International Digital Curation Conference (IDCC)
The two-day IDCC focused on research data management (RDM) and data management plans (DMPs), with extensive discussions on the roles of data stewards and data curators. Universities and projects presented their approaches to data management through lectures and poster sessions. Among them, a poster from colleagues at the Czech Technical University (ČVUT) stood out, showcasing the NRP project and its innovative technological solutions.
The conference also featured the workshop Open Science in Action: Building Skills, Crafting FAIR Resources, and Recognizing Achievement, Skills4EOSC. Participants developed essential skills for Open Science training, learned how to create FAIR educational materials, and expanded their awareness of competence recognition in this field.
"For me, a pivotal topic was data curation monitoring. Discussions with experts gave me insight into how different countries adopt and implement data management plans and provided a valuable perspective on the development of Open Science in Europe," Kseniya summarizes.
FAIRfest
FAIRfest, a festival dedicated to FAIR and CARE principles, primarily addressed interoperability and data sharing. Developers showcased tools that adhere to FAIR principles and demonstrated the benefits of their implementation. One of the key topics that drew significant attention was Crosswalking—the process of mapping and transforming data between different formats and structures, which plays a crucial role in linking research data.
"If I had to highlight one of the many interesting ideas from FAIRfest, it would be a metaphor that truly resonated with me: Research should be like a stream – a continuous flow of information and data. Scientists receive data, process it, and must then release it so that the flow can continue. If we build dams, the flow eventually stops. I believe this perfectly captures the importance of data sharing and reuse in scientific research."
Beyond professional insights, FAIRfest also brought unexpected encounters. "I had the opportunity to meet many inspiring individuals dedicated to FAIR principles. Among them was Marek Cebecauer, head of the EOSC CZ working group for material sciences. Conferences provide an excellent opportunity to connect with colleagues whom we rarely see in person, and they also highlight how much EOSC CZ has grown in recent years."
Both events provided Kseniya not only with professional insights but also with motivation for further work in Open Science. "I gained new inspiration for developing Open Science initiatives and reaffirmed that our work has a real impact," she concludes.
