A global trend is emerging as countries tighten their commitment to open science standards
As momentum for open science grows, new national policies are reshaping how research is published, shared and evaluated. Countries like Indonesia and Brazil are adopting frameworks to make publicly funded research openly accessible, reflecting a global shift toward transparency and inclusivity. As this trend accelerates, researchers must stay informed and adapt. Applications like DeSci Publish, built to support open science are already helping scientists meet these evolving expectations.
Embracing open science
In 2023, Indonesia announced a national commitment to open access, aligning its policies with UNESCO’s Open Science Recommendation. The move mandates that publicly funded research needs to be made freely accessible and encourages the adoption of open data and collaborative tools across institutions. The number of countries with open science policies has almost doubled since the adoption of the UNESCO Recommendation[1].
UNESCO’s recommendation promotes open access to publications, data and software. It encourages shared infrastructure, public participation in science and respect for different knowledge systems. It also calls for fair research evaluation and better training in open science.
This isn’t an isolated case. The Philippines is developing open science legislation and creating national repositories, while Brazil has long supported open access through initiatives like SciELO and is now pushing for more comprehensive open science standards. The EU’s Plan S also requires open access for funded research. These efforts show growing international consensus.
At the core of these policies is a shared vision, to democratise knowledge, accelerate innovation and improve public trust in science. Governments are not just recommending open collaboration and data sharing, they are moving toward mandatory open access for publicly funded research.
What this means for scientists
For researchers, engaging with open science offers clear advantages. Studies show that open access papers receive more citations and open data fosters greater collaboration and reuse [2]. Being visible in global repositories increases reach and impact, especially in interdisciplinary fields.
Conversely, scientists who delay adapting to these new standards risk being left behind. Limited discoverability leads to less impact, reduced collaborative opportunities, and may even lead to missed funding opportunities in regions where compliance with open access mandates becomes required.
Forward-looking preprint networks like DeSci Publish help researchers not only embrace open science but also future proof their work against policy shifts already underway in many countries.
How to support open science
DeSci Publish is built with open science in mind, offering researchers a central place to share their preprints, code and datasets. It also provides tools to track originality through novelty scores and assigns DOIs to all submissions, making research easier to cite and discover. Soon, users will even be able to earn incentives for peer reviewing contributions, further encouraging active participation in the open science ecosystem.
These features are closely aligned with international open science goals, supporting both transparency and proper recognition for researchers at every stage of their work. By equipping scientists with the tools they need to publish, discover and evaluate research openly, DeSci Publish helps them stay ahead of evolving policies while increasing the visibility and impact of their work.
As open science becomes the global standard, researchers will increasingly rely on platforms that meet institutional requirements and support community-driven progress.
Future-proof your publications and align with upcoming open science policies.
[1] https://www.unesco.org/en/articles/number-countries-open-science-policies-has-almost-doubled-adoption-unesco-recommendation
[2] https://www.science.org/content/article/open-access-papers-draw-more-citations-broader-readership
