This month’s issue features a thought piece on open executable books for robotics from Murilo Marinho, including the motivations and challenges of this ambitious project, plans for future developments, and information on how researchers, educators and students can get involved.

In addition to news and events from around campus and beyond, we highlight our latest Open Research Spotlight, which features Dr. Ramiro Bravo reflecting on the use of in research data management within core facilities. You can also read Dr. Tristan Martin’s reflections on the latest Opening Up Research event on Open Data, and find out about the next on 18 June.

Finally, it’s your last chance to register for , taking place on Monday, 9 and Tuesday, 10 June at Alliance 91ֱ�� Business School. The Digest includes information on our keynote speakers and fantastic programme, and how to book your place.

• Check out the .
• If you’re not already signed up, you can . 
• If you’d like to contribute a thought piece, share some Open Research news, or invite participation in an Open Research event or initiative, please . 

A tool for every discipline

is an online collaborative writing and publishing tool that uses a LaTeX/RichText editor to help create professional-looking documents. It is designed to make the process of writing, editing, and producing papers and research documents quicker and easier for authors. Overleaf allows you to focus on the content, while the platform takes care of formatting, enabling you to use a range of templates for journal submissions, theses, and other academic work. The (OOR) supports institutional access to Overleaf’s premium features, giving University of Manchester (UoM) researchers additional support for writing and collaboration.

In this Open Research Spotlight, Josh Emsley (he/him) from the OOR spoke with two researchers who use Overleaf daily in different research contexts. (he/him), an atmospheric scientist, used LaTeX for decades and turned to Overleaf after spotting it in university communications. “When I retired from teaching, I had another look at this thing and thought, my goodness me, this is the tool I’ve been looking for all my life.” . (she/her), a final-year PhD student in analytic philosophy, discovered Overleaf through her supervisor and now uses it daily for writing assessments, organising notes, and developing an array of outputs. “If I start a new project, it’s going to be a new Overleaf,” she said.

A workspace for thinking and organising research

Beyond just formatting documents, Overleaf provides a space where researchers can structure and refine their ideas. Both Geraint and Maheshi described how the platform has become integral to their research workflow, helping them structure their note-taking, writing and ongoing analysis.

For Geraint, Overleaf offered a practical solution for turning decades’ worth of handwritten notebooks into a coherent digital archive. “What I was trying to do was abstract the important information from these notebooks and consolidate them,” he explained. With a background in physics, Geraint stressed his preference for Overleaf over Microsoft and Google tools due to its smooth handling of equations, formulas and graphs. “Microsoft’s tools really are not fit for the purpose,” he said. “There won’t be a science thesis anywhere without either diagrams or lots of formulae in it.” Having previously used LaTeX, he stressed that Overleaf provided the user-friendly layer that “took away all the pain of LaTeX.”

Geraint also reflected on the benefits of writing in an online environment that supports iterative development and reflection. “It makes the research itself more productive, in the intellectual part of it, not so much the tool part,” he said. Overleaf helped him identify connections, revise arguments, and move more easily from exploratory notes to publication-ready content.

Maheshi also echoed this idea of Overleaf as a space for thinking. She described how the layout and interface encouraged focus: “It gets you to work.” She used Overleaf for a wide range of writing activities, from reading group notes to formal assessments, and appreciated how it helps her structure projects as they evolve. “It helps you focus… the way the page is set up, it helps you concentrate on the work.” Overleaf also integrates with popular reference managers like Zotero and Mendeley, making it easier to manage citations and bibliographies directly within the platform – a useful feature for researchers working across multiple documents or projects.

Together, these reflections demonstrate that Overleaf is more than a LaTeX editor; it’s a research workspace which can support the development of research thinking and writing.

From professional outputs to publication

Another strength of Overleaf is how it transforms draft content into clean, professional, publication-ready documents. For both Maheshi and Geraint, this was a reason the platform became central to their workflows, supporting the sharing of their work with supervisors and publishers.

