OEGlobal 2026: Full Schedule

All sessions are available online except round tables, special activities, and workshops.

11:50am EDT

From Frameworks to Futures: Rethinking OER Quality as a Shared Practice

Wednesday October 7, 2026 11:50am - 12:55pm EDT

ID: 33068

As open educational resources (OER) continue to expand across regions, systems, and cultures, critical questions remain: Who defines quality? How do we build trust in OER without constraining openness, diversity, and innovation?Efforts to scale OER often surface tensions between the need for shared standards and the reality of local context. What does “quality” mean across disciplines, cultures, and learning environments? And how can we move beyond fragmented or implicit definitions toward a more transparent, participatory, and adaptable global vision of OER quality?This panel invites participants into that conversation through the lens of Open 4 Peer Review, a collaborative initiative across 13 partners that developed six peer-review rubrics designed to support formative, feedback-centered approaches to OER quality. Addressing areas such as accessibility, copyright, copyediting, disciplinary appropriateness, eLearning, and Universal Design for Learning (UDL), these rubrics are intentionally designed not to score, rank, or gatekeep OER. Instead, they aim to make quality more visible, discussable, and improvable through structured peer feedback.Panelists include project leads from multiple partnering institutions and one institutional representative from outside the project who is actively considering how—and whether—to adopt these tools. Together, they will explore both the promise and the complexity of shared frameworks: How can we articulate standards of quality without enforcing uniformity? How do we ensure that peer review empowers educators rather than constrains them? And what does it take to build trust in OER across systems that differ in priorities, resources, and cultural context?Rather than positioning quality as a fixed benchmark, this session reframes it as a collective, evolving practice—one that emerges through dialogue, reflection, and continuous improvement. Participants will be invited to engage with guiding questions, share perspectives from their own contexts, and consider how peer review might function as a bridge between global alignment and local autonomy.At a time when open education is both expanding and being reimagined, this session challenges us to think differently: not about how to standardize OER quality, but how to co-create it. By bringing together multiple perspectives, the panel aims to spark a broader conversation about how we can design processes, tools, and communities that support trustworthy, inclusive, and context-responsive OER ecosystems worldwide.The goal of the session is to share the rubrics with a global audience. Session participants will be invited to review and provide feedback on these rubrics. The hope of the session is that participants will consider adopting or adapting an OER quality framework.

Speakers

Wayde Oshiro

Head Librarian, Leeward Community College

Wayde Oshiro is a professor and library director at Leeward Community College, Hawaiʻi, with over two decades of experience in academic librarianship. Since 2015, he has co-led the University of Hawaiʻi Community Colleges System's OER initiative across seven campuses. He co-chairs... Read More →

Andrea Scott

Open Educational Resources Office of Learning Advancement, Salt Lake Community College

Andrea Scott is Director of Open Educational Resources in the Office of Learning Advancement and Co‑Chair of the Open SLCC Advisory Committee at Salt Lake Community College. Active in Open Education since 2013, she helped establish Open SLCC and now oversees program development... Read More →

Danielle Leek

Project Director, Scottsdale Community College

Danielle Leek, PhD, is an instructor at Johns Hopkins University. She is also Project Director for the federally funded Open 4Peer Review initiative at Maricopa Community Colleges and Founder and Principal at Danielle Leek Consulting.

Gracie McDonough

Reference/Instruction/OER Librarian, College of Southern Nevada

Gracie McDonough serves as an Instruction and Reference Librarian at the College of Southern Nevada in Las Vegas. Since joining CSN, she has been a dedicated advocate for Open Educational Resources (OER), contributing to a significant increase in institutional OER adoption from less... Read More →

Debbie Baker

OER Coordinator, Instructional designer, Maricopa Community College District

Dr. Debbie Baker serves as the open educational resources coordinator and an instructional designer for the Maricopa Community Colleges (MCCCD), and has been an educator for almost 30 years. Her work has centered on reshaping traditional classroom dynamics by involving students in... Read More →

Wednesday October 7, 2026 11:50am - 12:55pm EDT
3 Room I MIT Samberg Conference Center, 50 Memorial Drive, Cambridge MA 02139 USA

Panel

Speaker Modality In-person
Track (Re)Inventing our Shared Global Vision Together

1:40pm EDT

Charting the Course: A National Research Agenda for Open Education

Wednesday October 7, 2026 1:40pm - 2:10pm EDT

5 DR3

ID: 33577

The open education field has grown significantly over the past two decades, yet critical gaps in evidence remain and the research landscape is fragmented. Studies are often siloed, datasets go untapped, and parallel efforts rarely connect. Without a coordinated national research strategy, the field risks repeating itself rather than building the cumulative, scalable knowledge base that policymakers, funders, and practitioners urgently need. In 2025, the National Consortium for Open Educational Resources (NCOER), a collaboration among the Midwestern Higher Education Compact (MHEC), New England Board of Higher Education (NEBHE), Southern Regional Education Board (SREB), and Western Interstate Commission for Higher Education (WICHE), supported by the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation, launched a national initiative to address this challenge. The result is a comprehensive Open Education and OER Research Agenda, developed through an extensive mixed-methods consultation process involving a national survey of 126 participants and in-depth interviews with 15 researchers, faculty, librarians, system leaders, and policy stakeholders across the United States and Canada. This session will present the agenda's findings and invite the global open education community to engage with its six national research priorities: • Student Outcomes and Experiences — moving beyond affordability metrics toward deeper understanding of how students learn, engage, and persist in open environments; • Long-Term Sustainability and Institutional Support — understanding how OER programs evolve, persist, and adapt over time, including funding models, governance, and recognition systems; • Intersection of Open Education and Artificial Intelligence — examining how AI reshapes OER creation, pedagogy, student behavior, and the broader knowledge ecosystem; • Evolution of Cost-Savings and Affordability Research — updating cost analyses and expanding research on student decision-making and the long-term academic impacts of affordability; • Discipline-Specific Approaches, Needs, and Practices — identifying how disciplinary cultures and curricular structures influence OER adoption and open pedagogy; and • Research Collaboration and Shared Infrastructure — addressing fragmentation by building coordinated research systems, aligning priorities across regions, and supporting shared data and cross-institutional inquiry. Presenters will highlight key research gaps, share findings from the national consultation process, and discuss how the agenda can inform policy, practice, and investment in open education. Presenters will prioritize audience connections to broader themes of research in their context, with an emphasis on global research connections to the above themes. Participants will have the opportunity to identify priority research questions, consider how the agenda can shape their own work and partnerships, and reflect on how a shared research infrastructure might advance the global open education movement.

Speakers

Kate Baca

Policy Analyst, Western Interstate Commission for Higher Education

Kate Baca is a Policy Analyst with The Western Interstate Commission for Higher Education. Her work spans research and supporting Open Educational Resources and student success in post-secondary across the WICHE region. In her work at WICHE, she collaborates with a community of OER... Read More →

Amanda Coolidge

VP, Strategic Engagement and Growth, Pressbooks

Amanda Coolidge is VP of Strategic Engagement and Growth at Pressbooks, where she leads marketing, sales, and customer success and serves as product manager for the company's microcredential platform. She is the founder of Coolidge Collaborative and former Executive Director of BCcampus... Read More →

Wednesday October 7, 2026 1:40pm - 2:10pm EDT
5 DR3 MIT Samberg Conference Center, 50 Memorial Drive, Cambridge MA 02139 USA

Presentation

Speaker Modality In-person
Track (Re)Inventing our Shared Global Vision Together

2:15pm EDT

Listening to Teachers: A U.S.–Finland Collaboration to Develop Open AI Literacy Resources

