Taking a collaborative approach to research data
A National Research Data Strategy Workshop was jointly hosted late June by NeSI, REANNZ and NZGL, along with guest hosts Te Punaha Matatini, under the auspices of our collaborative eResearch 2020 programme. Over the course of the day, our attendees mapped out a cohesive and comprehensive approach to growing research data capabilities in New Zealand.
The conversation was kicked off by an address from Professor Sir Peter Gluckman in his capacity as the Chief Science Advisor to the Prime Minister, titled "The intended and unintended consequences of e-research: why scientists must engage openly with the community". Sir Peter outlined his views on the significant challenges ahead as researchers come into possession of signifcant databases along with the powerful means for integrated data analysis. He highlighted several topics for consideration ranging from consent, anonymity and identifiability through to artificial intelligence and the risks of misappropriation of statistical methods.
Sir Peter encouraged the audience to treat public engagement with research as essential in establishing social license and public agreement on which data are analysed, and for what purposes.
From these scene setting comments the workshop progressed through a series of group sessions aimed at identifying the strategies essential to growing research data capabilities in New Zealand.
Midway through these deliberations the audience heard from Dr Rhys Francis, who shared his experiences during almost a decade as Executive Director of the Australian eResearch Infrastructure Council, where his responsibilities spread across all e-research investments made across Australia during that time. The NCRIS programme of which these eResearch investment were a part involved a commitment of approximately $AUD 2.5 billion into national research infrastructure between 2005 and 2015. Rhys emphasised what he saw as a mix of essential ingredients that any research data investment would need to cover, going beyond the computational systems and networks to include investment into data assets, methods, skills uplift and a supporting policy environment. As food for thought the audience took the bait and engaged in lively debate during question time, and whenever the breaks allowed.
Over the coming weeks eResearch 2020, our collaborative infrastructure strategy project, aims to shape up the insights gained on the day, formulating key strategies to build research data capabilities in New Zealand. These strategies will be presented to the sector for further consultation before informing a business case outlining the road ahead. With much work ahead of them, the day ended on a strong note, highlighting the good progress being made on mapping out the future of eResearch infrastructure in New Zealand.