Maheshi described the immediate impact of Overleaf’s formatting functionality on how her work was received. Discussing periodic PhD reviews with her supervisor, she highlighted, “it gives that professional look… like you're giving half a piece of a published paper.” Maheshi used Overleaf to prepare formal submissions such as media reviews, annual assessments, and even newspaper articles. “The templates which come out of Overleaf are a better quality than Word” she added. “The font styles actually help with creating that more formal, more professional overview.”

Maheshi also pointed to practical features that helped her stay focused, such as the spell checker and in-document commenting. Over time, she transitioned away from traditional tools entirely: “I've stopped using Microsoft Word… now if I start a new project, it's going to be a new Overleaf”. For those preparing journal submissions, Overleaf includes direct submission links to dozens of academic publishers. This can save valuable time by reducing the need to reformat work to meet journal guidelines at the final stage.

For Geraint, Overleaf’s publishing features were especially valuable for writing scientific papers rich in figures and mathematical content. “If you're writing a scientific document, you want to put a lot in… I use a lot of mathematical expressions, and that obviously is very easy with Overleaf, and it leads comfortably into publication.” New features like equation preview and collaborator controls continue to improve usability for scientific writing. The platform also supports two-way syncing with Dropbox and GitHub, giving researchers more flexibility in how they store and back up their work.

Concluding thoughts: embedding good habits early

Maheshi and Geraint’s insights reflect how Overleaf supports structured thinking and writing as well as professional presentation. Their experiences also highlight the value of embedding Overleaf early in the research lifecycle.

Looking back on his role leading a doctoral training programme, Geraint emphasised the importance of developing good habits from the start. “I think it’s an important part of research training, really, to get people into this space of properly documenting their thoughts,” he said. Tools like Overleaf, especially when introduced early, can help researchers with their day-to-day workflow as well as preparing for publication.

By embedding Overleaf into workshops, supervisor guidance, and research training, the University of Manchester can better support researchers to write, collaborate, and share their work openly. That kind of habit, established early in the research journey, can make a lasting difference.

To sign up for Overleaf Professional, visit the and log in using your University credentials. To stay up to date with the latest features and guidance, visit the .

This conversation is part of a wider project led by the OOR which is engaging researchers across UoM to explore how  are being applied in different research contexts.   Aligned with the University of Manchester’s commitment to developing a secure research environment, the OOR identifies, assesses and established institutional access to a range of platforms that enable researchers to openly share their research safely and with confidence. To find out more about the OOR’s set of recommended OR systems, check out the to access dozens of systems that have been developed, subscribed to, supported, and discover the benefits that each tool can offer.

• Julian Tait (CEO, ) spoke persuasively about Open Data: Why are we doing this to ourselves? focusing on the problem of the varying degrees of quality found in published open datasets.
• Professor (University of Manchester) discussed open data sharing at CERN and in particle physics.
• Dr , (Lecturer in Management Science, AMBS) discussed Using Government Open Data for Research and her research on how open data impacts levels of government transparency, accountability, and corruption.

Below we are going to summarise the key points on the benefits and challenges to using open data in academic research today that were highlighted during the discussion, in addition to how open data sharing can be improved.

We hope it will inspire you to read more about open data research practices and the use of open data sharing in research and modern society more widely.

Open Data: benefits and challenges

• There is a considerable amount of rich and varied open data sources now available, and it is increasingly easy to access, however this means it is not always straightforward to find what you want online due to this complexity and when you do find what you’re looking for it can sometimes be poor quality and disorganised.
• Allows for increased transparency, reproducibility, and enhanced confidence in research conclusions, but in a research culture where the exposure of errors can be detrimental to academic careers, transparency can seem a risk not worth taking for many researchers.
• Open data sharing can increase research impact, collaboration opportunities, and citations via enhanced data discoverability and accessibility.
• Increasingly easy to use open data sources for teaching open research methods to students, however time and resource costs to prepare, curate, release and maintain open datasets.
• Useful for public engagement initiatives and open science activities, but with a risk of potential misuse by bad faith actors or misinterpretation without proper context.

