GW4 Open Research Week 2026

The third annual GW4 Open Research Week took place from 20–24 April 2026, with Cardiff University taking the lead organising the event this year.

The week-long celebration showcased the many ways open research practices make scholarship more accessible, transparent, reproducible, and visible.

A packed programme of online events brought together speakers from across GW4 and beyond, offering policy and practical insights alongside real-world examples of how to embed open practices across the research community. Recordings of the sessions are now available via the GW4 Alliance YouTube channel, enabling wider access to the content beyond the live event.

Whether participants were new to open research, already embedding open practices, or simply curious to learn more, the week provided opportunities to connect, learn, and contribute to a more open and inclusive research culture.

Events programme:

GW4 Open Research Prize 2026

Promotional graphic for GW4 Open Research Prize. It shows logos of the universities of Bath, Bristol, Cardiff and Exeter. The background is navy, with brightly coloured pink arrows.

The GW4 Open Research Prize formed a central part of the week, recognising and rewarding researchers who had used open practices throughout the research process to make research more accessible, transparent, and reproducible. Winners received a £250 voucher.

Prize Categories

To highlight the importance of open research across all stages of a research career, this year’s prizes included separate categories for Early Career Researchers and Research Enablers. Applications were assessed using the same criteria, but weightings were adjusted across the categories.

GW4 Open Research Prize – for individuals and teams who have utilised open research practices and principles within a project or initiative.
GW4 Open Research Prize for Early Career Researchers – for individuals who consider themselves “Early Career Researchers” (ECRs) and have demonstrated individual contributions to open research practices and principles within the research process.
GW4 Open Research Prize for Research Enablers – Open to individuals or teams who support open research at any stage of the research process.

GW4 Open Research Prize Winners 2026

GW4 Open Research Prize for Early Career Researchers: Joost de Vries – “The role of calcifying phytoplankton biodiversity in ocean carbon cycling”.

Joost’s project explored how microscopic ocean algae called coccolithophores helped regulate Earth’s climate by influencing how much carbon was stored in the ocean. By combining open datasets with reusable modelling software, the work mapped how different coccolithophore species contributed to the carbon cycle. The work made data, software, and results openly available, enabling reuse and collaboration. The open approach has already helped the research reach wider audiences, support new collaborations, and improve recognition of the many different scientists involved in the research.

GW4 Open Research Prize for Research Enablers: Liz Martin-Silverstone – “FAIR and Open Earth Science at the University of Bristol”.

Liz’s work focused on enabling researchers to make their work more open and accessible across the research lifecycle. As a Technical Specialist and Palaeobiology Lab Manager, she supported colleagues in embedding open practices, including delivering training on data management and open data, and assisting with the organisation and publication of datasets in the Data-bris repository.

Alongside this, her role managing the X-ray Tomography Facility involved contributing to wider discussions around how increasingly large datasets could be published and shared openly. She also played an active role in the global computed tomography community, contributing to conversations on best practice and open science. Her work reflected a strong commitment to supporting others in adopting open research approaches in their own research.

GW4 Open Research Prize (General Prize): The OpenFlexure Project Team – “Microscopy for all: The OpenFlexure Project”