SciDataCon

SciDataCon
Name	SciDataCon
Status	Active
Genre	Scientific conference
Frequency	Biennial (usually)
Country	International
First	2012
Organizer	International Science Council

SciDataCon

SciDataCon is an international conference series and community focused on research data, data policy, data stewardship, and data publishing. The event convenes researchers, librarians, policymakers, funders, publishers, and technologists from organizations such as the International Science Council, United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization, European Commission, National Science Foundation (United States), and Wellcome Trust to discuss FAIR data, open science, data stewardship, and interoperable infrastructures. SciDataCon sessions typically feature contributions from individuals affiliated with institutions like Harvard University, University of Oxford, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, National Institutes of Health, and CERN and intersect with initiatives such as Research Data Alliance, OpenAIRE, DataCite, Crossref, and ORCID.

Overview

SciDataCon provides a forum for dialogue among stakeholders including representatives from UNESCO, World Health Organization, European Space Agency, NASA, World Bank, Wellcome Trust, Gates Foundation, National Aeronautics and Space Administration, German Research Foundation, and leading universities like Stanford University and University of Cambridge. The program emphasizes practical outcomes: data policies, standards, metadata models, and interoperable platforms exemplified by projects at CERN, European Organization for Nuclear Research, and initiatives from Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development meetings. Participants also engage with scholarly publishers such as Elsevier, Springer Nature, PLOS, and Wiley and with infrastructure providers like Figshare, Zenodo, Dryad, Dataverse, and GitHub.

History

SciDataCon originated amid increasing attention to research data management and open data movements catalyzed by conferences and organizations including Force11, CODATA, Research Data Alliance, Open Knowledge Foundation, and the Panton Principles era. Early iterations were influenced by policy frameworks from European Commission digital research agendas, mandates from funders such as the National Institutes of Health and UK Research and Innovation, and community efforts linked to DataCite and Crossref. Over time SciDataCon brought together delegates from major events like International Council for Science summits, Open Access Week, and meetings associated with the G8 Science Ministers and influenced declarations that resonated with statements from UNESCO on open science. Prominent contributors have included researchers and leaders associated with Tim Berners-Lee, Tony Hey, Bjørn Lomborg, Cynthia Dwork, and institutions such as MIT Media Lab and Los Alamos National Laboratory.

Organization and Governance

SciDataCon is convened by the International Science Council in partnership with organizations including CODATA, Research Data Alliance, OpenAIRE, DataCite, and major research funders like Wellcome Trust and the National Science Foundation (United States). Governance typically involves steering committees composed of representatives from universities such as University of Toronto, University of California, Berkeley, Australian National University, funders like Horizon 2020-linked agencies, and international bodies such as UNESCO and World Health Organization. Program committees coordinate peer review with editorial boards drawn from publishers including PLOS, Springer Nature, and Elsevier and from data infrastructure providers like Zenodo and Dryad. Organizational oversight often aligns with policy instruments promoted by the OECD and standards organizations such as the International Organization for Standardization.

Themes and Programs

Recurring themes at SciDataCon include FAIR data principles, reproducible research, metadata standards, data citation, and stewardship—topics connected to initiatives such as FAIR Principles advocates, DataCite services, and ORCID researcher identifiers. Programs range from keynote lectures delivered by leaders associated with Harvard University, University of Oxford, and Stanford University to workshops on metadata schemas tied to Dublin Core and Schema.org adaptations, tutorials on tools like GitHub and Jupyter Notebook, and panels with representatives from Elsevier, PLOS, Springer Nature, and funding agencies including National Science Foundation (United States) and Wellcome Trust. SciDataCon also runs hackathons and training sessions that engage communities around platforms such as Zenodo, Figshare, Dataverse, Dryad, and collaborative projects involving CERN and EMBL-EBI.

Conferences and Meetings

SciDataCon meetings are often co-located with larger gatherings such as the general assemblies or international conferences of International Science Council, and have been hosted in cities with major institutions like Geneva (proximal to CERN and WHO), Paris (near UNESCO), Amsterdam (connected to DANS and OpenAIRE), and Tokyo (associated with leading universities). Each conference features a mixture of peer-reviewed papers, posters, panel discussions, and community-led sessions modeled after Force11 and Research Data Alliance meetings. Proceedings and outputs are frequently published through channels associated with PLOS, Springer Nature, PeerJ, and publisher partners, and data from workshops often appear in repositories like Zenodo and Figshare.

Impact and Reception

SciDataCon has influenced policy discourse among funders such as Wellcome Trust, UK Research and Innovation, European Commission, and National Science Foundation (United States) and informed community practices promoted by Research Data Alliance, CODATA, and OpenAIRE. Scholars and practitioners from universities including University of Oxford, Imperial College London, Harvard University, and MIT have cited SciDataCon discussions in reports and white papers that shaped data management plans, metadata standards, and data citation norms embraced by publishers Elsevier and PLOS. Reception among stakeholders has been positive for fostering collaborations across organizations like CERN, EMBL-EBI, DataCite, and ORCID, though debates continue—parallel to controversies in venues such as OpenCon and Open Data Day—about commercialization, proprietary infrastructures, and equitable access involving actors like Gates Foundation and large publishers.

Category:Conferences in science