Open science aims at improving the transparency of knowledge generation and has the potential to address problems of inequity. The UNESCO Recommendation on Open Science focuses on the availability and accessibility of science by all who need it, and on equal possibilities of knowledge generation, access, and use. So far, however, scientific knowledge has mainly been generated and is mostly accessible in high-income countries (HICs) while researchers from low and middle-income countries (LMICs) are rarely given co-leadership in open science discussions.

Our one-day online workshop and training will focus on fostering and implementing equal collaborations with research partners in LMICs and address open sciences practices in projects implemented in LMICs. The aim is to offer researchers from HICs insights on what to expect when preparing for research in LMICs on an equal level and give concrete advice on how to best implement open science practices.

The workshop will be interactive. The lecturers will provide practice examples from projects conducted in Kenyan urban, rural and remote settings and guide practice sessions addressing issues such as forming equitable research teams, developing the research grant application, implementing open data, methods and materials, preparing ethic approvals, using and modifying research instruments developed in HICs, preparing participants to receive the study, aspects of collaboratively managing and reporting on grant resources, open access publications, and dissemination of findings both in HICs and LMICs, among other details.

The workshop will allow time for participants to seek clarification on aspects of their current or planned projects relevant to the discussion topics. Our sessions will be the following:

1)    First session offered by Pamela Wadende & Henriette Zeidler (8.30-10 CET, 10.30-12 EAT): Managing resources and research teams in collaborations between HICs and LMICs

This session will offer insights into the details of managing research projects in LMICs. We focus on financial management as well as on ways of bringing local assistants on board to build strong, long-lasting teams on the ground. Our local assistants will provide their practical experience to the training.Our experiences are based on projects which involve multiple sites in LMICs and are led by local researchers: Two projects funded by the Templeton World Charity Foundation in Northern Kenya, Ethiopia, and Cameroon (led by Pamela Wadende), a Swedish Research Council project with Linkoping University, and a UKRI-ESRC funded project in collaboration with Aston University, the University of Sheffield, and the University of Zambia.

2)    Second session offered by Joel Wambua and Patrick Forscher (10.15-11.45 CET, 12.15-13.45 EAT): Acknowledging local ethical requirements: Consent, ethical clearance, and open science in LMCIs

Based upon their experiences at a LMIC research organization (Busara, Nairobi), Joel Wambua and Patrick Forscher will share insights into the challenges of acquiring ethical clearances in LMICs and present the complexities of assuring informed consent in political-economic unstable and complex environments, such as informal settlements. Furthermore, they will reflect on research hierarchies between Global North researchers and research participants from the Global South and share their experiences about open science efforts in East Africa.

3)    Third session offered by Mario Schmidt and Ben Eyre (12.15-13.45 CET, 14.15-15.45 EAT): Setting up research teams across the Global North/South divide and acquiring funds

This session will share insights into the process of setting up a research team and acquiring funds for a project. It will use as an example an ongoing multidisciplinary and international research project funded by the British Academy. We will talk about several practical issues (including how they vary depending on who you are working with and how). We will speak frankly about recent (even ongoing) examples of opportunities and challenges when trying to work collaboratively across different types of organizations, differences in research cultures, profound enduring inequalities, and information asymmetries.

4)    Forth session bringing together the whole team (14-15.30 CET, 16-17.30 EAT): Disseminating results in just ways: publishing, open access, feedback to participants (plus general Q&A on the other topics)

This session will bring together all workshop participants to share their experience with disseminating research results both to the larger scientific community as well as to local research participants. It is designed as an open discussion between the lecturers and the audience. Depending on the audience, it might, e.g., focus on barriers inhibiting inclusivity and visibility of LMIC scholars as well as on challenges of feeding back scientific results to local communities.

About the lecturers

Pamela Wadende is a lecturer of Developmental psychology at Kisii University, Kenya. She is interested in childhood education and human flourishing in general and has worked among the Turkana of Northern Kenya surveying mental health literacy among adolescents, conceptualizations, pathways and impediments to human flourishing, character development among children in school and home settings, and with populations in Ethiopia and Zambia. Some funders for her various projects include: Templeton World Charity Foundation for the projects in Northern Kenya, Gondar in Ethiopia and Bamenda in Cameroon for which she is a PI, a UKRI-ESRC project with Aston University, University of Sheffield, UK and University of Zambia and Swedish research council project with Linkoping University surveying flourishing in the face of climate change.

Mario Schmidt is a senior research specialist at Busara, Kenya with a background in anthropology. He has over fifteen years of experience working in Kenya and has conducted fieldwork in western Kenya and Nairobi. His research interests include changing notions of masculinity, experiences of stress and financial pressure, and the viability of qualitative methods in the development sector.

Henriette Zeidler is a postdoctoral fellow at Sapienza University in Italy and Kisii University in Kenya and has been conducting research on children's social and cognitive development in sub-Saharan Africa since 2011. Supported by a team of local assistants, she recently established a small start-up and has been implementing cross-cultural research projects in Kenya for a wide range of partners from the Global North, including the University of Gothenburg (Sweden), Aston University (UK), the University of Bern (Switzerland), and UC Berkeley (USA).

Ben Eyre is a Leverhulme Early Career Fellow at the University of East Anglia in the UK and has been working in East Africa since 2016, focusing on philanthropy, sustainable finance, and research infrastructures. He is also the PI of a British Academy funded project exploring the lived experiences of enumerators working in ‘evidence based development’ and how these relate to data quality.

Patrick Forscher is a leading scholar in the international open and meta-science movement. He is director of the only meta-research team in the East African scientific ecosystem, Busara’s meta-research team “CREME” (Culture, Research Methods, and Ethics). His team fuses the methods and perspectives of meta-research with the focus areas of global development.

Joel Wambua is a research specialist at Busara. He has been working on how the relationship between research organization and research participants can be improved both ethically and scientifically. His research interest focuses on applied behavioral economics and questions relating to public policy and research ethics, as well as on adapting research measures that are contextually relevant.

The workshop is supported by the Berlin University Alliance's Open Science Ambassador Programme.