Open Data: how can we improve it?

• Make open data more user-friendly! Organise open datasets so they are easy for people to find, navigate, and understand.
• Make open data more discoverable – be consistent with key words and persistent links (for example DOIs).
• Share open data with detailed metadata and documentation in the same location – increases usability as those that discover the data online will be more likely to reuse it if they can understand its relevance to their own research questions quickly.
• Make open data more accessible and readable to humans (and computers) – machine-readable metadata and licensing on how the data can be used are key here.
• Encourage transition to a more positive and understanding research culture. Researchers will be more likely to share data openly if they do not fear the negative repercussions of an error being identified in their data or code.

Opening up Research 2024/2025

‘Opening up Research’ is a collaborative effort involving the Office for Open Research (supported by the ), the representatives from the (UKRN), and .

The 2024/25 series concludes this year with The University of Manchester Open Research Conference, which this year is a two-day event: 

• Day 1: Monday, 9 June 
• Day 2: Tuesday, 10 June  
• Location: Alliance 91ֱ�� Business School 

To see the full conference programme and book your place: 

Research Data Conversations

The next session will be led by , Research Associate in Health Inequalities and 2024-25. Hannah will lead a discussion on open data practices for qualitative health researchers and her Open Research Fellows project on developing a Data Note guide specifically for qualitative research datasets. .

• Date: Wednesday 28 May 2025
• Time: 12pm-1.30pm. These events are catered from 1pm, giving attendees the opportunity to continue the conversation and make connections over lunch.
• 12-1pm: Presentation and discussion.
• 1-2pm: Optional lunch and further conversations.
• Venue: Main Library, Ground Floor Seminar Room/Hybrid.

Find out more and register

• (Eventbrite)

Themes include:

• Open Research in Communication and Publishing
• Open Research in Practice
• Open Research in Collaboration
• Open Research Software
• Open Research with Sensitive Data
• Building Skills and Communities for Open Research

Keynote speakers

• (Research on Research Institute), “The Open Imperative” (Day 1).
• (San Francisco Declaration on Research Assessment, DORA), “DORA: Enabling the Open Research Future” (Day 2).

Questions? Contact the team at openresearch@manchester.ac.uk

In this Open Research Spotlight, Open Research Specialist Josh Emsley (he/him) speaks with Research Data Manager Dr. Ramiro Bravo (he/him) about the opportunities of using Protocols.io to enhance research transparency and reproducibility. This conversation is part of a wider project led by the which is engaging researchers and research support staff across the University of Manchester (UoM) to explore how are being applied in different research contexts.   

Promoting good data management: Ramiro’s role in research workflows 

Dr. Ramiro Bravo is a Research Data Manager based in the Core Facilities (CF) within the Faculty of Biology, Medicine and Health (FBMH) at the University of Manchester (UoM). As a Research Data Manager, Ramiro collaborates with the CF team, Principal Investigators (PIs), and health researchers to promote good data management practices. With a background in both biomedical engineering and computer science, Ramiro brings a strong technical background to his role. He provides technical assistance for research data storage, oversees project management of research data lifecycles, and collaborates with Open Research Ambassadors in the in FBMH. 

Ramiro is a strong advocate for Open Research (OR) practices, positioning them as essential to ensuring research data transparency, reproducibility, and collaboration across research teams. Given that a large proportion of research data in FBMH originates from CF, Ramiro’s role is crucial in driving and promoting OR among these facilities and the broader research community. Ramiro explains his collaborative approach: 

“Collaborating with Core Facilities to ensure data is provided to researchers in the most effective way is essential. This approach encourages researchers to maintain strong data management practices, including proper documentation, metadata creation, preparation of analysis results, and tracking of software usage. By adhering to the FAIR (findable, accessible, interoperable and reusable) principles, we can foster a culture of good data management and Open Research from the start of research projects through to publication, data storage and eventual data destruction.” 

