Tracking the evolution of open knowledge.
The Open Index Project is a Carnegie Mellon University Libraries initiative that uses landmark event data to track and examine how open knowledge is evolving. By bringing together key resources, reports, milestones and initiatives from across the open landscape, the Open Index Project helps researchers, librarians and higher education leaders understand how the field has developed and consider where it may be headed.
The Open Index Project has three components. Explore the evolving dataset through the Open Index Tracker or follow selected developments over time through the Open Index Timeline. In 2027, the first Open Index Report will build on this work to examine key trends and consider their implications for the future of research.
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Open Index Tracker
Explore the changing landscape of open knowledge
Discover key open knowledge resources, reports, milestones and initiatives collected in an evolving, interactive dataset. Explore developments across the last few decades and identify connections across the open research and education landscape.
Explore the Open Index Tracker
Open Index Timeline
Explore open knowledge over time
Follow selected milestones and landmark reports through a chronological view of the Open Index Tracker. Browse a visual representation of how policies, infrastructure, research practices and scholarly communication have evolved over time.
Explore the Open Index Timeline
Open Index Report
Coming in 2027
What can the evolution of openness tell us about the future of research?
The Open Index Report will examine major developments across open access, open data, open source, open educational resources, open science and related practices from the perspective of research and higher education. Drawing on the Open Index Tracker and additional analysis, the report will consider the collaborative, institutional, and cultural forces shaping the open landscape and what these developments may mean for the future of research.
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About the Open Index Project
The movement for open knowledge has evolved from the work of a few advocates to a global effort by researchers, libraries, institutions, publishers, and policymakers. Expectations for openness in research and education continue to grow. Open access publishing, open data, open source software and other open practices are shaping how knowledge is discovered, shared, and reused.
Carnegie Mellon University Libraries has a long-standing commitment to supporting open knowledge, including establishing one of the first comprehensive Open Science programs in an academic library and expanding that work through the creation of an Open Source Programs Office. Open at CMU is now the home of the many open-related services and resources provided by CMU Libraries.
The Open Index Project builds on that experience by making information about the broader open landscape easier to discover and understand. Through the Tracker, Timeline and forthcoming Report, the CMU Libraries aims to provide a foundation for conversations about the evolution of openness and the future of research and education.