This summer marks a remarkable milestone as CESSDA celebrates its 50th anniversary. To mark this occasion, we are thrilled to invite you to the conference “Future-Ready Social Science: Data, Policy, and Impact,” taking place from 15–18 June 2026 in Bergen, Norway.

We are proud to share the official conference website, where you can find the most up-to-date information regarding the venue, speakers, and the full programme.

CODATA is proud to be actively involved in the programme, contributing to critical discussions on AI and data ecosystems. Be sure to join these sessions:

Workshop 6: AI Today – Real-world Implications in CESSDA (Tuesday, 16 June 2026 | 13:30 – 15:00 CET), Speaker: Slava Tykhonov (Head of AI, CODATA)

Session 2: Data FAIR, TRUST, and CARE in the Data Ecosystem for AI (Wednesday, 17 June 2026 | 11:30 – 13:00 CET), Discussant: Simon Hodson (Executive Director, CODATA)

Sign up via the website today and join the anniversary conference in Bergen!

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Dealing with Changing Global Policy Dynamics: Emergency Management and its Impact on Disasters Survivors
Tue, Apr 7, 2026 5:00 PM – 6:00 PM BST

Register here: https://register.gotowebinar.com/register/5725387297666104666

This international panel will focus on the ever-evolving policy arena of emergency management. Along these lines, panelists will discuss how they view the changing policy environment’s implications for disaster survivors. Examples will be presented from a global context and will illustrate the various impacts that changes are having and might have in the future. Moreover, discussions will revolve around how curriculum should/might change in response to broad policy changes that have the potential to have profound implications for the emergency management profession globally. This webinar is cosponsored by ASPA’s Section on International and Comparative Administration (SICA) and NASPAA’s Section on Emergency Management and Homeland Security.

Speakers:

• Dr. Ziqiang Han, Professor at the School of Political Science and Public Administration, Executive Director of the Center for Risk Governance and Emergency Management, Shandong University
• Prof. Dr. B. Burcak Basbug, Professor of Statistics and Disaster Science, Middle East Technical University, Ankara-Turkiye
• Dr. N. Emel Ganapati, Professor, Florida International University; Director, Laboratory for Social Science Research Sea Level Solutions Center

Sponsored by ASPA’s Section on Emergency and Crisis Management and Section on International and Comparative Administration.

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	Title: Publishing Fine-grained Standardized Metadata – Lessons Learned from Three Research Data Centers Author: Knut Wenzig, Andreas Daniel, Dominique Hansen, Tobias Koberg, Mihaela Tudose URL: http://doi.org/10.5334/dsj-2026-013
	Title: Building Responsible and Sustainable Open Data Literacy Skills for Early Career Researchers: A Decade of the SoRDS Programme Author: Shaily Gandhi, Steve Diggs, Marcela Alfaro Córdoba, Louise Bezuidenhout, Raphael Cobe, Sara El Jadid, Bianca Peterson, Robert Quick, Hugh Shanahan, Shanmugasundaram Venkataraman, Ekpe Okorafor, Veerle Van den Eynden URL: http://doi.org/10.5334/dsj-2026-012
	Title: Correction: Essential Aspects of Tools for Developing Scientific Data Management Plans Author: Fabiano Couto Corrêa Silva, Sandra de Albuquerque Siebra, Laura Vilela Rodrigues Rezende, Alexandre Faria de Oliveira, Denise Oliveira de Araújo URL: http://doi.org/10.5334/dsj-2026-011
	Title: Aligning NASA Earth Science Data Stewardship with FAIR Principles: Outcomes, Recommendations, and Future Directions Author: Ge Peng, Hampapuram K. Ramapriyan, Yaxing Wei, Bhaskar Ramachandran, Gao Chen, Zhong Liu, David F. Moroni, Edward M. Armstrong, Rudiger Gens URL: http://doi.org/10.5334/dsj-2026-010
	Title: Things Fall Apart: Lessons from a Defunded Data Repository Author: Alex de Sherbinin URL: http://doi.org/10.5334/dsj-2026-009

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Participate in the survey: https://surveys.unesco.org/UNESCO-CODATA-DPTC

The questionnaire takes approximately 10 – 15 minutes to complete.

