Community adoption of open data science for ecosystem sciences: A case study with passive acoustics

The call to adopt open science methods rings louder than ever, yet adoption is complicated by unfamiliarity and overwhelm. As part of a strategic initiative to adopt open science practices among the NOAA Fisheries passive acoustics community, we refined strategies for lowering barriers to entry to successfully develop interconnected documentation of research conducted collectively and by our six regional teams. Here we give context to the difficulties of the journey and share our strategies for alleviating ‘soft’ barriers. Importantly, we recommend a co-working strategy that sets aside dedicated blocks of time to tackle discrete projects while fostering close-knit communities, whether starting with two collaborators or expanding to a broader network. We invite you to use this publication as an ‘innovation trigger’ and find a like-minded individual (or community) to join you on this journey to open your science.