We are delighted to welcome Sorbonne University Abu Dhabi (SUAD) to the Forum for Open Research in MENA (FORM). This collaboration reflects a shared interest in thoughtful, responsible approaches to research, and we look forward to working alongside colleagues at SUAD as part of our wider network of academic and research partners across the region. Sorbonne University Abu Dhabi has built a strong reputation for

As we count down to the start of International Open Access Week, we’re delighted to share a short message from our Co-founder and Director, Dr. Emily Choynowski, highlighting how our Annual Forum serves as a regional focal point for International Open Access Week, offering a platform for collaboration and bringing together institutions, researchers, and advocates from across the Arab world to exchange ideas, strengthen networks,

The Knowledge E Foundation planned to develop Al Wusul: The Arab Journal of Open Science Policies and Practises some years ago. This is a Diamond Open Access bilingual journal, publishing original research and localised case studies in Arabic and English, with a focus on the role, implementation and impact of open science policies and practises in Arab higher education institutions. We aim to provide a

The programme for the 4th Annual Forum for Open Research is now available! With 26 sessions, delivered by 88 speakers from 60 institutions in 27 countries, this will be a truly engaging and high impact event. View Programme Reflecting the conference title – Becoming Open: Capacity Building and Community Collaboration in the Arab World – and aligning with the UAE’s Year of Community, the conference will focus

We’ve been rather quiet in recent weeks, focusing on logistics and planning for the 4th Annual Forum, and we are excited to announce that this year’s event will be organised under the patronage of ALECSO. The Arab League Educational, Cultural and Scientific Organization (ALECSO) is a Tunis-based specialized institution working under the umbrella of the League of Arab States. It is essentially concerned with the

We closed our Call for Papers for the 4th Annual Forum for Open Research last week, and now we have conducted the initial processing of submissions – we are delighted to see so many of our network have contributed proposals. With a record level of submissions (up by 17% on last year), from 55 countries across the world and almost 150 different institutions – we

The first half of 2025 has been extremely active for us here at FORM, with a number of new members joining us from across the region and the global open science community. It is wonderful to see our community grow, and to support so many cross-regional collaborative partnerships, as institutions and individuals increasingly recognise the importance of open science policies and practises. With that in

FORM has launched its own YouTube channel! We hope you will join and follow us… One of our core missions here at FORM is to help support the development of human capacities across the region, via the creation and curation of freely accessible bilingual resources. In addition to our Open Science Resources  we also host free monthly online Community Development Activities. And because we know

Each year at the Annual Forum, we select our keynotes to provide valuable insights that help to frame and contextualise the overarching theme chosen for that year, helping to shape and drive the discussions and debates for the whole event. For our 4th Annual Forum, taking place this year in the UAE in partnership with the American University of Sharjah, it is our huge pleasure

The Forum for Open Research in MENA (FORM) is delighted to welcome the Arab Community of Open Access (ACOA) as a new member of our network. Founded in 2020, ACOA is a dynamic regional initiative dedicated to advancing a culture of openness in science and scholarship across the Arab world. Through awareness-raising campaigns, capacity-building programmes, strategic collaborations, and the development of Arabic-language resources, ACOA works