Transform2Open is a DFG-funded project that addresses the development of budgets, criteria, competency profiles, and other processes at research institutions related to the financial aspects of the Open Access transformation.

Transform2Open supports transformational activities at research institutions in Germany through the following actions:

1. improving and developing cost monitoring mechanisms;
2. promoting the interplay of library budgets, third-party funding, and other financial resources at research institutions to create overarching information budgets;
3. developing international criteria for contracts with commercial publishing service providers;
4. optimizing workflows for the handling of publications’ associated metadata, and invoices;
5. promoting financial transparency for the Open Access transformation
6. and identifying organizational structures and determining competence profiles for professionals at research institutions involved in the Open Access transformation

Transform2Open organizes dialogue forums through which it develops recommendations for strategies, concepts, and measures to shape the Open Access transformation at universities and non-university research institutions.

Through these efforts, the project ensures the successful interaction of various transformative efforts together with the project open-access.network and the Focus Group on Information Budget, the project openCost as well as DEAL, and other initiatives and projects in Germany and internationally.

Project partners of the Transform2Open project are the Central Library of Forschungszentrum Jülich, Potsdam University Library, and the Helmholtz Open Science Office.

Transform2Open was approved by the German Research Foundation (DFG) in August 2022 and the project started its work in January 2023. The project is scheduled to run for 36 months.

Projekt application

Bertelmann, R., Mittermaier, B., Kostädt, P., Barbers, I., Höhnow, T., Ferguson, L. M., Pampel, H., Schrader, A. C., & Weisweiler, N. (2022). Transform2Open. Kostenmonitoring, Kriterien, Kompetenzen und Prozesse der Open-Access-Transformation. Helmholtz Open Science Office. https://doi.org/10.48440/os.helmholtz.054