For Ramiro, one way to foster greater OR practices across research workflows is using the right tools – which is why he is an advocate for . 

“Ensuring transparency and reproducibility”: How Protocols.io is opening up research workflows 

Protocols.io is an OR management tool designed to support research projects and enable collaboration in the development and sharing of detailed research . Through UoM’s institutional membership arranged by The Office for Open Research, staff and students can create private individual and team spaces for method development, collaboration and the tracking of protocol execution records.  

There are multiple pathways to publishing a protocol on Protocols.io. Users can start from scratch with a blank template or import content from existing documents using an AI-assisted tool. As the Office for Open Research has established an institutional membership for Protocols.io, UoM staff and students can access a premium import service where the platform’s team will enter a protocol on behalf of a user. Users can also discover and adapt (‘fork’) existing public protocols on the platform, enabling ongoing refinement and reuse. Ramiro shares some of the key benefits of using Protocols.io below. 

The power of detailed documentation 

“Protocols.io is a valuable tool for maintaining records of how data is generated by Core Facilities.” 

Ramiro believes detailed documentation is foundational to good research data management. Protocols.io allows CF teams to record, refine and share the step-by-step processes by which data is generated – from sample preparation through to analysis. This moves beyond the limitations of traditional methods reporting in journal articles, which is often restricted by word limits and lacks sufficient detail required for reproducibility.  

With Protocols.io, researchers can develop comprehensive protocols that remain private for internal review until ready for public sharing. This enables teams to collaboratively review and improve research workflows, while ensuring access to accurate, up-to-date procedures. 

Ramiro highlights that sample traceability remains a persistent challenge in CF, particularly when samples are submitted without accompanying preparation documentation. Protocols.io helps resolve this issue by documenting how a sample was prepared, making it easier to connect upstream preparation with downstream analysis.  

“Protocols.io allows researchers to share their protocol records with Core Facilities, detailing how their samples were prepared. This fosters better collaboration, standardisation, and adherence to best practices.” 

By embedding these documentation practices into research workflows, Ramiro sees Protocols.io as a powerful enabler of the FAIR data sharing principles, even if researchers aren’t explicitly aiming to align with them. He shares a as a primary example. 

Enhanced discoverability and version control  

Two further benefits to using Protocols.io Ramiro highlights are enhanced discoverability and version control. When a protocol is published, it becomes publicly available and receives a unique DOI (Digital Object Identifier). Ramiro explains how the DOI feature makes protocols independently citable research outputs: 

“When a paper needs to describe the methods, the Core Facility could provide the DOI of the protocol they used and published, ensuring proper credit…” 

If a published protocol is reused or forked by others on Protocols.io, the original remains fully traceable and credited, supporting transparency and appropriate recognition of authorship. Each version of a protocol is archived, and refinements over time are logged, linked and can be compared, allowing researchers to demonstrate how a method has evolved overtime. Protocols.io also tracks engagement with published protocols through metrics such as views, comments, runs, and version forks, providing insights into protocol engagement.  

Ramiro points out that protocols published on Protocols.io are distinct research outputs, with their own authorship and citation history. This can create opportunities for early career researchers and research methodologists to gain first-author recognition for methodological contributions – strengthening visibility and facilitating future research collaborations. Linking protocol DOIs to research profiles and publications also helps to build a visible record of technical expertise and demonstrate impact beyond traditional journal articles.  

Concluding thoughts 

Through his advocacy and work in research data management, Ramiro is playing a key role in promoting OR practices across CF in FBMH. His insights emphasise that OR is not only about making data accessible, but also ensuring that research workflows are transparent, reproducible, and well-documented across the entire lifecycle. 

"Open Research tools like Protocols.io are essential for improving data transparency, documentation, and collaboration across research teams. By integrating these tools into research workflows, we can ensure that research is more reproducible, accessible, and aligned with FAIR principles." 

