Abstract: There is huge potential for open source software to accelerate
scientific research, since it not only provides powerful analytical tools
that increase reproducibility but also creates a new frontier for
communication and publishing when combined with the open web. However, a
fundamental shift is needed in scientific culture so that we value and
prioritize data science, teamwork, and open practices, and provide
training, support, and credit for our emerging scientific leaders. I will
discuss my work to help catalyze this shift in environmental and Earth
science through Openscapes (openscapes.org). Openscapes helps research
teams reimagine data analysis, develop modern skills that are of immediate
value to them, and cultivate collaborative and inclusive research
communities. We do this primarily by mentoring cohorts of research teams
through our Champions Program, which was designed based on my own Ocean
Health Index team’s path to better science in less time (Lowndes et al.
2017). I’ll describe how open software facilitates kinder science (Lowndes
2019) and share examples of how Openscapes Champions teams from academia
and government are working more reproducibly and transparently while
contributing to the greater open movement.
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Julia Stewart Lowndes, PhD
Openscapes Co-Director and Senior Fellow
National Center for Ecological Analysis and Synthesis (NCEAS
<https://www.nceas.ucsb.edu/>)
University of California, Santa Barbara (UCSB)
Openscapes <https://openscapes.org> • Ocean Health Index
<http://ohi-science.org/> • Mozilla Fellow
website <http://jules32.github.io/> • github <https://github.com/jules32> •
twitter <https://twitter.com/juliesquid>