On 7th May 2015 in Brussels, the report was launched…
Going Digital: Creating Change in the Humanities was launched 7th May 2015 in Brussels by DRI's Dr. Sandra Collins and Dr. Natalie Harrower, to representatives of the EC and stakeholders of the European scientific community, at a roundtable event organised by Professor Günter Stock, President of ALLEA.
The report is the output of the ALLEA Working Group on E-Humanities, chaired by Dr Sandra Collins, Director of the Digital Repository of Ireland at the Royal Irish Academy. Edited by Dr. Natalie Harrower, the report was co-written by experts in the Digital Humanities from six Academies across Europe.
The report discusses the state of the art of Digital Humanities research and support structures in Europe, and makes key recommendations for the innovations required to foster the continued growth and excellence of the digital humanities in Europe, focusing on digital archiving, long-term preservation, digital research tools, sustained e-infrastructures and research networks. Structured around the data life-cycle, the report is aimed at a range of stakeholders, from humanities researchers to those working with data, and from university administrators to HSS and ICT funding bodies.
Key recommendations include:
Take a long-term view Sustaining long-term archives of unique and important cultural artefacts is critical for Europe’s leadership in Digital Humanities. Adopting best practice for infrastructures is essential.
Encourage openness Open Access to data and infrastructures enables enhanced research, research integrity and cost-effectiveness. Open Data needs to be adequately funded.
Support your people Training and career progression are essential to prevent the loss of the critical skills needed to retain our competitiveness in Europe. Data management roles need suitable recognition.
ALLEA, the federation of All European Academies, was founded in 1994 and currently brings together 58 Academies in more than 40 countries from the Council of Europe region. Member Academies operate as learned societies, think tanks and research performing organisations. They are self- governing communities of leaders of scholarly enquiry across all fields of the natural sciences, the social sciences and the humanities. ALLEA therefore provides access to an unparalleled human resource of intellectual excellence, experience and expertise.
Report Authors: Sandra Collins (Royal Irish Academy), Natalie Harrower (Royal Irish Academy), Dag Trygve Truslew Haug (Norwegian Academy of Science and Letters), Beat Immenhauser (Swiss Academies of Arts and Sciences, Gerhard Lauer (Union of German Academies of Sciences and Humanities), Tito Orlandi (The National Academy of the Lincei), Laurent Romary (DARIAH), Eveline Wandl-Vogt (Austrian Academy of Sciences).