Are you using Protocols.io or other OR tools in your work at 91ֱ��? We’d love to hear from you! with the Office for Open Research to share your experiences and insights on how these tools are supporting your research. 

• Access the

We’re trialling the Journal Guide until July 2025, during which time we’ll assess its utility and benefits for 91ֱ�� researchers to determine if we can provide this resource long-term. This means we need to hear from you – please check out the and let us know if you find it helpful by completing this one-minute . 

You can find out more about the Office for Open Research’s support for Open Access publishing via our and , or if you’d like any further information.

This month, we’re highlighting the first edition of our Open Research Spotlight series, with Open Research Specialist Josh Emsley in conversation with Dr. Hannah Long on how she uses OSF (Open Science Framework) to both manage and open her research, with reflections on the wider cultural and ethical considerations shaping Open Research practices in health psychology. 

You can also find out how to nominate your colleagues – or yourself! – for the 2025 Open Research Award, which recognises individuals and teams who have made significant contributions to Open Research at 91ֱ��. The winner will be announced at the 2025 , so make sure you’ve . 

We also share details of two brand new My Research Essentials (MRE) workshops on  and ; our next Opening Up Research event on ; and the next meet-up; as well as updates on Open Research activity and opportunities around the University and beyond. 

• Check out the now. 
• If you’re not already signed up, you can . 
• If you’d like to contribute a thought piece, share some Open Research news, or invite participation in an Open Research event or initiative, please . 

Our aim is to promote and facilitate open research initiatives and practices within The University of Manchester. We recognise the importance of transparency, inclusivity, and collaboration in research, and we are committed to creating an environment where these principles thrive. 

2024/25 Opening Up Research events 

The Open Research Kick-Off is just the beginning of an engaging series of events for the 2024/25 academic year, culminating in the Open Research Conference. This year’s events programme is closely aligned with the , which provides essential guidance on fostering openness throughout the research lifecycle. The Framework serves as a valuable resource for researchers, departments, and disciplines, helping to assess and enhance their engagement with open research practices. Opening up Research events are open to all University staff, including professional services staff, postgraduate researchers, and early career researchers. 

Open Data: 6 May 

Managing and sharing research data transparently to ensure that data can be reused, validated, and built upon by other researchers. 

• Date: Tuesday, 6 May 2025, 1-2.30pm 
• Location: Nancy Rothwell Building, 2A.011 

Join our multi-disciplinary panel for an interactive discussion on the use of open and accessible data in modern research, the challenges of both using and sharing open data, and the future of open data research methods. The session will include a panel discussion, with time for tea, coffee, and networking with other attendees.

Speakers:

• Julian Tait, CEO of .
• Darren Price, Professor of Particle Physics, Associate Dean for Engagement (Public, Civic and Outreach) FSE ().
• Tatiana Martinez, Lecturer in Management Science, AMBS ().

Chair: Bill Ayres (Strategic Lead for UoM Library)

1–2 pm: Panel presentations and discussion
2–2.30 pm: Optional informal chat over coffee

The University of Manchester Open Research Conference 2025

Following the success of last year's event, The University of Manchester Open Research Conference will return for a two-day event: 

• Day 1: Monday, 9 June 
• Day 2: Tuesday, 10 June  
• Location: Alliance 91ֱ�� Business School 

Find out more and book your place:

Stay updated 

Check back here regularly for the latest updates and event registration details. You can also subscribe to our to receive the most recent updates on open research at the University and the broader research landscape. 

For any queries, please contact the team: 

• openresearch@manchester.ac.uk. 

“We’re still figuring it out.”  

Sharing data in qualitative health psychology research is a complex and evolving challenge. While Open Research (OR) principles are gaining traction across many disciplines, practical and ethical barriers often prevent qualitative health researchers from fully adopting open data sharing practices. 

