OSS + ELC EU 2026

University researchers create innovative open source ecosystems that can reshape global digital infrastructure, however translating that work into sustainable partnerships with open source communities - and industry - remains difficult. Promising projects disappear based on funding cycles and student/faculty transience. Barriers to collaboration – IP issues, funding models, institutional culture – remain difficult to tackle. While these challenges are universal, the landscape looks different depending on in which part of the world you sit. Funding, technology transfer norms, and expectations from academic partners vary significantly between the EU and North American contexts. This panel brings together university OSPO practitioners to examine what a genuinely international model for university-industry open source collaboration could look like. They will share what's working in their ecosystems, where barriers lie, and whether shared infrastructure could bridge regional differences. The session includes space for audience input on what is most needed to make academic partnerships stronger at a global level.