Wednesday October 7, 2026 2:15pm - 2:45pm EDT

2 Room M

ID: 31135

An Erasmus-supported collaboration between Mount St. Joseph University (United States) and Laurea University of Applied Sciences (Finland) brings multidisciplinary students together to explore artificial intelligence and digital innovation through international, project-based learning. In shared courses offered across both institutions, students work in global teams during the semester to design and prototype AI-related projects that address real-world problems. Through this project-based learning model, students engage in iterative design, collaborative problem solving, and reflective discussion about the social and ethical implications of artificial intelligence. These collaborations culminate in intensive project weeks in which students travel between campuses, refine their ideas through collaborative workshops, and present their work to international audiences. The partnership emphasizes experiential learning, cross-cultural collaboration, and the development of practical solutions to emerging technology challenges. Through these experiences, students gain exposure to different educational systems, technological perspectives, and cultural approaches to innovation while developing skills in teamwork, communication, and applied AI literacy.This session foregrounds the role of international academic exchange in shaping these learning experiences. The Erasmus partnership allows students to move beyond virtual collaboration and participate in short-term study-abroad exchanges where they work together in person during intensive project weeks. These exchanges provide opportunities for students to experience different educational cultures, develop intercultural communication skills, and engage directly with peers from other national contexts. For institutions seeking to integrate emerging technologies into global learning initiatives, the project offers a model for combining study-abroad programming, collaborative coursework, and interdisciplinary innovation.As part of this collaboration, students also contribute to the development of open educational resources (OER) designed to support educators navigating generative artificial intelligence in teaching and learning. Working alongside faculty mentors, students translate their project experiences into openly licensed teaching materials that provide practical guidance on ethical AI use, assignment design, and responsible integration of AI tools. Because these materials are openly licensed, they can be freely shared, adapted, and improved by educators around the world. In this way, OER not only disseminates the outcomes of the project but also creates opportunities for ongoing global collaboration, enabling educators in different countries to build upon shared materials and contribute new perspectives and practices.These student-generated resources are informed by a qualitative study examining how K–12 teachers are currently navigating generative artificial intelligence in their classrooms. Interviews with teachers across subject areas and school contexts reveal how educators are redesigning assignments, establishing boundaries for acceptable AI assistance, and negotiating new expectations for academic integrity as student AI use expands. These insights help ensure that the resulting OER materials address real classroom needs rather than abstract policy debates.This presentation will be of particular interest to educators and program leaders interested in global exchanges, short-term study abroad, and international collaborative learning. By connecting student mobility, project-based learning, and open educational resource development, the project demonstrates how global partnerships can create meaningful learning experiences while contributing openly licensed teaching materials that support educators navigating generative AI in classrooms worldwide.

Speakers

Rebecca J. Allen

Chair of Department of Computer Science and Mathematics, Mount St. Joseph University

Rebecca J. Allen, PhD, is Assistant Professor and Chair of Computer Science and Mathematics at Mount St. Joseph University. Her interdisciplinary research focuses on artificial intelligence in education, participatory research, and open educational resources that support equitable... Read More →

Brook Batch

Asst. Professor, Mount St. Joseph University

Dr. Brook Batch is an Assistant Professor of Social Computing at Mount St. Joseph University. Her research explores the intersection of technology and education, with a focus on computing education, students’ development of research and writing practices, and the use of generative... Read More →

Tero Uusitalo

Senior Lecturer, Laurea University of Applied Sciences

MSc Tero Uusitalo is a Senior Lecturer in the Business Management Department at Laurea University of Applied Sciences. His research focuses on working life connected pedagogy, international research, development and innovation as well as the development and application of artificial... Read More →

Taru Tallgren

Senior Lecturer in Degree Programme in Business Management, Laurea University of Applied Sciences

Taru Tallgren is a Senior Lecturer in the Business Management Department at Laurea University of Applied Sciences. Her research focuses on working‑life‑connected and coaching‑based pedagogy, as well as pedagogical innovations that support flexible open learning models and equitable... Read More →

Wednesday October 7, 2026 2:15pm - 2:45pm EDT
2 Room M MIT Samberg Conference Center, 50 Memorial Drive, Cambridge MA 02139 USA

Presentation

Speaker Modality Hybrid
Track (Re)Inventing our Shared Global Vision Together

4:55pm EDT

How Open Is a University? A Framework for Comparison

Wednesday October 7, 2026 4:55pm - 5:25pm EDT

5 DR3

ID: 34812

In 2024, the State Distance University of Costa Rica added the word “open” to its institutional description, a change that carries numerous implications that are not always clear to those both inside and outside the institution.At the end of that year, we have the incredible opportunity to be part of a publication called the Handbook of Open Universities Around the World—the only university in Central America to participate—and this experience allows us to analyze just how open the UNED of Costa Rica really is.Furthermore, this Handbook “provides rich analytical perspectives on the status and challenges of single-mode distance learning universities as an educational phenomenon while unpacking the premise of ‘openness’ itself.” (Mishra, Sanjaya & Panda, Santosh, 2025).Analyzing how openness manifests itself across 47 universities worldwide from various fields and perspectives provides us with numerous experiences, best practices, methodologies, and procedures that will ultimately allow us to improve our open practices in areas as diverse as: “business models and finances, operations, instructional systems, enrollment patterns, learner support, quality assurance, professional development, and others.” (Mishra, Sanjaya & Panda, Santosh, 2025).This is why we wish to share UNED’s experience in analyzing its openness within the framework proposed by the editors.

Speakers

Diana Hernández Montoya

Coordinator of the Fabrication Laboratory and OER Hub, Universidad Estatal a Distancia de Costa Rica

Diana is a teacher focused on human talent, innovation, and technology. Currently works doing research and is the coordinator of the Fabrication Laboratory (Fab Lab) of the Universidad Estatal a Distancia. She has degrees in preschool and primary education, educational technology... Read More →

Ana María Sandoval Poveda

Member of the Fabrication Laboratory and OER Hub, Universidad Estatal a Distancia de Costa Rica

Mathematician, educator, editor, and makerAna María is an academic producer and researcher at the Kä Träre Fabrication Laboratory. She received her professional training at the University of Costa Rica (UCR), in the School of Teacher Education (Faculty of Education) and the School... Read More →

Wednesday October 7, 2026 4:55pm - 5:25pm EDT
5 DR3 MIT Samberg Conference Center, 50 Memorial Drive, Cambridge MA 02139 USA

Presentation

Speaker Modality Hybrid
Track (Re)Inventing our Shared Global Vision Together

4:55pm EDT

OER: The Twelfth High Impact Practice

Wednesday October 7, 2026 4:55pm - 5:25pm EDT

7 DR5

ID: 33896

At the culmination of a two-year, multi-institutional study that included almost 700,000 student records for analysis, AAC&U has added OER to its list of High Impact Practices (HIPs). HIPs are well-established practices that lead to positive student outcomes, namely for students historically underserved in higher education. It is our hope that in naming OER as a HIP, institutional leaders will pay attention to the positive impacts OER can bring to their campuses and organize to institutionalize OER in new and exciting ways. We seek to advance movement on UN Sustainability Goal 4: Quality Education to ensure all learners have access to quality learning materials.In this presentation, we will summarize the key findings of our study, focusing on course withdrawal rates, course grades, and time to completion. We found that context matters very much in predicting the rate of withdrawal in courses with OER, but in most cases, withdrawal rates were lower in courses that used OER, especially at doctoral institutions, and we note key differences in withdrawal rates when OER are merely adopted versus revised, remixed, or created. Most notably, in regards to course grades, the number of A’s increased in every context where OER were used versus not. We also noted decreases in the time to credential, especially at community colleges for students that took more than four years to finish their credential–for students that took 6 or more OER courses during their course of study, they finished their credentials on average almost a year faster than those that took zero OER courses. Additionally we will highlight findings from our instructor survey, representing the voices of over 200 individual instructors that transitioned to OER over the course of the study period. The survey captured their motivations and experiences in implementation, as well as their perceptions on how well their OER implementation went based on those motivations and support structures. We also examined how teaching practices changed after using OER.We will also provide recommendations for leveraging OER as a HIP on your campuses to advance OER initiatives and programs as an equity strategy to help all students, but especially those that have been historically underserved by higher education. AAC&U as an organization advocates to democratize higher education as a public good, and the addition of OER to the current list of HIPs is a strategic choice to support OER in higher education as not only an affordability strategy for students, but to help students persist and succeed in their education.

