How have institutions adopted the software component of the national open science policy? What actions have been taken by which organisations, and what needs and uses have been addressed as a result? These questions were explored during the 10th edition of the “Let’s Talk Open Science” webinar, held on 12 December 2024. The webinar featured feedback from Sorbonne Paris Nord University and Grenoble Alpes University (UGA).
We were delighted to welcome contributions from Violaine Louvet (Software and Source Codes College, French Committee for Open Science), Jaime Arias (CNRS, LIPN, Sorbonne Paris Nord University, Software Heritage Ambassador), Karim BOUALEM (Université Sorbonne Paris Nord) et Lucie Albaret (Grenoble Alpes University, UGA).
This post summarises the presentations made at the 10th edition of ‘Let’s Talk Open Science’.
Research software is essential for ensuring the transparency, reproducibility, and dissemination of scientific results. In France, the Second National Open Science Plan reaffirms this by promoting an ambitious policy to support and recognise open-source software as a scientific output in its own right. This strategic approach aims to strengthen the role of software in research by integrating tools such as HAL for data management.
Violaine Louvet presented the national framework for open-source software, highlighting its long-standing connection with academia since the 1970s. The establishment of a national award for open-source research software in 2021 has drawn greater attention to the recognition of software contributions in research evaluation. The framework aims to implement policies that foster the development and dissemination of software within research institutions. The award not only acknowledges the work of engineers and researchers involved in software development, but also encourages reflection on how such contributions are assessed in academic careers.
Creating a national catalogue of research software will enable software products to be referenced and promoted. This catalogue aims to meet the expectations of scientific communities, simplify the ecosystem for researchers, and improve the accessibility and use of software resources.
Jaime Arias presented the crucial role of Software Heritage—well known to HAL users—in the preservation of research software. Data shows that nearly 60% of publications in biology and 55% in computer science rely on software, highlighting the need to ensure both access to and long-term preservation of software to support sustainable research. Software Heritage is essential for fostering knowledge sharing and resource reuse within the scientific community.
What role can library research support services play? Karim Boualem emphasised the pivotal role of university libraries in promoting Open Science. The library at Sorbonne Paris Nord University has played a decisive role in shaping the institution’s Open Science policy, as formalised in a charter updated in April 2024 to specifically address software accessibility. The library contributes its expertise in metadata, curation, and the coordination of the Open Science network. Finally, the gateway between HAL and Software Heritage is a key tool for encouraging the university’s 30 research units—with their diverse disciplinary profiles—to engage in the open dissemination of software.
Lucie Albaret also emphasised this point when she presented the various UGA players involved in offering personalised services for data and code management throughout the research life cycle. These include mediation, training courses, and a website dedicated to open science with a special section devoted to software code. Moderating datasets on the recherche.data.gouv platform also incentivises researchers to submit their code to HAL.