close collaboration between academic researchers and professional support staff across faculties and the University Library.
About the project
“Invisible knowledge work and the transformation and scaling of Open Science practices” will highlight an often-overlooked part of academic research: the people who support it behind the scenes.
The project brings together staff from several faculties: the Faculty of Psychology and Neuroscience (FPN), the Faculty of Health, Medicine and Life Sciences (FHML), and the Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences (FASoS), as well as the Maastricht University Library. The team includes a 50/50 mix of academic researchers and support staff.
The focus is on so-called “invisible knowledge workers”, such as librarians, data stewards, and statisticians. These professionals play a key role in making research more open and accessible, but their contributions are not always clearly recognised.
By studying their work, the team hopes to better understand how Open Science is put into practice and how it can grow in the future. The project also aims to give more recognition to these staff members and highlight that good research depends on many different roles working together.
About the Open Science NL funding
Open Science NL funds projects through its “Research on Open Science” programme , supporting studies that examine how Open Science works and how it can be improved. In this round, 19 projects received a total of €4.8 million.
The programme encourages research into the impact of Open Science practices, from their benefits to possible challenges. The selected projects cover a wide range of topics, all aiming to make research more transparent, reliable, and accessible.