The Open Science Awards at Digital University Foundation recognize researchers, research teams, and initiatives that make meaningful contributions to transparent, accessible, reproducible, and reusable research — based on demonstrated open-science practices rather than simply describing a publication as "open access."

Qualifying Contributions

Openly accessible research publications, responsible sharing of research data, publicly available research code or software, preregistration or registered reports, open protocols, reproducible research materials, and meaningful community reuse of openly shared outputs. Not every practice is applicable to every discipline.

Responsible Openness

Open science does not require researchers to disclose information that should legitimately remain restricted. Ethical obligations, participant privacy, confidential information, intellectual property, Indigenous data governance, and legal restrictions may justify controlled or restricted access. Where materials cannot be made openly available, responsible transparency about those restrictions may be considered.

Evidence & Assessment

Nominees provide links or other verifiable evidence supporting the claimed open-science activities. An independent selection committee evaluates the quality, consistency, and demonstrated contribution of those practices rather than relying on publication counts alone.