Speakers

C. Edward Watson

Vice President for Digital Innovation, American Association of Colleges & Universities

Dr. C. Edward Watson is the Vice President for Digital Innovation. He provides leadership for the association’s national and state-level advocacy to advance quality in undergraduate student learning. This includes programming and a scholarly agenda that focuses on general education... Read More →

Jessica Chittum

Assistant Vice President for Curricular and Pedagogical Innovation and Director of VALUE Operations, American Association of Colleges & Universities

Jessica Chittum, PhD, is the Assistant Vice President for Curricular and Pedagogical Innovation and Director of VALUE Operations in the Office of Curricular, Pedagogical, and Digital Innovation (OCPDI) at AAC&U. In this role, Jessica engages in project management, research, professional... Read More →

Heather Miceli

Postdoctoral Research Fellow, American Association of Colleges & Universities

Heather Miceli is the Assistant Director of the Institute on Open Educational Resources and a Postdoctoral Research Fellow at AAC&U in the Office of Curricular, Pedagogical, and Digital Innovation. Her current work at AAC&U is focused on OER adoption as an equity strategy for student... Read More →

Beth Perkins

Assistant Director for Research and Assessment, American Association of Colleges & Universities

Beth Perkins, PhD, is the Assistant Director for Research and Assessment in the Office of Curricular, Pedagogical, and Digital Innovation at AAC&U. She provides methodological, analytical, logistical, and implementation support to the AAC&U VALUE Scoring Collaborative. In addition... Read More →

Wednesday October 7, 2026 4:55pm - 5:25pm EDT
7 DR5 MIT Samberg Conference Center, 50 Memorial Drive, Cambridge MA 02139 USA

Presentation

Speaker Modality Hybrid
Track (Re)Inventing our Shared Global Vision Together

5:30pm EDT

California to the World: Co-Creating an Open Educational Equity Toolkit for Global Use

Wednesday October 7, 2026 5:30pm - 6:00pm EDT

3 Room I

ID: 33124

In 2024, OEG recognized the Open for Antiracism Program as an outstanding program for inclusive excellence. In moving OFAR beyond its base in California, what does it look like when open education for equity moves to other US and global contexts? This panel presents the Open for Antiracism (OFAR) Toolkit—a collaborative, openly licensed resource rooted in five years of program data from the California Community College system—as a living prototype for how the open education community can collectively advance UNESCO Sustainable Development Goal 4: inclusive and equitable quality education for all.OFAR began as professional development to help educators examine the relationship between OER, open pedagogy, and educational equity. The OFAR Toolkit extends that work into a freely adaptable Canvas Commons course to assist educators, institutions, and administrators in adapting our research-backed model for their own communities and contexts. The Toolkit is designed to resist one-size-fits-all definitions of equity—because equity looks different depending on the place, institution, and individual. This session features an OFAR coach who has guided educators through the program's community-of-practice model; two adapters localizing OFAR for distinct contexts; and the project's leadership team. Together, panelists will share what OFAR has accomplished, what it cannot accomplish alone, and how open collaboration is reinventing its possibilities via the Toolkit.Session StructureThe panel has four segments: (1) the project leadership introduces OFAR's five-year research base, outcomes data, and core design principles; (2) Our lead coach discusses the community-of-learners model at the program's core: how cohort structures, mentorship, and sustained professional relationships create conditions for genuine pedagogical transformation—and what requires local roots to replicate; (3) Two adapters share how they are localizing the Toolkit for their own educational communities: what they changed, what they kept, and what tensions arose between the Toolkit's assumptions and their own contexts. They speak directly to the SDG 4 challenge of building equity frameworks across borders without imposing them; and (4) The session closes with structured audience dialogue. Attendees are invited to reflect: What terms, practices, or structures would you change? What does equity-centered open pedagogy look like where you are? What can we build together that none of us can build alone? This segment draws on the Toolkit's "Room to Grow" framework, modeling the reflective and collaborative spirit the resource is designed to cultivate.

Speakers

James Glapa-Grossklag

Dean, Educational Technology, Learning Resources and Distance Learning; and Technical Assistance Provider, College of the Canyons; and ZTC Grant Program California Community College Chancellor’s Office

James Glapa-Grossklag is Dean, Educational Technology, Learning Resources, and Distance Learning at College of the Canyons (USA). He serves as Technical Assistance Provider for the California Community Colleges' Zero Textbook Cost Degree Program, the largest-ever public investment... Read More →

Cindy Domaika

Academic Engagement Partner, Nicolet College, WI

Cindy Domaika is a long-time higher-education professional at Nicolet College who specializes in open educational resources (OER), socially-just academics, and service-learning. Her work centers on expanding affordable and equitable access to education through zero-textbook-cost initiatives... Read More →

Joy Shoemate

Director of Online Education, College of Canyons

Joy Shoemate is the Director of Online Education at College of the Canyons where she supports instructors’ successful integration of technology into teaching and learning to promote student success, persistence and completion in distance education courses. She also oversees the... Read More →

Laura Dunn

Director, Open for Antiracism

aura Malia Dunn, Ph.D. is a scholar of Pacific-Asian religions, contemplative practice, and educational equity. She is the Co-Director of the Open for Antiracism Program (OFAR), a statewide professional development initiative for California Community Colleges, and faculty at the University... Read More →

Jamie Thomas

Lead Coach and Course Facilitator, Open for Antiracism

Dr. Jamie Thomas is OFAR Lead Coach and a Lecturer in Linguistics and TESOL at CSU Dominguez Hills. She holds a PhD in Applied Linguistics, with a focus on African languages, and she has been proud to support OFAR as a coach since 2021. In 2022, Jamie was recognized with the Distance... Read More →

Wednesday October 7, 2026 5:30pm - 6:00pm EDT
3 Room I MIT Samberg Conference Center, 50 Memorial Drive, Cambridge MA 02139 USA

Panel

Speaker Modality Hybrid
Track (Re)Inventing our Shared Global Vision Together

5:30pm EDT

Beyond the PDF: Finding and Remixing Living OER with the Pressbooks Directory

Wednesday October 7, 2026 5:30pm - 6:00pm EDT

5 DR3

ID: 31580

Educators around the world are hungry for open educational resources, but too often what they find are static PDFs locked behind clunky repositories, difficult to discover and even harder to adapt. The Pressbooks Directory represents a fundamentally different kind of OER repository: a free, open, and searchable collection of over 8,500 open access books, built not just to be read, but to be remixed, localized, and made your own.This hands-on session will introduce participants to the Pressbooks Directory as a discovery and adaptation platform that goes well beyond traditional static repositories to offer rich, interactive, and genuinely reusable content. Unlike PDF-based repositories that can feel like a dead end once downloaded, the Pressbooks Directory surfaces books that are alive: structured into chapters, embedded with H5P interactive activities, and filterable by license, subject area, interactivity level, and contributing institution. Whether you're an instructor building a course in sociology, a librarian curating resources for an allied health program, or an instructional designer looking to scaffold learning in a second language context, the Directory gives you the tools to find what you need. Critically for a global audience, the Directory empowers localization. Participants will see examples of how educators have adapted content for specific national contexts, and other instances of tailoring resources to their learners. This session directly addresses one of the most persistent barriers in open education: discoverability and reusability. Where many national and institutional repositories remain siloed, metadata-poor, and technically inaccessible to non-specialists, the Pressbooks Directory offers a community-powered alternative spanning hundreds of institutions worldwide. And with new texts being added every day, the collection grows continuously — a living ecosystem rather than a static archive.Participants will leave this session knowing how to search and filter the Directory to find high-quality, openly licensed content; how to evaluate books for adaptability based on license type, interactivity, and structure; and how to begin remixing that content immediately using Pressbooks' built-in tools. Pressbooks’ built in cloning tool makes it incredibly easy for educators to adapt content to fit their needs.In a landscape where digital infrastructure remains fragmented and individual educators often carry the weight of OER adoption with limited institutional support, the Directory lowers the barrier to meaningful adaptation — not just downloading, but genuinely remixing content to fit local languages, curricula, and contexts.No prior experience with Pressbooks is required. Whether you are brand new to OER or a seasoned open practitioner looking to discover a powerful new repository, this session offers practical, immediately applicable skills for finding and building with open content at scale.

