International Data Week `From Big Data to Open Data: Mobilizing the Data Revolution`

From September 11-17, 2016, data professionals and researchers from all disciplines and from across the globe will convene in Denver, Colorado for International Data Week (IDW). The theme of this landmark event is ‘From Big Data to Open Data: Mobilizing the Data Revolution’. As such, International Data Week will bring together data scientists, researchers, industry leaders, entrepreneurs, policy makers and data stewards to explore how best to exploit the data revolution to improve our knowledge and benefit society through data-driven research and —–innovation.

IDW comprises three complementary events:

1. SciDataCon 2016-Advancing the Frontiers of Data in Research:
   
   Convened by WDS and CODATA, SciDataCon 2016 is a scientific research conference that will advance the frontiers of data in research. This means addressing a range of fundamental and urgent issues around the ‘Data Revolution’ and the recent data-driven transformation of research and the responses to these issues in the conduct of research. SciDataCon features scientific papers from a wide range of perspectives. The scope is explicitly broad and inclusive, addressing all aspects of the role of data in research.

1. An International Data Forum:
   
   This event will be the centrepiece of IDW, bringing together international researchers, industrialists, policy makers and educators to discuss the major opportunities and challenges of the data revolution, from ‘Big Data’ to ‘Open Data.’ Attendees will have the opportunity to hear from world-renowned keynote speakers and collaborate with one another regarding the national and international dimensions of the data revolution, its implications for research and policy, and the linkages between research, industry and education that are required for the global community to fully exploit new opportunities.

1. The 8th RDA Plenary Meeting:
   
   The 8th RDA Plenary Meeting offers attendees a unique opportunity to network and collaborate with colleagues and peers in various disciplines, and make concrete progress in technical and social areas on topics related to research data sharing and exchange. Besides keynote talks by leading members of the community, important features of the RDA Plenary include the highlighting of organizations who have adopted RDA’s outputs, meetings of Working Groups and Interest Groups, and ‘Birds of a Feather’ discussions, which explore new potential working or interest group topics. The Meeting will also host a marketplace for small and medium enterprises involved with Big Data. The RDA Europe Early Career Scientist & Researcher Support Programme is also confirmed for this Meeting, which will offer up to 20 early career domain researchers and data practitioners the opportunity to attend the meetings, interact with working and interest groups and showcase their studies.