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The European Open Science Cloud (EOSC) Symposium took place from 21 to 23 October 2024 in Berlin. EOSC is an initiative by the European Union aimed at advancing open and digital science across Europe. NFDI4Health hosted an Unconference on the topic of data literacy.

NFDI4Health at the EOSC Symposium

From 21 to 23 October 2024, around 460 participants gathered for the European Open Science Cloud (EOSC) Symposium in Berlin. With EOSC, the European Commission is building an open platform to foster cross-border collaboration and the transparent exchange of research findings. In her opening speech, Bettina Stark-Watzinger, the German Minister for Education and Research, emphasised the importance of transparent access to research data as a key enabler of excellent research. Over the following three days, central topics such as the social and economic impact of open science, the quality of research data, and the development of a competence centre for open science were discussed in various sessions.

On the second day, Jens Dierkes and Ulrich Sax from NFDI4Health hosted an Unconference on "Training and Data Management." Together with the panelists Konrad Förstner (NFDI Section EduTrain ), Jochen Ortmeyer (NFDI4Chem/DALIA), Celia van Gelder (Health-RI), and Aneta Pazik-Aybar (National Science Centre Poland), they discussed the future of data literacy in research. The speakers shared insights into the various requirements for training programmes, resources, and certification options in their respective fields. The panel agreed that fundamental data management skills should be taught from the outset and at all levels of education. This would require stronger interdisciplinary networking and more intensive use and re-use of existing offerings. Detailed information on the NFDI4Health Unconference can be found here.

The symposium was followed by the side event EOSCxNFDI, which focused on the question: "How can the National Research Data Infrastructure (NFDI) and its consortia further expand their collaboration with the EOSC Association?". The programme featured a mix of presentations and interactive sessions, including a World Café and networking opportunities. Juliane Fluck from NFDI4Health was present to represent the topic of health data. During her talk, she outlined the NFDI4Health consortium’s involvement in research data management both nationally and internationally, highlighting existing successful collaborations as well as the challenges that remain. Find the Aftermovie, featuring a statement from Juliane Fluck, on the NFDI YouTube channel here.