Speakers

John McLeod

Sales Team Lead, Pressbooks

John McLeod, Sales Team Lead, brings over four decades of experience in higher education. From his early days supporting students at the University of Alberta Bookstore to his current role guiding institutions through the evaluation and adoption of Pressbooks, John plays a vital role... Read More →

Wednesday October 7, 2026 5:30pm - 6:00pm EDT
5 DR3 MIT Samberg Conference Center, 50 Memorial Drive, Cambridge MA 02139 USA

Presentation

Speaker Modality Online
Track (Re)Inventing our Shared Global Vision Together

11:05am EDT

Connecting the Opens in Europe: From Strategy to Alliance-Building for Knowledge as a Public Good

Thursday October 8, 2026 11:05am - 11:35am EDT

2 Room M

ID: 32921

Across Europe, open education has often developed alongside, rather than together with, related movements such as open science, open access, and open knowledge policy. Yet in a period marked by rapid digital transformation, artificial intelligence, and pressure on public-interest infrastructures, fragmentation is becoming a strategic weakness. This session examines how “connecting the opens” can provide a stronger foundation for open education by linking policy, practice, and community across sectors.The presentation draws on three connected strands of work. First, it discusses SPARC Europe’s Connecting the Opens position paper (https://zenodo.org/records/17572650), which makes the case for intentionally aligning Open Science and Open Education to build a more equitable and future-oriented higher education system in Europe. Second, it presents insights from the feasibility work for a possible European Open Education Alliance (https://zenodo.org/records/18862080), which identified strong support for a broader coordinating structure able to strengthen policy coherence, infrastructure conversations, shared understanding, and collective action across countries. Third, it reflects on the contribution that community-based activities can make to sustaining exchange, experimentation, and implementation, exploring the European Network of Open Education Librarians as an example of this approach.Rather than presenting these as separate initiatives, the session argues that they represent three layers of the same change strategy: conceptual alignment, ecosystem coordination, and community practice. Taken together, they suggest that open education can gain greater visibility, legitimacy, and impact when understood not as an isolated field but as part of a wider movement to uphold knowledge as a public good.The session will offer participants a strategic framework and practical insights for thinking about how open education communities can connect across institutional, national, and thematic boundaries. It will be of interest to policymakers, network leaders, librarians, educators, and open practitioners seeking ways to move from dispersed activity toward durable collaboration.

Speakers

Paola Corti

Senior Open Education Expert, SPARC Europe

Paola Corti is a Senior Open Education Expert at SPARC Europe, and she manages the European Network of Open Education Librarians (ENOEL); she supports librarians in taking action to implement the UNESCO OER Recommendation. She also works part of her time at Politecnico di Milano (Italy... Read More →

Vanessa Proudman

Director, SPARC Europe

Vanessa Proudman is Director of SPARC Europe, working to make Open the default in Europe. Vanessa has well over 20 years of experience in international, national and regional policymaking and advocacy in the areas of Open Access, Open Science, Open Culture and Open Education with... Read More →

Paul Stacey

Independent Consultant, https://paulstacey.global

Based in Vancouver Canada Paul Stacey is an independent consultant on open education and the strategic use of open in education, science, culture and other sectors. From 2022 through to current times Paul helped SPARC Europe connect Open Science with Open Education through their... Read More →

Thursday October 8, 2026 11:05am - 11:35am EDT
2 Room M MIT Samberg Conference Center, 50 Memorial Drive, Cambridge MA 02139 USA

Presentation

Speaker Modality Hybrid
Track (Re)Inventing our Shared Global Vision Together

12:25pm EDT

Teachers as Changemakers: Adopting OER for Environmental and Sustainability Education in Middle School

Thursday October 8, 2026 12:25pm - 12:55pm EDT

8 DR6

ID: 32351

This session presents findings from recent research focused on the availability and efficacy of Open Educational Resources (OER) for environmental and sustainability education, specifically tailored for learners in Grades 5 through 7. In a time of escalating environmental challenges, ranging from climate change, biodiversity loss, and resource conservation, education is essential in promoting change. The middle years are a critical time for this education; children are forming their values, critical thinking, and a sense of responsibility. When environmental education reaches this age group, it can shape not only what they understand, but what they do about it and who they become. This is captured in a saying by Baba Dioum, “In the end, we will conserve only what we love; we will love only what we understand; and we will only understand what we are taught.”However, there are barriers to teaching this. Although several countries, including Canada, have committed to integrating environmental and climate education, progress has been slow, teachers lack access to resources and don’t have the time or expertise to create their own, and teachers are intimidated by topics like climate change which are highly controversial and political. Teachers want to empower their students, but they need the right tools.OER offer an opportunity to provide equitable, scalable, and adaptable materials. These digital resources allow educators to customize content to reflect local environmental contexts and specific learner needs. Furthermore, OER for environmental education align with UNESCO’s Sustainable Development Goals, particularly Goal 4 (Quality Education), Goal 10 (Reduced Inequalities) and Goal 13 (Climate Action).Despite their potential, the extent to which existing OER meet the needs of kindergarten to Grade 12 (K-12) educators is not well understood. This study identifies existing resources that align with Grade 5 to 7 curriculum standards, as well as gaps and areas for improvement to ensure OER can be effectively integrated into K-12 curriculum. The research also provides a systematic process for analyzing OER that can be applied to other K-12 subjects and educational standards, including the use of AI technologies to analyze resources.The outcome of this study is a curated collection of resources within the OER Commons Climate Hub which teachers can integrate immediately into their curriculum. This supports educators in accessing high-quality materials that promote environmental awareness and sustainable practices among youth. Ultimately, these findings are intended for educators, policymakers, GLAM institutions (galleries, libraries, archives, museums), and environmental organizations to encourage OER use for environmental education and to contribute to the broader discussion on OER adoption in K-12. This research contributes to the development of environmentally conscious and empowered citizens and supports UNESCOs Sustainable Development Goals, including promoting ongoing dialogue on the role of OER in K-12 and the importance of environmental education across all subjects

Speakers

Emily Grady

Master's student, Athabasca University

Emily Grady is in her final year of Athabasca University's Master of Education in Open, Digital and Distance Education, specializing in instructional design. As an avid outdoorsperson, a parent, and an environmental advocate, her personal, academic and professional interests center... Read More →

Thursday October 8, 2026 12:25pm - 12:55pm EDT
8 DR6 MIT Samberg Conference Center, 50 Memorial Drive, Cambridge MA 02139 USA

