The International Open Access Week, celebrated between 20 and 26 October 2025, is a global initiative, promoted by SPARC (the Scholarly Publishing and Academic Resources Coalition), aimed to reinforce the commitment to open knowledge and to foster open and equitable practices in scientific production and dissemination.
With the theme “Who Owns Our Knowledge?”, in 2025, the Open Access Week invites reflection on how academic communities can reclaim control over the knowledge they produce, fostering equitable sharing and responsible access to education and research. In a time marked by growing commercialization pressures and the use of artificial intelligence in knowledge production and dissemination, this initiative highlights the importance of community-driven, transparent, and sustainable approaches led by researchers and open science institutions.
In line with this initiative, the NOVA.ID-RDM-CC and RDMC-SSH Competence Centres, in collaboration with Creative Commons Portugal, will organise a series of activities to promote the open, ethical and informed use of scientific knowledge.
- Workshop: ‘Copyright, Databases, and Creative Commons Licences’ – 17 October 2025, 09:30–12:30, ISCTE.
Led by Diogo Morais Oliveira, this session will provide a legal and practical framework on copyright and sui generis rights applicable to databases, as well as the use of Creative Commons licences and the CC0 tool. Participation is free, but registration is required: here.
- Workshop: ‘Data Management Plans: Let’s Start from the Beginning on Research Data Management‘ – 23 October 2025, 10:00–11:30 (online).
Organised under the NOVA.ID Research Data Management Competence Centre, this awareness session aims to introduce the fundamental concepts and practical aspects of Data Management Plans (DMPs), supporting students, researchers, and project teams in understanding their value and implementation. Participants will explore what a DMP is and why it should be adopted from the early stages of a project, discover available tools and templates, and learn about good practices for creating effective plans. The session will also include a hands-on demonstration using ARGOS, showcasing how to build a DMP in practice. Elvira Costa (NOVA IMS) and Salima Rehemtula (GHTM | IHMT NOVA) will be the speakers of this workshop. Registration here
- Series of Lunch webinars – “Good Practices in Their Own Voice!” – 21 to 23 October (online).
As part of the ReData Consortium, this cycle of lunchtime webinars joins the International Open Access Week celebrations with the initiative “Good Practices in Their Own Voice!”. Over the course of three days, between 12:00 and 13:00 (Lisbon time), ReData will host a set of online sessions via Zoom Webinar, where researchers will share first-hand their experiences in opening and reusing research data. Each session will feature two guest speakers and a moderator, creating a dynamic space for the exchange of ideas, learning, and discussion on data management and sharing practices. Presentations will be complemented by interactive moments, inviting participants to engage in dialogue on pathways toward more open and collaborative science. Registration: 21 October Lunch Webinar, 22 October Lunch Webinar , 23 October Lunch Webinar
These initiatives aim to enhance legal and technical literacy in knowledge management and data sharing, fostering ethical, safe and informed practices in scientific research.
GHTM encourages all its members to actively participate in this important initiative and contribute to the promotion of open and accessible scientific knowledge.