In this Open Research Spotlight, Research Services Analyst Josh Emsley (he/him) speaks with Dr. Hannah Long (she/her), Research Associate in Health Inequalities, about the challenges of data sharing in qualitative health psychology and the benefits of using (Open Science Framework), a key OR tool. This conversation is part of a wider project led by the which is engaging researchers across the University of Manchester (UoM) to explore how are being applied in different research contexts.  

From health inequalities to qualitative data notes: Hannah’s research interests 

Dr. is a Research Associate in Health Inequalities for the at UoM. She employs a range of evidence synthesis methods to investigate health inequalities and the wider determinants of health. Her work particularly focuses on the effects of public sector policy and health and social care interventions. 

In August 2024, Hannah secured an through which she has developed an article reporting guideline for Data Notes on qualitative health and social care research datasets through . Data Notes are peer-reviewed articles that describe how and why an archived research dataset was created, with the aim of increasing research transparency, promoting data reuse, and making data findable, accessible, interoperable, and reusable (FAIR).  

Currently, Data Note templates and guides are designed primarily for quantitative data. Hannah’s Open Research Fellowship study will produce a new version suitable for qualitative datasets. Her DeNOTE project aligns with broader OR principles, enhancing the transparency, accessibility and reusability of qualitative data in health psychology research through a co-designed Data Note guideline. 

“There are so many concerns around it”: The complexities of data sharing in qualitative health psychology  

Hannah situates OR within qualitative health psychology by acknowledging the unique challenges and hesitations in the field regarding open data sharing. She notes that while some OR practices are gaining traction, qualitative health researchers face additional ethical and practical barriers: 

“Much of the qualitative data we deal with has ethical and sensitivity considerations, particularly around participant identity… the potential for identifying participants from their qualitative data is higher than it is for other data types, like quantitative, so we’re not yet on the open data train…  

The qualitative health community is still figuring out if or how we can safely share our data and protect our participants. There’s a lack of guidance. And until that’s figured out, I think we are going to be a bit slower to join, slower to introduce open data practices.” 

Using evidence synthesis techniques as her primary research method, Hannah works mainly with secondary data that is already available in published study reports. This allows her to adopt OR practices without encountering the ethical concerns faced by peers who collect primary qualitative data. At the same time, she is working to foster a stronger culture of OR within the qualitative health community around data sharing: 

“In qualitative health research, we don’t typically share our datasets. There are too many concerns around it… which is something I’m trying to help shift slightly, as we need Open Research infrastructure that has been tailored to better suit qualitative data. Quantitative researchers might know more about open practices they can adopt into their research, but in qualitative research these practices are not yet widely ingrained in the same way.” 

Despite these challenges, Hannah sees opportunity for incorporating more OR practices into the research workflow where possible and appropriate: 

“There are certainly things around publishing protocols, sharing our study materials, being more transparent about our methods and decisions, and getting better at reporting what we’ve done that we can all do.”  

“A tool to expand what I can publish”: How Hannah uses OSF to expand and share her research 

Research protocols are a way of recording and sharing research methodologies, promoting better transparency and reproducibility across research workflows. Hannah highlights that, in her field of health inequalities and psychology, registering a research protocol is relatively common: 

“To the best of my knowledge, most people write a protocol and share it in one form or another before their study starts. But many of these protocols are published in traditional ways, as peer-reviewed journal articles, rather than using open platforms like OSF to distribute them – with the exception of PROSPERO for systematic reviews.” 

Hannah initially used PROSPERO – an international registry for systematic review protocols – for registering protocols, but found OSF to offer broader functionality. In particular, OSF supports the registration of protocols for primary qualitative studies and other types of evidence synthesis not supported by PROSPERO. OSF is an OR management tool that helps researchers organise projects, collaborate, and (pre)register research questions and methodologies. It serves as a generalist repository for protocol (pre)registration and version control, publishing preprints and data sharing. The Office for Open Research has established institutional access to OSF’s premium functionalities, offering additional support for all students and staff. 