The deadline to submit your response is 11 May 2026. 

UNESCO, in collaboration with the International Science Council’s Committee on Data (ISC CODATA), has launched a global survey to assess how organizations are implementing data policies for times of crisis, in alignment with open science principles. The survey builds on the Data Policies for Times of Crisis Facilitated by Open Science (DPTC) resources introduced in June 2025 as part of the UNESCO Open Science Toolkit. The toolkit includes a factsheet, a guidance document, and a checklist. These resources are designed to strengthen cross-border crisis data management and to support governments, UN agencies, research institutions, civil protection authorities, and other stakeholders in preparing for, responding to, and recovering from crises.

Mapping implementation and identifying gaps

The survey seeks to provide a comprehensive understanding of how organizations are applying the DPTC Toolkit in practice. It explores key dimensions of crisis data governance, including:

• Establishing clear objectives, roles, and responsibilities
• Ensuring availability of adequate resources
• Upholding ethical standards and protecting human rights
• Strengthening data governance, infrastructure, and interoperability
• Promoting collaboration, transparency, and public engagement
• Planning for long-term preparedness and resilience

The findings will serve as a foundational resource to inform future guidance, capacity-building initiatives, and policy development aimed at strengthening responsible and effective data governance in times of crisis.

Balancing openness with responsibility

In times of crisis, decisions must be made rapidly, yet data must remain interoperable, ethical, secure, and trustworthy. The DPTC resources are grounded in the 2021 UNESCO Recommendation on Open Science and aligned with widely recognized frameworks, including the FAIR, CARE, and TRUST Principles. They emphasize transparency, accountability, duty of care, and the protection of vulnerable populations, while enabling timely and coordinated data sharing across borders and sectors.

This survey represents an important step in understanding how organizations are translating these principles into operational practice. The insights gathered will help identify strengths, challenges, and priority areas for improvement in crisis data governance.

Who should participate

The development and subsequent implementation of effective data policies facilitated by open science for crisis situations requires the involvement of diverse stakeholders, each contributing a specific expertise or perspective. These include the following:

• Government agencies
• Emergency management authorities
• Public health institutions
• Statistical agencies
• Ethics committees
• Legal experts
• Research institutions (including those in academia, government, NGOs, and industry)
• Scientific editors and publishers
• Funding bodies
• Charities
• Non-governmental and civil society organizations
• Communities, journalists, and the digital and mass media
• The private sector (including technology, health, financial, and insurance companies)

Participants are invited to share their organization’s experience in implementing data policies aligned with open science principles.

Participate in the survey: https://surveys.unesco.org/UNESCO-CODATA-DPTC

The questionnaire takes approximately 10 – 15 minutes to complete.

The deadline to submit your response is 11 May 2026. 

Next steps

Survey findings will contribute to ongoing efforts to pilot and further refine the DPTC Toolkit. A call for pilot projects is planned for the next phase to test the Toolkit in diverse regional and institutional contexts, support adaptation to local needs, and strengthen institutional capacity for responsible crisis data governance.

By participating in this survey, organizations contribute to shaping global dialogue and advancing coordinated, ethical, and effective data management for future crises.

Contact

Should you have any questions or require further information, please contact the CODATA Secretariat (info@codata.org) or the UNESCO Open Science Team (openscience@unesco.org)

More information

• UNESCO’s work on science, technology and innovation policy
• UNESCO-CODATA initiative Data Policy for Times of Crisis Facilitated by Open Science

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Developed by the DPC Carbon Footprint Task Force, the Toolkit provides a practical methodology to help organisations calculate the carbon footprint of their digital preservation activities, and includes a Carbon Footprint Calculation Tool to support carbon footprint calculations in practice.

Alicia Wise, Executive Director of CLOCKSS and Chair of the DPC Carbon Footprint Task Force, said: “The DPC’s 170+ members in 20+ countries identified environmental sustainability of digital preservation as a key topic of shared interest, and it has been an honour to chair the talented task and finish group convened to develop a toolkit on calculating the carbon footprint of digital preservation activities.”