Presentation

Speaker Modality Online
Track (Re)Inventing our Shared Global Vision Together

1:40pm EDT

Charting the Path: Seeding the Open Education Movement

Thursday October 8, 2026 1:40pm - 2:45pm EDT

7 DR5

ID: 33949

The open education movement itself may be the biggest legacy of the announcement made on the front page of the New York Times on April 4, 2001, “Auditing Classes at M.I.T., on the Web and Free.” The innovation and leadership of MIT and the William and Flora Hewlett and the Andrew W. Mellow Foundations, along with Creative Commons, did more than just break paths for access to learning as a public good in the digital age, they made possible the impact from countless other organizations globally. This announcement twenty five years ago accelerated a global online movement in open education. This session invites selected organizations from the early days of open education to describe their paths and impact, thanks in small part to paths opened by MIT OpenCourseWare.Panelists will tell their organization’s open education origin stories and celebrate their impact and innovation over the last two decades.Delft University Technology: TU Delft, the oldest and largest technical university in the Netherlands, is at the forefront of open and online learning and a long standing advocate for open education. One of the first opencoursewares globally, TU Delft continues to offer openly licensed course materials through its OpenCourseWare, which was launched in 2007.Open Education Japan: OE Japan represents universities and companies in Japan promoting open education and disseminating open educational resources. With its origins in the Japan OCW Consortium, OE Japan includes two early opencoursewares celebrating their 20+ year anniversaries, the University of Tokyo OpenCourseWare, the University of Kyoto OpenCourseWare and Nagoya University OpenCourseWare.Open Education Global: Today, OEGlobal connects a broad global community of open education organizations and leads international initiatives such as Open Education Week. It has its origins as the OpenCourseWare Consortium with informal meetings beginning in 2006. Mountain Heights Academy: Mountain Heights serves approximately 3,000 middle and high school students across Utah in the United States with a curriculum based on open education resources. Founded as the Open High School of Utah in 2009, it was the first K-12 school to embrace open education resources as the primary educational content for its courses.

Speakers

DeLaina Tonks

Executive Director, Mountain Heights Academy

Dr. DeLaina Tonks has been involved in education since 1991, as a teacher, instructional designer, and administrator. Prior to coming to Mountain Heights Academy, she taught high school French and Spanish in Upper Arlington, Ohio. DeLaina is a 2020 “Best of State – Administrator... Read More →

Katsusuke Shigeta

Professor, Information Inititative Center / Hokkaido University

Dr. Katsusuke Shigeta is a Professor at the Information Initiative Center and Director of the Data-Driven Education Initiative Center at Hokkaido University. He serves as the President of Open Education Japan (OEJ) and was previously a member of the Board of Directors for Open Education... Read More →

Willem van Valkenburg

Executive Director TU Delft Learning for Life Centre, Delft University of Technology

Willem van Valkenburg is the Executive Director of the Learning for Life Centre of Delft University of Technology based in the Netherlands. The Centre offers online and blended education to empower professionals and lifelong learners worldwide. The Centre has developed more than 250... Read More →

Curt Newton

Director, MIT OpenCourseWare, MIT Open Learning

Curt Newton leads MIT OpenCourseWare in supporting millions of global learners and educators every year with freely shared materials from over 2,500 MIT courses. He joined OpenCourseWare in 2004, shortly after its launch, captivated by the promise of open education, and worked as... Read More →

Brandon Muramatsu

Thursday October 8, 2026 1:40pm - 2:45pm EDT
7 DR5 MIT Samberg Conference Center, 50 Memorial Drive, Cambridge MA 02139 USA

Panel

Speaker Modality Hybrid
Track (Re)Inventing our Shared Global Vision Together

1:40pm EDT

Commons, Ecosystems, and Schools: Structures for Futuring Open

Thursday October 8, 2026 1:40pm - 2:45pm EDT

3 Room I

ID: 33966

The open education movement stands at a critical inflection point. After 25 years of evolution, and in the midst of emerging technologies largely controlled by commercial interests, this is a critical time to pause, reflect, and re-consider the philosophical foundations and building blocks shaping its future—specifically the commons, ecosystems, and schools. Moving forward, questions of sustainability, participation, and purpose are becoming increasingly urgent to revisit, particularly in the context of a changing world with rapid technological and institutional shifts.This panel brings together a collective set of voices that reflect their lived experience within the open education movement and are uniquely positioned to suggest a way to reset and reframe as we think about what comes next. Drawing on decades of experience across research, practice, innovation, and system-building, the panelists will offer grounded perspectives on how the movement can evolve and how we can shape the future of open education with intention, clarity, and collective responsibility.Framing open education through the lens of the learning commons, the session will explore how shared open resources can be governed, sustained, and expanded in ways that ensure equitable participation and benefit without exploitation. It will invite participants to engage deeply with the commons-based approach as a foundation for the next phase of open education, prioritizing collective ownership, stewardship, and long-term sustainability.Building on this, the panel will examine the role of ecosystems as the enabling structures that connect people, resources, and practices. We will explore how stakeholders in the open education ecosystems can function as stewards of the movement and as force multipliers, where collaboration amplifies impact and accelerates innovation. The conversation will surface the frameworks for such ecosystems to thrive, including aligned incentives, shared infrastructure, and governance approaches that support trust and long-term collaboration.Finally, the session will focus on schools as critical sites of application and innovation within these ecosystems. The panel will explore how schools can support and sustain the movement becoming active contributors and co-creators while navigating current challenges such as resource constraints and shifting ideological landscapes. It will examine why and how faculty, students, and institutional leadership can engage meaningfully in open practices and become active participants in shaping the next 25 years of the movement beyond a narrow focus on access to resources.The panel will then solicit reactions and thoughts from the audience, both in-person and online. Together we will initiate a dialogue on what directions, choices, and changes we collectively need to make at the ecosystem, commons, and school/library levels to move open education forward.Across these three interconnected structures, the session will also engage with emerging ethical dilemmas and technological shifts—particularly the growing role of AI in the creation, adaptation, and dissemination of open resources. The panel will critically examine what it means to remain truly open, equitable, and community-driven, and how the values of openness can be upheld in an evolving digital landscape.

Speakers

Lisa Petrides

CEO and Founder, Institute for the Study of Knowledge Management in Education (ISKME)

Lisa Petrides is CEO and founder of the Institute for the Study of Knowledge Management in Education (ISKME), a nonprofit dedicated to making learning and knowledge-sharing participatory and open for all. She is a scholar and international open education expert who has led the development... Read More →

Jim Luke

Independent Scholar and Professor of Economics (ret), Planning Solutions LLC

Jim Luke is an independent scholar and planning consultant. He is a retired professor of economics and was Open Learning Faculty Fellow at a community college in Michigan (USA), where he created the Open Learning Lab, a web-based pedagogy innovation incubator. Jim has expertise in... Read More →

Robin DeRosa

Executive Director, Open Education Network

Dr. Robin DeRosa is an educator and community leader who has served in many roles over the span of her career. She has been a middle school theater teacher, a high school literature and writing teacher, and a college professor of both English and Interdisciplinary Studies. She has... Read More →

Thursday October 8, 2026 1:40pm - 2:45pm EDT
3 Room I MIT Samberg Conference Center, 50 Memorial Drive, Cambridge MA 02139 USA

Panel

Speaker Modality In-person
Track (Re)Inventing our Shared Global Vision Together

2:15pm EDT

Building Bridges Between Higher Education and K-12 Through Open Lifelong Learning