Beyond protocol registration, Hannah uses OSF to share supplementary materials, processed data, and any necessary deviations from her protocols online (see ). The platform allows users to control data storage location (important for GDPR compliance), and to assign DOIs (Digital Object Identifier) to project outputs – enhancing both traceability and discoverability: 

“I use it mainly as a tool to expand what I can publish related to a study, and then I’ll reference the DOI in my papers or other outputs so people know where to find it. It’s basically like extra storage, that’s how I think of it.” 

The discoverability aspect of OSF-hosted materials is another important benefit for Hannah, allowing her to link her OSF project space in publications. OSF further provides flexible privacy controls, allowing users to effectively manage licencing, access and privacy across a range of components within a project space. The DOI feature allows a user to reserve a DOI before publication, activating when a project is finished and ready for sharing.   

Hannah believes that promoting OR practices and tools such as OSF isn’t just about raising better awareness – it’s about changing behaviour through the wider research culture at 91ֱ��.  

“I think many people may simply be unaware of the wide range of available tools, or they stick to familiar methods because they work well enough. And they don’t actively seek out alternatives that could further support their work, because we’re busy, and we don’t know what we don’t know…  

We need to better understand the barriers to uptake and why some choose not to use the tools on offer… it’s about behaviour change… and how we can support people to build it into their own research practice.” 

With cultivating an ‘open and responsible research environment’ being a strategic goal for UoM, researchers like Hannah play a crucial role in advocating and championing OR practices across 91ֱ��’s research community. The Office for Open Research drives progress toward the University’s strategic OR goals by delivering initiatives and projects through its Open Research Programme. This includes supporting access to OR systems like OSF, as well as the provision of specialist workshops and training on using OR tools through the skills programme. The RLP-funded project aims to further bring together a growing community of data stewards and researchers who foster OR practices across UoM. 

Concluding thoughts 

Our conversation with Dr. Hannah Long highlights both the barriers and opportunities of adopting OR practices in qualitative health psychology. While concerns about participant confidentiality and data sensitivity remain key challenges, tools like OSF offer pathways for greater research transparency through protocol (pre)registration, version control, supplementary material sharing, and enhanced discoverability. The Office for Open Research plays an important role in supporting OR practices at UoM by providing institutional access, training and guidance on using OR systems like OSF.  

Are you using OSF or other OR tools in your work at 91ֱ��? We’d love to hear from you! with the Office for Open Research and share your experiences and insights on how these tools are supporting your research.  

Want to hear more from Hannah about her Open Research Fellows project? on Wednesday 28 May 2025 at 12pm in the Main Library where Hannah will be leading the third session in the Research Data Conversations series. 

This award recognises individuals and teams who have made significant contributions to Open Research at 91ֱ��. 

If you can demonstrate engagement with Open Research through community and training initiatives, adherence to open and FAIR data principles, commitment to open access publishing, use of open software, and alignment with the , then now is your chance to be recognised! 

Who can be nominated? 

 • University of Manchester academic, technical, and professional services staff. 

• Postgraduate researchers (PGRs). 

• Individuals and research teams (self-nominations are welcome). 

Award benefits include:  

• Commemorative trophy for the winner. 

• Title of Honorary Fellow of the Office for Open Research. 

• Invitation to join the Open Research Fellowship alumni network. 

• Opportunity to contribute to the . 

• The chance to act as an ambassador for Open Research across the University and beyond. 

Nomination Deadline: 30 April 2025 

Submit your nomination here: . 

For more information and to register for the conference, visit the . 

This month, we hear from Open Research Librarian John Hynes, coordinator of our , considering research indicators in the context of Open Research.  

You can also find out the latest news on our ; our next Opening Up Research event on ; and the next meet-up; as well as updates on our and Open Research activity and opportunities around the University and beyond. 

• Check out the now. 
• If you’re not already signed up, you can . 
• If you’d like to contribute a thought piece, share some Open Research news, or invite participation in an Open Research event or initiative, please . 

