The potential of research data – how research infrastructures provide new opportunities and benefits for society

Today, research largely consists of teamwork with research information managed and shared digitally across geographic boundaries and scientific disciplines. Universities, research-intensive companies and large-scale research infrastructures bring together people from all over the world, contributing to new discoveries, and addressing the societal challenges of our time and of the future.

How does digitalisation in research affect people and society today? What are the opportunities and challenges linked to collaboration on open data and research infrastructure? How can research infrastructure support new opportunities and benefits for society? These are some of the questions that will be addressed during this high-level meeting during the Swedish Presidency of the Council of the European Union.

The conference will highlight the role of research infrastructures and data in the digital era, and focus on measures that increase access to research infrastructures – and to their data and services – for researchers, businesses and society at large.

Katarina Bjelke, Director General of the Swedish Research Council, will participate in one of the panels:

How are digitalisation and the movement towards Open Science affecting the use of research infrastructures?

Representatives from different sectors will discuss how today’s digital society and
movement towards open science bring new possibilities for how research is performed and
how this affects the conditions for developing and operating European research
infrastructures. There are cutting-edge research results that would not have been possible
without research infrastructures as the prerequisites for providing FAIR and open research
data. The focus is on the important role that research infrastructures play in enabling access
to research data for a variety of users. How is the movement towards open research data
handled on the European, national and organisational levels? What is being done at the
policy level? How are existing research infrastructures relating to strategic research
priorities and broad EU policy priorities with research infrastructures as drivers of
innovation and European socio-economic development?

• Anna Panagopoulou, Director for ERA & Innovation, DG Research and Innovation
• Niklas Blomberg, Director Elixir and EOSC Life Coordinator
• Barbara Weitgruber, Chair of European Research Area and Innovation Committee (ERAC)
• Xavier Barcons, Director General, European Southern Observatory (ESO)
• Katarina Bjelke, Director General, Swedish Research Council

The conference will also include study visits to the research facilities MAX IV Laboratory and European Spallation Source (ESS).

See the full programme at Sweden23.eu External link.