News
A Day of Dialogue: Insights from the EVERSE Workshop in Sweden
On September 10th 2024, the campus of SciLifeLab in Uppsala, Sweden, hosted the EVERSE Workshop, bringing together key figures in research software funding and policy development. The event was held alongside the International Research Software Funders Workshop and provided a unique opportunity to address challenges and opportunities within the field of research software management.
The day began with an informative introduction to the EVERSE project. EVERSE has been at the forefront of identifying and advocating for good practices in research software, coupling these practices with tools and services that facilitate them. The presentation outlined the project's key outcomes and future ambitions, setting the stage for a day focused on engaging funders and policymakers about challenges and opportunities in integrating best practices across scientific domains.
A highlight of the presentation was the introduction of the RSQkit, a comprehensive toolkit being developed by the EVERSE project. This toolkit will compile curated resources, guidelines, and training materials, capturing the community’s know-how to enhance the quality of research software. Throughout the workshop, participants engaged in discussions about the role of funders in ensuring software quality. They emphasised the multifaceted nature of software quality, which encompasses reliability, usability, maintainability, and efficiency. Key components identified were comprehensive documentation, clear metadata, and robust testing processes. Suggestions for funders included implementing dashboards to track software health and conducting regular assessments. There was a consensus on the need for clear licensing and the inclusion of Software Management Plans in funding applications to promote sustainability and transparency.
Another focal point was the impact of research software on policy and vice versa. Discussions emphasized the necessity of aligning policies with the practical realities of software development, advocating for a collaborative approach to policy-making that includes feedback from all levels of the research community.
As the meeting drew to a close, several key recommendations emerged:
- Integration of RSE Sessions: There was strong support for incorporating Research Software Engineer sessions into major scientific conferences to highlight and address specific challenges in the field.
- Community-Driven Assessments: Participants called for a community-led approach to assess and refine research software practices, utilizing tools like the RSQkit to gather and distribute knowledge effectively.
Read the full report here: https://zenodo.org/records/13915755
OpenAIRE’s Interest and Role
OpenAIRE participated in the workshop, reinforcing its commitment to elevating the role of software in research and as a crucial component of Open Scholarly Communication. In particular, OpenAIRE focuses on improving software visibility, encouraging proper citation methods, and streamlining its integration into the broader research ecosystem. Specifically, OpenAIRE supports software visibility, promotes proper citation practices, and facilitates its seamless integration into the broader research ecosystem.
Specific areas include:
- Software Citation and OpenAIRE Graph: Enhance the OpenAIRE Graph by integrating robust software citation, ensuring proper recognition of developers and supporting research reproducibility.
- Updating OpenAIRE Guidelines for Software Repositories: Repositories play a critical role in maintaining and exposing research software, but their true value lies in providing rich, detailed metadata. By offering comprehensive information on software quality, contributor roles, and other relevant details, repositories set a high standard for software documentation and usability.
- Training Programs with RSQkit: Expand existing training programs by incorporating key components from RSQkit, to equip librarians, data stewards, and other professionals with the necessary tools and knowledge to support the management of high-quality research software effectively.
- Enhancement of Argos Service: The Argos service, currently providing Data Management Plans, will be enhanced with Software Management Plan templates, offering essential tools and frameworks to help researchers and institutions create, maintain, and execute effective software management strategies.
About EVERSE
The EVERSE project, funded under Horizon Europe, is dedicated to elevating the standards of research software and code across Europe. Through collaborative efforts with the EOSC Science Clusters and national Research Software Expertise Centres, EVERSE aims to create a robust framework that ensures software quality and sustainability. This framework is intended to serve as the groundwork for a future Virtual Institute for Research Software Excellence. (https://everse.software/)