The Office for Open Research (OOR) has launched a to sharing research openly throughout the research lifecycle. Sharing research as openly as possible is key to driving innovation and maximising its potential societal impact. Sharing more research outputs, earlier in the process, offers many potential benefits, including: 

• enhancing the quality and reach of your work; 
• refining your work through broadening your perspective; 
• inviting not just feedback, but opportunities for collaboration. 

The new guide is indented to support researchers in realising these benefits, as part of the University of Manchester’s commitment to cultivating an open and responsible research environment. 

Developed in partnership with the Library’s eLearning team and with contributions from our and colleagues, the guide takes you through the stages of the research process, highlighting opportunities to share research at each point, as well as important considerations before taking action. It also includes details of a range of to which the OOR provides enhanced for 91ֱ�� researchers access via funded institutional memberships. 

• Check out the interactive sharing guide:   

We’d love to hear your feedback to help us develop this guide further. Is there a research output that you create within your area of research focus that we haven’t included, or a tool you use to share outputs that we haven’t mentioned? Please to share your experiences. 

Firstly, if you haven’t heard of Research Data Conversations (RDC), let me explain how it works, the idea behind it, and why you should come to the next conversation on ! 

The concept behind RDC (credit to our friends and colleagues at Lancaster University Library for the original idea) is simple: provide an informal space for staff and students interested in and/or directly engaged in research data, data management, open data,  data, and data stewardship to come together, learn something new, and connect with each other during and afterwards over a free lunch. RDC is a collaboration between the Library’s researcher development programme  and the  (itself a collaboration between the  and the ). 

In the first conversation, lead by to  a Data Curator at the , it was heartening to see the range of people from across the research community at the University of Manchester come together and connect: data stewards, research data managers, postgraduate researchers, librarians, academics, and research technicians. Conversations were had for the first time between colleagues in the same department and faculty who had no idea the other was interested in and working on the same research data topics they were! This is what RDC is all about, and what we hope to see much more of in the future. 

So, what's next?

Our next conversation will be led by Dr James Bird (Research IT, University of Manchester). James will share his experience of opening up his PhD research, how the use of an electronic research notebook (ERN) enabled that, and the . 

For the rest of the academic year RDC will be moving away from topics associated more with the science and engineering research data community (don’t worry we will be back soon!) and focusing on topics related to qualitative data research (no spoilers). RDC aims to be as inclusive as possible and accessible to the entire research community, and that very much includes those researchers in the humanities, social sciences, and qualitative research communities. At the end of the day, all research includes the collection and analysis of information or observations (data) in some form, so we would love to see as many people as possible from these communities participate in RDC in the future (as a speaker or attendee!). 

The next RDC will take place on February 12 and is open to all staff and PGRs  

If you have an idea for a conversation topic or would like to be a featured speaker at a future RDC, please email us via openresearch@manchester.ac.uk.  

The Opening up Research kick-off in October featured President and Chancellor Professor Duncan Ivison in conversation with Institutional Lead for Open and Reproducible Research Andrew Stewart, and engaging updates on the varied and impactful projects of our 2022-24 Open Research Fellows. We are now looking forward to the next event in the series, taking place on Tuesday, 4 February, focusing on Open Software. 

• Book your place:  

We’re also busy preparing for our second Open Research Conference which will take place over two days on Monday, 9 and Tuesday, 10 June. 

The event will showcase the latest innovations and practices in Open Research, bringing together researchers, postgraduate researchers (PGRs), and research support professionals across disciplines to explore bold ideas and practical solutions for reshaping how we conduct and share research. 

• For more details and to register, please visit the  

You can also which brings together the latest news and activities to get involved in, and insights from experts, practitioners, advocates and challengers across the Open Research landscape. And please if you’re interested in writing an opinion piece for a future edition of the Digest, or if you’d like to discuss any aspect of Open Research.