From 3 to 7 August 2026, Cambridge Open Lab hosted its Summer School on Open Science in Practice at the beautiful Homerton College, bringing together 11 students and 3 teaching assistants (TAs) from 11 different countries.
Organised by Dr Chloé Guillaume and Dr Célia Laurent, the Summer School combined discussions on the principles of Open Science with hands-on workshops designed to show how these principles can be applied directly to research projects. With invited speakers covering topics ranging from open-source hardware to open publishing, participants explored both the ideas behind Open Science and the practical tools that can make research more open, reproducible and accessible.
The students had the opportunity to work with open-source technologies and apply them to their own research interests, including 3D printing, behavioural tracking and electronics hardware development. The programme was highly interactive, and the enthusiasm and proactivity of the group made the workshops particularly rewarding. By the end of the week, the students had not only gained new skills and ideas, but also built a strong international network that we hope will continue to grow well beyond the Summer School.
After five intensive days of discussions and workshops (sometimes running late into the evening) we took advantage of an exceptionally warm and sunny Cambridge day to put the students' punting skills to the test on the River Cam.
We would like to warmly thank all our invited speakers for their inspiring contributions and for creating an environment that encouraged open discussion; our amazing TAs for their patience, pedagogical expertise and the invaluable knowledge they shared throughout the workshops; and the fantastic Homerton events team, whose support played a crucial role in making the week such a memorable experience.
We are also very grateful to the Research Culture Committee at the University of Cambridge for its generous financial support, and to Homerton College for its support and for providing such a welcoming and inspiring setting for the Summer School. Finally, we are very grateful to the PDN Accounts Team for their precious help for the administrative side of this organisation!
What did the students think?
The feedback we received reflects the enthusiasm of the participants:
“Thank you so much for all the efforts!! This was one of my first summer schools and I had such a blast.”
“I want to thank you for endeavouring to continue these efforts into open access, and thank the organising committee and the college staff for their welcoming and friendly attitude.”
“I already have several ideas that I can apply to my own project. The speakers were knowledgeable in the field and created a suitable environment for open discussions.”
“The TAs were very kind and patient with the students and I had a sense of accomplishment by the end of each workshop.”
“It was excellent! Everything we learned was very useful. All instructors explained everything clearly, making it easy to understand and keep up. They guided us through each step while
encouraging us to think for ourselves, which helped us learn how to solve problems independently.”
We are delighted to have welcomed such an enthusiastic group to Cambridge and look forward to seeing how the ideas, skills and connections developed during the Summer School continue to shape the participants’ research and practice.
