The Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam is a public research university in Amsterdam, Netherlands, being founded in 1880. The VU Amsterdam is one of two large, publicly funded research universities in the city, the other being the University of Amsterdam (UvA). The literal translation of the Dutch name Vrije Universiteit is "Free University". "Free" refers to independence of the university from both the State and the Dutch Reformed Church. Both within and outside the university, the institution is commonly referred to as "the VU". Although founded as a private institution, the VU has received government funding on a parity basis with public universities since 1970. The university is located on a compact urban campus in the southern Buitenveldert neighbourhood of Amsterdam and adjacent to the modern Zuidas business district. Regarding Open Science the university prides itself on a high open access percentage of all scientific publications, fostering the sharing of data and software. In all our endeavors in Open Science the university strives to an equitable system where everyone can participate in the scientific process.

The University Library is responsible for the Open Science program. Within this program we work on bringing Open Science principles into the processes of research and education. This is done by providing infrastructure, community engagement, courses, and policy.