A Global Call for Openness, Sovereignty, and Sustainability
Higher education’s digital future is being shaped right now. Colleges and universities across the world depend on digital infrastructure that powers teaching and learning, research and scholarship, and institutional operations—yet much of that infrastructure is no longer governed, invested in, or controlled by the academic community itself.
The Open Renaissance Group was formed to help higher education reclaim leadership over its shared digital foundation.
Join the Movement
Higher education has both the responsibility and the opportunity to lead.
Read the Open Letter: Higher education has outsourced its digital soul, it’s time we reclaim it!
Sign the Open Letter to show your support
Not ready to sign? Join the Open Renaissance Group mailing list to receive updates
Lookout for meet ups and event announcements and plan to join us at EDUCAUSE 2026
Why This Moment Matters
As reliance on open source software and open standards has grown, coordinated leadership and strategic investment from higher education has declined. At the same time, global conversations around technological sovereignty are accelerating, alongside growing concerns about vendor lock-in, data control, and the rapid expansion of AI.
The Open Renaissance Group’s Global Call for Higher Education to Reclaim Its Digital Future asserts that Open Solutions—grounded in transparency, interoperability, collaboration, and institutional independence—offer a clear, practical path forward. Openness strengthens resilience, enables choice, and restores strategic autonomy while supporting collaboration where it makes sense.
How This Movement Began
The Open Letter is the outcome of a “strategy jam” that was held at EDUCAUSE 2025, which brought together representatives from a broad coalition of global organizations that support openness in education. The group, now named the “Open Renaissance Group”, is issuing a direct call to action: for higher education to shift from being primarily consumers of digital technology to becoming co-creators of open, interoperable solutions aligned with the public good. The movement is focused on strategies to sustain and benefit from Open Solutions in ways that:
- Accelerate innovation in teaching, learning, and research
- Reclaim digital sovereignty and reduce lock-in
- Strengthen data protection and transparency
- Lower long-term costs through shared investment
A Call to Act
The Open Renaissance Group views this effort as the beginning of a broader global movement. Early participants are helping shape initial priorities, including:
Mobilizing resources for new Open Solutions
Applying lessons from prior initiatives
Conducting and sharing research
Advancing awareness and engagement
Convening the community through virtual and in-person gatherings
Signing the open letter signals public support for restoring openness as a strategic priority in higher education and connects supporters to future updates and opportunities to participate.