Lead of the EOSC SOA Management Board Changes

Dear EOSC SOA Community,

Every year the lead of the EOSC SOA Management Board changes, and I’m delighted that you gave me the chance to step into the position of the first Chair of the Management Board for the Johannes Kepler University Linz (JKU) this year. Over the first few months I already had the pleasure of working closely with many members of our community in this new role, and I look forward to continuing to do so, engaging with all of you as we continue to strengthen Austria’s engagement with the European Open Science Cloud.

Over the last few years, I have had the chance to contribute to building research infrastructures like AUSSDA (Austrian Social Science Data Archive), EMM (Ethnic and Migrant Minorities Survey Registry), and currently to developing my own Open Research Data Infrastructures Lab at JKU, while also conducting research on European and Austrian research infrastructures. From this perspective, I see EOSC as a unique opportunity: not only to improve how research data and services are shared across Europe, but also to strengthen national capacities and collaborations. I am particularly excited about the opportunities ahead as we as a community move forward in building an Austrian EOSC Node and contributing to the broader EOSC Federation.

One of my priorities as Chair will be to help foster a clear and approachable understanding of EOSC and its potential for our institutions and research communities. At the same time, I want to make sure that the Austrian community is kept well informed about developments at the European level, whether they concern EU projects involving Austrian partners or the emergence of new EOSC Nodes.

Community engagement will also be an important focus in the coming months. We have initiated a working group dedicated to outreach activities together with Stefan Reichmann (more details are provided here). The aim is to ensure visibility, strengthen the ties between research infrastructure and researchers, and help ensure that EOSC-related developments are discussed in the Austrian community.

I am very much looking forward to working with you all and to contributing together to the continued development of EOSC in Austria!

Best regards,

Dimitri Prandner
Head of the LIFT_C: Open Research Data Infrastructure Lab
Johannes Kepler University Linz