Thursday October 8, 2026 2:15pm - 2:45pm EDT

5 DR3

ID: 30484

This session presents a transformative multi-sectoral partnership model between Erciyes University and the Murat Kantarcı Science and Art Center (BİLSEM), a collaboration recently distinguished in the European-wide SAMUELE Compendium: “University Lifelong Learning Applied Cases that Inspire.” As one of the premier cases selected from 17 European countries, this initiative serves as a strategic roadmap for integrating University Lifelong Learning (ULLL) into institutional governance, research, and societal impact through open and inclusive ecosystems.The core of this session addresses a persistent challenge in global education: the structural and pedagogical "space between" academic research in higher education and its practical enactment in K-12 classrooms. Led by Prof. Dr. Fatma Bozkurt and Çelebi Kalkan, this partnership redefines lifelong learning not merely as an isolated continuing education activity, but as a holistic, integrated domain for institutional transformation. We demonstrate how Erciyes University’s strategic vision for sustainability and social responsibility is actualized through a formal partnership with BİLSEM, a specialized institution for gifted and talented students.The session will explore three primary dimensions of "Connecting the Dots":Institutional Synergy and Governance: We will detail how the governance structures of a major university can be aligned with K-12 centers to create a seamless, open learning pathway. This includes the integration of lifelong learning into the university’s broader mission of "social contribution."Pedagogical Innovation (The Think-Feel-Act Model): Participants will be introduced to the UNESCO-recognized "Think-Feel-Act" pedagogical framework. We will showcase how this model is utilized to train prospective teachers, allowing them to engage in real-world sustainability workshops and "green entrepreneurship" activities as part of their lifelong learning journey.European Alignment and Scaling: Drawing from the SAMUELE Compendium findings, we will discuss how this case contributes to the "European Higher Education Area" by fostering resilience, inclusivity, and responsiveness to societal crises like climate change.Key Takeaways for Attendees: Attendees will gain a comprehensive understanding of how to build and sustain "Open Learning Ecosystems" that leverage cross-institutional resources. We will share specific strategies for bridging the gap between higher education faculty and K-12 practitioners, ensuring that open education resources and methodologies are not just developed, but effectively implemented and scaled. By the end of the session, participants will be equipped with a proven framework for institutionalizing multi-sectoral partnerships that empower both educators and learners as active agents of change in their communities.This session is particularly relevant for policymakers, university administrators, and K-12 educators seeking to "reinvent our shared global vision" by breaking down institutional silos and fostering a truly open, lifelong learning culture.

Speakers

Fatma Bozkurt

Professor Doctor, Erciyes University

Prof. Dr. Fatma Bozkurt, Erciyes Üniversitesi Eğitim Fakültesi Uygulamalı Matematik Bölümü'nde seçkin bir profesördür ve Almanya, BAE, Kuveyt ve Türkiye'de 18 yılı aşkın uluslararası öğretim ve araştırma deneyimine sahiptir. Akademik liderliği, özellikle Z kuşa... Read More →

Çelebi Kalkan

Expert Teacher, Murat Kantarcı Science and Arts Center

Çelebi Kalkan, Türkiye'deki Murat Kantarcı Bilim ve Sanat Merkezi'nde (BİLSEM) STEM+A eğitimi, sürdürülebilir kalkınma ve iklim değişikliği pedagojisi alanlarında uzmanlaşmış bir öğretmendir. UNESCO Yeşil Eğitim Ortaklığı üyesi ve Scientix STEM Elçisi olarak... Read More →

Thursday October 8, 2026 2:15pm - 2:45pm EDT
5 DR3 MIT Samberg Conference Center, 50 Memorial Drive, Cambridge MA 02139 USA

Presentation

Speaker Modality Online
Track (Re)Inventing our Shared Global Vision Together

3:00pm EDT

Re-Designing an International, Student-Led, Co-Curricular, Community-Engaged, Experiential Learning Project for OA

Thursday October 8, 2026 3:00pm - 3:30pm EDT

5 DR3

ID: 33695

This design case details the development of an international, student-led, co-curricular, community-engaged, experiential learning project during its first two years, during which staff and faculty guided and mentored undergraduate students as they developed a process for mentoring young writers in the US and East Africa and creating an anthology of their stories. This project was later converted to an open access approach for creating OER. I discuss critical challenges and successes regarding the design of the project that were made during this period, following the organization of teams for mentoring young writers, editing the anthology, raising funds for printing, and implementing an evaluation plan. I will focus specifically on the challenges and benefits of a minimally-funded project that placed much of the decision-making in the hands of the students. The project lasted for twelve years and resulted in twelves volumes of stories in English and Kinyarwanda, many of which are available for free online. It wasn't until after the first twelve years that the project members considered OA approaches. I conclude with implications for developing and converting to OA a project of this complexity and discuss the successes and failures that the project encountered during the first two years of its implementation (2008-2010) and beyond. I discuss the current emphasis of the project on preparing educators to create OA juvenile titles that can be adapted and translated into underserved languages.

Speakers

Beth Lewis Samuelson

Associate Professor, Indiana University Bloomington

Beth Lewis Samuelson is Associate Professor in the Indiana University Bloomington School of Education, with distinguished contributions in service, teaching, and research and 20 years of experience in higher education. Her research specializations include language awareness and language... Read More →

Thursday October 8, 2026 3:00pm - 3:30pm EDT
5 DR3 MIT Samberg Conference Center, 50 Memorial Drive, Cambridge MA 02139 USA

Presentation

Speaker Modality In-person
Track (Re)Inventing our Shared Global Vision Together

3:00pm EDT

Open Publishing in Practice Across Europe

Thursday October 8, 2026 3:00pm - 4:05pm EDT

3 Room I

ID: 33888

In this panel, leaders from institutions across Europe will share how they are building and scaling open publishing networks to support institution-wide publishing initiatives — and what those efforts mean for knowledge as a public good.Each panelist will showcase their open catalogs, highlight key Open Educational Resources (OER) projects, and offer a behind-the-scenes look at how open publishing is being implemented across different national and institutional contexts. We'll explore how and why each institution chose to launch their initiatives, the types of publishing they support, and how they are working to advance institutional goals around openness, access, and teaching innovation.Attendees will hear what each team is most proud of, lessons learned along the way, and what's next for open publishing at their institutions. Whether you're just getting started with open education or looking to scale an existing program, this session offers practical insights and perspectives from across Europe on building sustainable open publishing infrastructure.

Speakers

Celine Peignen

Deputy Librarian, Technological University of the Shannon

Celine Peignen is the Deputy Librarian and Open Education Librarian at the Technological University of the Shannon (TUS), where she has worked in the library sector for over 15 years. She has been a driving force behind TUS's open education strategy, securing funding from the National... Read More →

Maura Flynn

Open Educational Resources Librarian, Technological University of the Shannon

Maura Flynn is the Open Educational Resources (OER) Librarian at the Technological University of the Shannon (TUS), where she leads the development and promotion of open publishing and open education initiatives across the institution. She is the founder of TUS Open Press, the university's... Read More →

Amanda Coolidge

VP, Strategic Engagement and Growth, Pressbooks

Kirstine McDermid

Open Education Resources Manager, University of Leeds

Kirstine McDermid is dedicated to fostering inclusive and equitable learning pathways through open education. With expertise in Pressbooks, instructional technologies, WordPress, course design, accessibility, copyright, and licensing, she supports educators in adapting and creating... Read More →

Jane Saunders

Associate Director: Content and Discovery, University of Leeds

Jane is responsible for the Libraries’ main research and teaching collections. (Rare books and archives fall under the remit of our Cultural Collections). She manages the Libraries’ information resources budget, which buys the books, journals, databases and digitised collections... Read More →

Thursday October 8, 2026 3:00pm - 4:05pm EDT
3 Room I MIT Samberg Conference Center, 50 Memorial Drive, Cambridge MA 02139 USA

