The German Data Forum (Rat für Sozial- und Wirtschaftsdaten, RatSWD) expresses concern about the planned adjustment of the fee structure at the Research Data Centres (RDCs) of the Federal and State Statistical Offices. The Scientific Advisory Group (WBK) of the RDCs had drawn attention to a planned significant increase in fees for data and associated services.
The key points paper on the Research Data Act published by the Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF) has met with a generally positive response from the German Data Forum (Rat für Sozial- und Wirtschaftsdaten, RatSWD). In a statement, the German Data Forum emphasises the importance of improved access to research data for science in Germany and makes proposals for its implementation.
In its 8th appointment period (2023-2026), the German Data Forum (RatSWD) will focus on solutions for making different types of data available and linking them. Five working groups will develop recommendations on health data, data for crises, company data, policy data and a data trustee model for science. Three task forces will also deal with specific cross-cutting issues. The German Data Forum will closely involve the research community in all activities.
In crisis situations, policymakers rely on findings from social and economic research in order to assess social consequences and make decisions. This is hardly possible without quality-checked research data. In its position paper published today, the German Data Forum (RatSWD) makes demands on politics and science to ensure that research is better prepared for crisis situations.
The Commission on Future Statistics (KomZS) was set up by the Federal Statistical Office to develop a target vision for official statistics in 2030. The final report of this project has now been published and contains specific recommendations for action. The chairpersons of the German Data Forum (RatSWD) are members of the commission and therefore co-authors of the report.
In its position paper published today, the German Data Forum (RatSWD) welcomes the public consultation process on the BMBF's Research Data Act. In addition to the statement of the RatSWD, numerous statements were received from various stakeholders from science, business and civil society. This underlines the need for a research data law to improve science's access to data.
The Council for Social and Economic Data (RatSWD) has been appointed for its 8th term (2023‒2026) by the Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF). At the constituent meeting, the members of the RatSWD confirmed Prof. Dr. Monika Jungbauer-Gans (DZHW and University of Hannover) as chair and Prof. Dr. Kerstin Schneider (University of Wuppertal) as her deputy.
In its position paper published today, the German Data Forum (RatSWD) emphasises the importance of access to register data as well as their linkage for research. The independent advisory council of the Federal Government formulates concrete recommendations so that science can find evidence-based solutions to societal problems on the basis of register data.
2,661 scientists have elected their representatives to the German Data Forum (RatSWD). The elected persons for the 8th appointment period (2023–2026) will now be proposed to the Federal Government for appointment. The election results can now be viewed online: https://www.ratswd.de/wahl
In times of crisis, the urgency to act is high - things must happen quickly, and at the same time political decisions have to be well-founded. Researchers need quality-assured data that are comparable with one another in order to be able to provide policy-makers with reliable research results. The German Data Forum (RatSWD) has developed some suggestions on how researchers can better position themselves for such situations: a catalogue of standard questions that are important in times of crisis. Researchers can use these questions directly in their studies. The survey data collected can then be better compared and linked.
At the beginning of their careers, researchers are often faced with the question of correct research data management (RDM). Especially in small research projects, it is unclear to many, how the data can be made usable in the long term. With a new handout and a set of slides, the German Data Forum (RatSWD) provides recommendations for RDM in small research projects.
Twitter messages, Instagram pictures, and other traces of digital life emerge every day almost everywhere in the world. They are not only interesting for us and our immediate environment, but also enable research to answer important questions. However, this data is unstructured and fundamentally different from other data sources. In a handout, the German Data Forum (RatSWD) describes the challenges of dealing with unstructured data.