“We drew on experience from Canada, Finland, the Netherlands, the UK, and the US to deliver a guide that will help you no matter what stage of the journey you are on. Please join us on this journey, and we will be delighted to evolve the toolkit based on your implementation experiences!”

The DPC is now inviting feedback on the draft Toolkit and also seeking participants for a small support group to help test it over the next six months. No prior experience with carbon footprint calculations is necessary, and those interested in joining the group are invited to complete the expression of interest form<https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSf3TSyA9TEpk-67hJHbV-QNqy4Z-c5q2gmv2lXIa2KA4n0uqA/viewform?usp=sharing&ouid=111425233586828748631> by 10 April 2026.

Further information, including access to the draft Toolkit is available here: https://www.dpconline.org/news/draft-carbon-footprint-toolkit-released-for-community-testing.

Apologies for cross-posting.

Kind regards/Met vriendelijke groet,

Angela Puggioni
Community Engagement Manager
Digital Preservation Coalition
https://www.dpconline.org/

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Bapon Fakhruddin, PhD., Climate Investment Principal, Green Climate Fund, Republic of Korea & Chair, CODATA TG FAIR DRR, France

Everyone now knows that the climate crisis is a water crisis. As global temperatures rise, the world’s water cycle is thrown into chaos. Drought and flood extremes are intensifying, water scarcity is spreading, and unsafe water and sanitation gaps persist on a staggering scale. Nearly 2.1 billion people lack access to safe drinking water and 3.5 billion lack basic sanitation, mostly in the poorest communities. This creates cascading and compounding impacts that steadily erode all life and livelihoods. However, global investment remains woefully inadequate. Achieving Sustainable Development Goal 6 (universal water and sanitation access) requires about $114 billion per year through 2030 far above current investment levels indicates chronically underfunded relative to its importance.

We see the consequences of this underinvestment all around us. Water-related disasters now cause billions of dollars in damage and displace millions of people every year. In an average year, nearly 3 billion people already face declining water availability, and rising water demand is straining limited resources in many regions. When water becomes scarce or unpredictable, factories cannot operate, crops fail, power plants shut down, and social tensions rise. Water insecurity is fast becoming a strategic threat to economic stability and human well-being.

Barriers to investment in water

Why, then, do we still underinvest in water systems that are essential for climate resilience and development? Several structural barriers persist.

First, a limited pipeline of bankable projects holds back investment. Many countries lack the technical capacity to prepare robust, investable water proposals.

Second, knowledge gaps in both data and best practices (i.e. the ‘Findable, Accessible, Inter-operable and Reusable /FAIR principle is insufficiently being applied) make it harder to plan effectively and convince financiers to commit.

Third, governance weaknesses and fragmented institutions mean water responsibilities are often divided across agencies with unclear mandates and limited accountability for results. Finally, perceived high risks and low returns deter private financiers. Water projects typically require large upfront capital and have long payback periods; broad social benefits (health, environment, livelihoods) do not always translate into revenue, and politically sensitive tariffs can limit cost recovery. Indeed, only about 1% of global water infrastructure investment currently comes from private sources.

To read the rest of the article, go to ‘The Water Diplomat’ https://www.waterdiplomat.org/story/2026/03/water-security-demands-systems-change-and-programmatic-approach

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If you are interested in finding out more, come and join the session on Citizen Science, SDGs and FAIR data at the RDA Virtual Plenary on Thursday 19th March 2026 (07:00 – 08:30 UTC)!

Citizen-generated data for progress on the SDGs

The Copenhagen Framework on Citizen Data and its implementation – Haoyi Chen, United Nations Statistics Division (UNSD)

“Nothing about us without us.” The UNSD Collaborative on Citizen Data aims to empower citizens and turn them into agents of change. The impacts of empowering communities opens dialogue with public institutions, respects marginalized voices, and expands the power of data production to citizens. Citizen contributions to data are increasingly recognized as critical to societal wellbeing and in support of the ‘leave no one behind’ principles of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. 