Panel

Speaker Modality Hybrid
Track (Re)Inventing our Shared Global Vision Together

5:30pm EDT

Preparing for the Future of Work: Communications Between Workforce and OER

Thursday October 8, 2026 5:30pm - 6:00pm EDT

3 Room I

ID: 33960

Upskilling and reskilling of the current workforce has become an essential part of achieving the global development agenda of the UN’s Sustainable Development Solutions Network. Skills centered on equitable access, digital competency, and principles of sustainability are vital not only for economic growth, but also for our societies to thrive. While educational institutions and industries guide students from one stop on their path to the next, collaboration or even communication between both parties is limited.This panel brings together representatives from the DOERS Workforce Development Project to share their perspectives on the rapidly-evolving relationship between workforce and post-secondary education systems, and the value of open education in this currently prioritized landscape. Industry representatives, directors of workforce initiatives, college & university administrators and faculty, open education leaders, and working group leaders will discuss challenges and achievements in strategic outreach and forged connections. Sharing concrete examples demonstrating how the openly licensed, customizable nature of OER facilitates innovative approaches to support career-connected learning and align programs with workforce needs will impart the value of OER in workforce development to session attendees. This project explores open educational resources (OER) as a practical policy tool supporting institutional innovation, affordability, and workforce alignment across many US states and Canadian provinces. OER use allows institutions to update curriculum efficiently, embed industry-recognized competencies, and reduce cost barriers; goals that are particularly relevant as states expand work-based learning, dual enrollment, competency-based education, and stackable credential pathways. Since 2024, the DOERS Workforce Project has focused on a three-phase approach toward its goal of supporting higher education systems and consortia toward the growth and integration of open education and OER across workforce-aligned education. Phase One was the creation and testing of an OER + Workforce Collaboration System at OpenEd25 and a plenary workshop at the Wyoming OER Conference 2026. This co-design experience invites participants to explore and test a suite of collaboration tools designed to help cross-sector teams imagine, create, and implement workforce-aligned OER solutions. Phase Two was the convening of 3 focus groups to further spotlight gaps in OER + workforce and offer future directions. Phase Three saw the generation of a Workforce OER Playbook. This living resource (forthcoming Summer 2026) will collect real-world use cases, stories, and evidence from across the OER and workforce development communities — showcasing how collaboration can lead to better learning outcomes and stronger regional economies. Both the Collaboration System and the Playbook will be openly published and made available to session attendees. DOERS acknowledges its valuable partnership with The Rebus Foundation and Clear Kinetic on the Workforce Project.

Speakers

Jaimie Henthorn

Director, Academic Innovation Programs, University of Colorado System

As Director of Academic Innovation Programs for the University of Colorado System, Jaimie leads initiatives across four campuses aimed at lowering barriers to quality education through innovation. Initiatives include OER, micro-credentialing, MOOCs, and more. Currently, the Innovation... Read More →

Mindy Newfarmer

Thursday October 8, 2026 5:30pm - 6:00pm EDT
3 Room I MIT Samberg Conference Center, 50 Memorial Drive, Cambridge MA 02139 USA

Panel

Speaker Modality In-person
Track (Re)Inventing our Shared Global Vision Together

5:30pm EDT

Beyond Epistemicide: The Polymath Protocol for Decentralized Knowledge Creation in the Global South

Thursday October 8, 2026 5:30pm - 6:00pm EDT

7 DR5

ID: 33364

The global open education movement has successfully removed financial paywalls for millions of learners. However, by focusing primarily on access to content rather than the origin of content, we have inadvertently created a system of "epistemicide" in the Global South. When a student in Nigeria or India is taught to see the world predominantly through the lens of Western-centric case studies, educational materials, and academic canons, education transitions from a process of liberation to one of cultural assimilation. This creates a global monoculture of thought that devalues localized problem-solving frameworks, indigenous knowledge systems, and regional languages.This session directly challenges the foundational premise of modern open education: that the mere distribution of Global North content is inherently an objective good. We will examine how hard metrics prove this disparity. With over 75% of research articles published in English and less than 5% of major open educational resources originating from authors based in the Global South, we are training the next generation of thinkers to solve the problems of the West rather than the urgent issues facing their own communities.The primary goal of this session is to pivot the conversation from OER 1.0 (access to existing materials) to OER 2.0 (local agency and decentralized authorship). To achieve this, I will introduce "The Polymath Protocol"—a theoretical, decentralized epistemic infrastructure designed to invert the current flow of global knowledge.We will explore how this protocol leverages non-proprietary, open-source networking to connect regional "Knowledge Hubs." Furthermore, we will dive into how emerging technologies, such as federated AI models, can be trained locally on indigenous data and regional dialects. This ensures that learners are not subject to the algorithmic bias and cultural homogenization inherent in monolithic, centralized tech giants.By moving away from a top-down, one-way funnel of expertise, the Polymath Protocol offers a viable architectural alternative that prioritizes cognitive diversity and true epistemic justice.Key Takeaways for Attendees:A Critical Framework: Attendees will learn to critically evaluate the "open-washing" of research and recognize the hidden cultural tax imposed on non-Western learners by the current academic hierarchy.Actionable Technical Alternatives: Participants will explore the mechanics of federated AI and decentralized storage as practical tools for preserving linguistic and intellectual diversity in digital education.Policy and Advocacy Strategies: Educators and policymakers will gain insights into the structural shifts required to fund local knowledge creators, move toward credit interoperability, and foster a truly democratic, multi-centered global knowledge ecosystem.This session is designed for educators, technologists, and advocates who believe that the future of human learning should not be a corporate monoculture, but a rich, resilient, and localized ecosystem of diverse ideas.

Speakers

Dhairya Chauhan

Computational Physics Researcher & AICTE Ideation Lab Contributor, Earth School

Dhairya Chauhan is an emerging researcher and AICTE Ideation Lab Fellow whose work sits at the intersection of computational physics, mathematical modeling, and the future of equitable education. Shared by the International Union of Pure and Applied Physics (IUPAP) for his contributions... Read More →

Thursday October 8, 2026 5:30pm - 6:00pm EDT
7 DR5 MIT Samberg Conference Center, 50 Memorial Drive, Cambridge MA 02139 USA

Presentation

Speaker Modality Online
Track (Re)Inventing our Shared Global Vision Together

12:25pm EDT

OpenBody Atlas: Visualizing Human Biology and Drug Interactions Through Open, Interactive Learning

Friday October 9, 2026 12:25pm - 12:55pm EDT

5 DR3

ID: 33765

What if anyone could see, in real time, how a drug travels through the human body and transforms its function?What if this knowledge were not restricted to textbooks, but openly accessible, interactive, and collaboratively built for all?OpenBody Atlas is an open, innovation-driven platform designed to reimagine how human biology and pharmacology are explored, understood, and shared as a public good. While traditional medical education relies on static, discipline-specific resources, this project introduces a systems-level approach that integrates anatomy, physiology, and pharmacology into a unified, interactive environment. The session aligns with the principles of open practices by demonstrating how collaborative, interdisciplinary innovation can produce scalable and inclusive knowledge systems.At its core, OpenBody Atlas functions as a dynamic interface of the human body, where users can navigate across biological systems and visualize functional processes in real time. Its defining innovation lies in the integration of a pharmacological layer: users can select a drug and observe its journey through the body, including mechanisms of action, receptor interactions, metabolic pathways, and systemic effects. This transforms passive learning into an exploratory, data-driven experience that bridges foundational science with applied therapeutics.This session will highlight how open practices—such as open-source development, community contribution, and peer-reviewed knowledge sharing—can be applied to build and sustain such a platform. OpenBody Atlas is conceptualized as a participatory ecosystem where students, educators, and researchers collaboratively create, validate, and expand content. By combining research-based knowledge with lived experiences and diverse medical perspectives, the platform supports a more inclusive and globally relevant understanding of healthcare.A key focus of the session will be the innovation framework behind the platform: how interdisciplinary thinking (spanning biomedical sciences, digital design, and open systems) can be leveraged to address gaps in current educational models. The session will also explore how this approach aligns with broader open movements, including open science, open data, and open education, positioning OpenBody Atlas as a convergence point for these initiatives.Participants will gain practical insights into designing open, scalable knowledge systems that move beyond institutional boundaries. The session will demonstrate how such models can be adapted across disciplines and contexts, particularly in resource-limited settings where access to integrated, high-quality educational tools remains a challenge. By emphasizing openness, interactivity, and collaboration, OpenBody Atlas presents a replicable model for innovation in knowledge sharing.Key takeaways include: understanding how open practices can drive innovation in complex knowledge domains; identifying strategies for building collaborative, interdisciplinary platforms; and recognizing the potential of open systems to democratize access to scientific and medical knowledge. Participants will also be invited to engage with the concept and explore opportunities for contribution and co-creation.

