Sharing knowledge, experience, and tools is essential to the work of a data steward. As the number of professionals in this role grows, so does the community – connecting both online and in person. This network allows data stewards to inspire one another, tackle real-world challenges, and push research data management practices forward.
Where to meet fellow data heroes?
Discord
A lively online space where the data steward community thrives. You’ll find colleagues on Discord ready to share tips, advice, and experiences. Thanks to its well-organized channels, finding help or jumping into a conversation about topics that matter to you is easy.
Key channels cover project updates, useful resources for stewards, quick help, and recommended tools. You’ll also find threads dedicated to data management plans (DMPs), FAIR principles, metadata, GDPR and ethics, electronic lab notebooks, and more.
The discussion is already full of hands-on insights—join in and become part of a supportive and growing network.
Data Steward Meetups – Online and Offline
Data steward meetups are full of learning opportunities, knowledge sharing, and often include a hands-on workshop or similar activity. And, of course, they always end with a friendly gathering over food or drinks in the city.
To stay informed about upcoming events, follow the website eosc.cz or join the community mentioned above for updates straight from the source. For now, we can reveal that the next in-person meetup will take place in Prague on 25 September 2025.
Keep reading if you want to connect with fellow data stewards and gain new insights.
Summer School for Data Stewards
June 3–5, Ostrava
This event focuses on educating and upskilling professionals in research data management.
The programme includes, for example:
- Introduction to Python
- ELNs (Electronic Lab Notebooks) for daily work and automation
- Training on working with R for scientific data analysis
- And much more
For more details, check out the Summer School event. Still unsure whether to join? To better understand what to expect, we’ve prepared a short report from the recent Data Stewards’ Meeting in Brno. The event brought fresh updates on research data management, lively discussions with legal experts, and important topics such as the ethical aspects of working with data.
What Is It Like to Be Part of a Community?
Personal contact is simply irreplaceable!
"Besides the insightful presentations, these community meetings are mainly a great opportunity for me to meet colleagues from the field, finally put faces to the names from emails, Discord, or webinars, and calmly discuss everything we don’t manage to during the year. I feel like more and more of us are gathering at each meeting – and that’s fantastic."
Jan Vališ,
Faculty Data Steward, UCT Prague
"But nothing can truly replace personal contact – whether it's about quickly sharing experiences or having informal conversations about research data management and open science across institutions. In these moments, I realize we are more than just a network – we are a supportive group of colleagues who stand by each other.“
The community is very active online — questions on Discord usually don’t go unanswered for long.
On the same ship — and all heading in the right direction.
"For me, these face-to-face meetings are the best part of the job — thanks to the valuable connections they bring. These ties simply can’t be erased. Meetings like this are always enriching and inspiring. You meet colleagues who are open and willing to share their experiences. That’s exactly what makes the data steward community strong — mutual support and a willingness to help each other. These events are an opportunity not only to learn but also to build meaningful connections and discuss the concrete topics that unite us all."
Tom Heryán,
Centre for Energy and Environmental Technologies (CEET), VSB – Technical University of Ostrava
When meetings become a real opportunity
"As a beginning data steward, I value meeting fellow community members and representatives of the EOSC CZ Initiative in person. Many of the educational materials I currently use come from this network, and the meetings allow me to discuss specific topics I’m currently dealing with."
Kateřina Halamová,
Project Data Steward, Institute of Archaeology of the Czech Academy of Sciences
„Overall, the Brno meeting showed me how dedicated the community of experts is to supporting data stewards within the EOSC initiative and Open Science. I consider this a significant effort and I’m glad to be a part of it. The entire day was clearly focused on supporting the community – safely and openly sharing experiences, networking, and asking questions. That’s something you don’t come across very often these days.“
I consider it a fundamental initiative, and I’m glad to be a part of it.
The best part is that this community is made by you. Your involvement and willingness to share make it a space that truly works and matters.
We’re wrapping up our Data Guardians: Mission FAIR series. We’d love to hear your thoughts—reach out on LinkedIn or at pr@eosc.cz. And if you’d like to share it at your institution, we have good news! We’re preparing a clear summary of the entire campaign so you’ll have everything in one place—whether for your supervisor or for welcoming new colleagues.
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We will continue to focus on the topic of data stewards, so don’t forget to follow us on social media.