The Copenhagen Framework on Citizen Data has been developed to address challenges in defining citizen data, roles that citizen and national statistical offices can play in data processes, and action points for the sustainable production and use of citizen data. Key responsibilities of National Statistical Offices include supporting on quality standards/methodologies, building capacity and fostering partnerships, raising awareness on the potential of citizen data, as well as promoting its integration into official statistics. Ensuring the voices of communities are heard can help to address intersectional marginalization, hold institutions accountable, and ensure that data remain relevant and impactful.

Read the full blog here: https://codata.org/blog/2026/03/16/nothing-about-us-without-us-reflections-from-the-codata-task-group-on-citizen-generated-data-for-the-sdgs/

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Globally, communities are monitoring air quality, tracking biodiversity, and mapping disease vectors to fill critical gaps where official monitoring networks fall short. The data collected is powerful, the ambition is real, but the integration into traditional research and policy systems remains a challenge, especially technically, legally, and semantically. At

The session will explore whether the RDA community is ready to establish an Interest Group dedicated to systematically tackling these challenges. Through short talks and open discussion, speakers will share practical lessons from global open-data platforms, citizen science projects linked to the SDGs, air-quality monitoring networks, and other large community-led initiatives. The aim is not just to talk, but to build a community that can turn FAIR principles into real, workable solutions for citizen-generated data. If open science is to live up to its name, it must meaningfully include citizen-science data. This session is a step toward making that inclusion interoperable and scalable. The session is a collaboration of the CSAQ CoP of the Citizen Science Global Partnership, the  CODATA Task Group for Citizen-Generated Data for the SDGs, and OpenAQ.

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With rising threats to the existence of essential data resources, and mendacious contesting of the historical record, the current moment clearly demonstrates the critical role of high-quality digital preservation practitioners, skills and services. Digital preservation is a complex and diverse profession, often underfunded and sometimes misunderstood. It is important that we understand the current digital preservation landscape as well as possible, in order to support those working around the world in the preservation professions and to provide project outputs that will be of relevance and value to them. Accordingly, CODATA is delighted to be a participant in the European Open Science Cloud (EOSC) project, ‘Enhancing Digital preservation strategies at European and National level’ (EDEN).

EDEN has published the results of a survey which was recently conducted to gather information from the digital preservation community worldwide. Our survey was specifically about the guidance to which preservation practitioners refer, and practices they use, when identifying, selecting, and appraising digital data objects for ‘long-term’ preservation.

This blog post provides an informal overview of how we went about the survey, and what we discovered. We hope this will be of interest to those working in contemporary digital preservation, including managers, practitioners, and those responsible for policy making and training within memory organisations. If you would like further detail on any aspect of this work, the full report can be downloaded at https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.17984753.

About the EOSC EDEN project

The EOSC EDEN project, funded by the European Commission [1], seeks to enhance digital preservation strategies at European and national levels. The project is creating a framework to identify what data are candidates for digital preservation. This involves setting standards and protocols for long-term data preservation, which will be determined through an assessment of data usage, quality, and the data’s benefits to science and society.

In addition to the framework, the EOSC EDEN project aims to develop a model for re-appraisal of data throughout its lifecycle. The model for re-appraisal will support the framework for digital preservation by ensuring that preservation efforts remain relevant over time.

The survey activity was led by Laura Molloy, CODATA research lead, who is leading EDEN Task 1.1, ‘Landscape analysis of existing frameworks, guidelines and practices for identification, selection and appraisal of data for long-term preservation’. This task contributes the majority of the landscaping activity in the project. Laura is a qualitative social science researcher by training, with experience in a number of digital preservation projects and initiatives, and has a track record in research and consultancy relating to digital decision-making and information behaviours in varied professional settings. Analytical power was added by other members of the EDEN task team, including work package leader and digital preservation expert Micky Lindlar, and quantitive analyst Maria Benauer, both of Technische Informationsbibliothek (TIB).

Read the full blog post here: https://codata.org/blog/2026/03/10/digital-preservation-eosc-eden-project-reports-survey-findings/

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