Speakers

Yash Sale

OpenBody Atlas: An Open-Source Platform Integrating Anatomy, Physiology, and Pharmacology, SSSPM’s Dr N J Paulbuddhe College of Pharmacy Ahilyanagar Maharashtra India Asia

Yash Sale is a Bachelor of Pharmacy student with a strong academic foundation in anatomy, physiology, and neuroscience. He has completed certifications from premier institutions including the Indian Institute of Technology Bombay, Indian Institute of Technology Bhubaneswar, St George's... Read More →

Friday October 9, 2026 12:25pm - 12:55pm EDT
5 DR3 MIT Samberg Conference Center, 50 Memorial Drive, Cambridge MA 02139 USA

Presentation

Speaker Modality Online
Track (Re)Inventing our Shared Global Vision Together

12:25pm EDT

The Global Open Graduate Network’s Pilot Hubs: A Networked Approach to Scaling Open Education Research

Friday October 9, 2026 12:25pm - 12:55pm EDT

6 DR4

ID: 33857

Since 2013, the Global Open Graduate Network (GO-GN) has supported doctoral and postdoctoral research in open education and practices worldwide. In 2023, we conducted a 10 year anniversary strategic review (Farrow et al., 2024) with our membership and the wider GO-GN and open education communities. This review captured the network’s achievements to date and future aspirations, including exploration of a more federated approach for the network.This presentation reports on the outcome of this work, which focused on a pilot programme to establish and evaluate four regional hubs (Asia-Pacific, Canada, Ibero-America and Kenya). We will report on the development of these regional hubs across six continents, relating insights from the evaluation and reflecting on how other open education networks might approach questions of scale, diversity and sustainability.Through exploring a federated model, GO-GN has sought to reconcile tensions between scale and responsiveness, enabling regionally situated communities to define priorities, build capacity, and exercise leadership while remaining connected to a wider international network. This directly addresses persistent gaps in open education relating to equity, representation, and the inclusion of Global South perspectives.The session’s value lies in its combination of strategic reflection and practical insight. It moves beyond abstract commitments to openness by demonstrating how governance, sustainability, and participation can be reconfigured through distributed models. The evaluation findings provide evidence of what works, what remains challenging, and how networks can evolve to better align their values with their impact.For conference participants, the relevance is twofold. First, it offers a transferable framework for designing and sustaining open education initiatives that are both globally connected and locally meaningful. Second, it contributes to a broader conversation about how openness can be reimagined as a dynamic, negotiated process. In doing so, the session provides actionable insights for researchers, practitioners, and network leaders seeking to build more inclusive, resilient, and context-sensitive forms of open education across borders.

Speakers

Robert Farrow

Senior Research Fellow, The Open University (UK)

Programme Lead, Open Education Research Hub and Co-Director of Global Open Graduate Network

Beck Pitt

Senior Research Fellow, The Open University (UK)

Co-Director of Global Open Graduate Network

Carina Bossu

Senior Lecturer, Co-Director of Research Capability Hub, The Open University (UK)

Dr Carina Bossu is a Senior Lecturer in Academic Professional Development with the Institute of Educational Technology at the Open University, UK. Her work and research have been focused on Open Educational Resources (OER) and Open Educational Practices (OEP) in higher education... Read More →

Saraswati Dawadi

Research Fellow, The Open University (UK)

Saraswati Dawadi's current research is around language assessment, equity and inclusion in education, girls’ empowerment and professional development through online learning. She is the evaluation lead for the GO-GN Pilot Hubs.

Friday October 9, 2026 12:25pm - 12:55pm EDT
6 DR4 MIT Samberg Conference Center, 50 Memorial Drive, Cambridge MA 02139 USA

Presentation

Speaker Modality Online
Track (Re)Inventing our Shared Global Vision Together

3:00pm EDT

Leading Openly, Reaching Widely: MOLLI Beyond Maryland

Friday October 9, 2026 3:00pm - 3:30pm EDT

3 Room I

ID: 33061

Leading Openly, Reaching Widely: MOLLI Beyond MarylandWhat happens when a regional professional development institute opens its doors to the world? The Maryland Online Leadership Institute (MOLLI) is finding out.MOLLI is a project of MarylandOnline (MOL), a consortium of Maryland colleges and universities dedicated to advancing online learning through training and collaboration. Designed for online learning professionals at all career stages — from instructional designers and librarians to IT managers, faculty, and administrators — MOLLI develops leadership skills through an immersive, project-based curriculum grounded in inspiration, reflection, and real-world practice.At its core, MOLLI operates on a simple but powerful belief: leadership skills are learnable, and they are valuable at every level of an organization. Each cohort, which runs on a two-year cycle, brings together higher education professionals to build community, sharpen competencies, and tackle the evolving challenges facing online and technology-mediated learning.Now, MOLLI is evolving too.Originally focused on Maryland institutions, MOLLI has expanded its reach to serve professionals across the United States — and is actively working to grow its community even further, welcoming participants from beyond U.S. borders. This expansion reflects MOLLI's commitment to building a truly global community of practice for online learning leaders.Alongside this geographic growth, MOLLI has deepened the scope of its signature high-impact group projects — year-long collaborative endeavors where cohort participants apply their learning to real challenges in online education. This session highlights one such evolution: the intentional integration of Open Educational Resources (OER) and Universal Design for Learning (UDL) into project work, with a focus on creative outputs designed to increase student engagement.Whether you are an online learning professional looking to grow your leadership skills, an administrator seeking to replicate or partner with models like MOLLI, or an open education advocate curious about how OER and UDL intersect with professional development, this session offers practical insights and an open invitation to join a growing community.MOLLI started in Maryland. Its future is wide open.

Speakers

Shinta Hernandez

Dean of MC Online and Academic Support, Montgomery College

Shinta Hernandez, Ph.D. is the Dean of MC Online and Academic Support at Montgomery College (MC), providing leadership in online education, open education, learning centers, academic success coaching, and assessment centers. From the time she started at MC in January 2007, she has... Read More →

Gracie McDonough

Reference/Instruction/OER Librarian, College of Southern Nevada

Debbie Baker

OER Coordinator, Instructional designer, Maricopa Community College District

Friday October 9, 2026 3:00pm - 3:30pm EDT
3 Room I MIT Samberg Conference Center, 50 Memorial Drive, Cambridge MA 02139 USA

Panel

Speaker Modality In-person
Track (Re)Inventing our Shared Global Vision Together

4:15pm EDT

Promoting the UNESCO Sustainable Development Goals with Institutional Repositories

Friday October 9, 2026 4:15pm - 4:30pm EDT

Video

ID: 32242

In 2025, Excelsior University launched its first institutional repository, known as SOAR. Its mission is to showcase the work of the Excelsior University community, including faculty, staff, and students. All of the work featured on SOAR is openly available. An institutional repository is also a great way to promote the UNESCO Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Research has shown that aligning an author’s work with the SDGs increases citation rates, research visibility, and policy changes. This presentation will share how SOAR incorporates the SDGs into its metadata. Additionally, authors are asked to choose the Goal that best reflects their work in SOAR’s submission form. By having authors think about the goals early on in the submission process, authors can envision the global impact of their works.

Speakers

Melissa Chim

Scholarly Communications Librarian, Excelsior University

Melissa Chim is the first Scholarly Communications Librarian at Excelsior University where she both created and manages the university’s scholarly publishing platform and institutional repository. She holds an MLIS from St. John’s University and an MA in History from Queen Mary... Read More →

Friday October 9, 2026 4:15pm - 4:30pm EDT
Video

Lightning Talk (View Anytime)