Day of Good Data, 11.02.2025

Data is one of the key resources of our time, but who really owns it? And who decides how it is used? As part of this year's Love Data Week with the motto "Whose data is it really?", this lecture will shed light on the role of open research data in artificial intelligence (AI) research and development. Open data enables scientific innovation and collaboration, but also raises pressing questions about control, responsibility and justice.

The talk will discuss how data management and data use should be negotiated between different actors - from researchers to companies and governments. It will focus on the challenges that arise when dealing with open data, for example in relation to reproducibility, transparency and ethical standards. At the same time, it shows how open data can be used as a public good to strengthen scientific independence and create public welfare.

With a critical look at political and institutional framework conditions, the lecture invites participants to reflect on the origin and use of open research data and to jointly develop strategies for responsible handling in the age of AI.
(Presetation language DE)

Dr Katja Mayer, a sociologist at the University of Vienna, researches the interfaces between science, technology and society. Since 2019, she has been working intensively on the politics of open science and data, with a focus on citizen science, computational social sciences and artificial intelligence. She has been PI of international research projects, rapporteur for the European Commission's Open Science MLE and has conducted research in the fields of policy advice and science diplomacy. Her experience in the IT industry and as a research assistant to the President of the European Research Council ERC characterises her transdisciplinary approach. Dr Mayer teaches Critical Data Studies and is committed to promoting open research practices.

After the keynote, relevant topics in connection with the motto of Love Data Week will be discussed in lectures in the morning:

10:30-11:00 - Mag. Dr.rer.nat. Alexander Muhr (TU Graz, Research and Technology House): Love Data Week 2025 ‘Whose Data Is It, Anyway?’ - A brief overview

Taking up this year's motto of Love Data Week, the lecture will give a brief overview of the ‘ownership of data’, starting with the legal basis of intellectual property. In addition, the topics of copyright (author, work use authorisation, work use right), data in publications (open access, open data, open source) and research projects under various legal conditions as well as current challenges (AI Act) will be addressed and should serve as a basis for discussion.
(Presentation language DE)

Alexander Muhr, Project Manager in the Invention Service and Technology Utilisation Department at Graz University of Technology, worked for several years as a researcher in the fields of cell biology, microbiology and biotechnology. Since 2014, he has been working at the Research & Technology House on inventions and software with regard to protection and utilisation options. This also includes the negotiation of contracts and the review of clauses relating to intellectual property and its utilisation. Dr Muhr also holds further training courses and lectures on this topic with particular reference to university research.

11:00-11:30 - Mag. phil. Walter Scholger (University of Graz, Institute for Digital Humanities): Best practice on research data in the digital humanities

The European ESFRI research infrastructure consortia DARIAH-EU (Digital Research Infrastructure for the Arts and Humanities) and CLARIN-ERIC (Common Language Resources and Technology Infrastructure) endeavour to network digital humanities researchers from all over Europe and build communities of (best) practice. Educational and research resources are being developed and made available, as are research tools. In addition, there are a number of initiatives that support the open handling of and access to research data and also aim to set standards in the area of "good scientific (data) practice" across national and disciplinary boundaries. This article presents central open science resources and activities of these research infrastructure consortia, in particular those of the Austrian CLARIAH-AT consortium.
(presentation language DE)

Walter Scholger studied History and Applied Cultural Studies (Cultural Management) in Graz (AT) and Maynooth (IE) and has been Institute Manager at the Institute for Digital Humanities at the University of Graz since 2008. He is a member of the board of the German-speaking DH Association (DHd) and spokesperson of the Austrian CLARIAH-AT Digital Humanities Consortium. In addition to administration and project management, his main focus is on legal aspects of (digital) science, open science and the digital publication and re-use of research data from the fields of science and cultural heritage.

11:40-11:45 - Break

11:45-12:15 - Emily Kate Genatowski (University of Vienna, Department of History): Academic Citations of Digital Sources

The talk presents a project that will develop comprehensive citation standards for digital resources in the humanities and (initially) implement them at the University of Vienna. Based on the citation guidelines expanded to include digital objects at the University of Vienna (Institute of History) in 2023, an improved version will be developed as part of a CLARIAH-AT small-scale project. The project includes the circulation and discussion of existing recommendations, systematic research on best practices and current standards as well as a feedback process within the consortium. The aim is to promote the re-use of research data and to create a broader acceptance of uniform citation standards.
(presentation language EN)

Emily Genatowski holds a bachelor's degree in history from Columbia University and a master's degree in museum studies from Harvard University. Her professional career includes positions at the Smithsonian Institute, the Frick Collection, and Google, where she was the North American Coordinator for Google Arts & Culture. Emily founded the non-profit organisation Global Art Access, which specialises in the digitisation of artworks in private collections. Emily is currently a PhD candidate at the University of Vienna, where she focuses on the application of open source intelligence and data analytics in the recording of contemporary history. Her research focuses on the Russian war of aggression in Ukraine, examining satellite imagery, airborne radar data and geolocation data from mobile applications to verify official state media reports.

12:15-12:45 - Dipl.-Ing. (FH) Michael Freidl, MA (Uni Graz, IDea_Lab): Data governance: New foundation for research data at the University of Graz

Research data is the new gold of science - valuable, versatile and of crucial importance for progress. At a time when the digital transformation is fundamentally changing research, scientific institutions are faced with the challenge of utilising this potential responsibly and sustainably. With its new Data Governance Policy, which was adopted by the Rectorate of the University of Graz in November 2024, the University of Graz is setting a pioneering standard for the handling of research data. It creates a clear framework for data ownership, competences and responsibilities, thus laying the foundation for a robust data ecosystem that simultaneously promotes innovation and ensures scientific integrity.
(Lecture language DE)

Michael Freidl has a background in information management, IT law and patent management and has almost 15 years of experience in patent protection and commercialisation for various institutions. He is actively involved in supporting start-ups and currently coordinates spin-off programmes at the University of Graz, while also serving on the Supervisory Board of Science Park Graz GmbH and as a member of the Entrepreneurship Advisory Board of the University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences, Vienna. Since 2023, Freidl has headed the Data Lab team at the University of Graz, which focuses on digital innovation in research as part of the IDea_Lab initiative.