From the Umbrella to the Forest. Exploring Open Science through Images

This contribution analyses the visual metaphors used to describe Open Science (OS) and shows how these reveal the values, priorities and cultural assumptions of the movement. The journey begins with the metaphor of the ‘umbrella’ (Fecher, Friesike, 2013). The umbrella brings together and shelters related concepts under a single term: it is a tool created by humans for a specific purpose. However, what lies beneath the umbrella varies significantly, reflecting the diHerent priorities of the respective community. The 'mushroom' metaphor, introduced by Méndez (2017), marks a significant transition from an artefact to a natural organism, and represents a conceptual shift. In addition, the mushroom is not merely a vessel for observable practices. The idea of a hidden and foundational system represented by the roots is here introduced (Rafols et al., 2024). The next step in this evolution is the ‘wheel’ (Kramer, 2017), representing OS as a circular infinite research workflow. The image illustrates the various stages of the research process (from discovery and analysis to publication, dissemination and evaluation) as a continuous cycle, and evokes the hermeneutic circle. Through the wheel - among the most significant examples of human invention - OS is elevated from a collection of practices to a fundamental process for knowledge production, dissemination and assessment. The concept of a process is further elaborated on using the 'taxonomy' (Pontika and Knoth, 2015) and the 'tree' metaphors (YERUN, 2018; Méndez, 2022). By organising the components of OS into a hierarchical structure, the taxonomy/tree provides detail about the ecosystem. The final metaphor is the 'graph', used by UNESCO (2020). The image immediately evokes the topologies of the Internet and the World Wide Web. The graph describes OS as a dynamic, decentralised and distributed network of relationships. This vision of a complex, living network serves as a bridge to my proposed synthesis to represent OS as a 'forest'. The forest is a natural organism like the mushroom, it includes the symbolism of the tree, and its vast system of interconnected roots functions as a living graph. I this contribution I will discuss how the metaphor embodies a number of OS principles and values (collaboration, inclusiveness and biodiversity, collective intelligence) but also its ability to represent the real tensions and inequalities that persist in our 148 knowledge ecosystems (in terms of unequal distribution of resources, lack of equal opportunities, exclusion and competition, and eHiciency without equity). A value of the forest metaphor, then, is that it makes these tensions visible, challenging the status quo and forcing us to confront the gap between our principles and our practices (Sepehri, 2025). But it also helps us to radically change the way we evaluate research quality and value, encouraging us to go beyond conventional parameters of eHiciency and excellence and ask new and deeper questions about our work, such as: 'Is it sustainable? Is it inclusive? Is it creative? Is it alive?' (Mounier, 2022)