Project | Decadal Plan for Social Science Research Infrastructure 2023-32
In progress
The Academy is gearing up to produce its first ever Decadal Plan. Led by five major research organisations, this grassroots project will seek the development of a vision and roadmap to building the research infrastructure social scientists will need over the next decade. The Decadal Plan will serve as a point of reference to coordinate investments in infrastructure throughout the country, as well as a chance to push old boundaries for what our disciplines can achieve in the digital age.
Outreach | Machine Learning and the Social Sciences (video)
Online, 4 April 2023
In this video, Dr. Isabel Ceron, a Senior Policy Analyst at the Academy, shares her insights on the potential of Machine Learning techniques to enhance research in the social sciences over the next decade. Her presentation was given to the Machine Learning Community of Practice for Australia (ML4AU) and draws upon feedback collected from stakeholders over the past two years, as part of the Academy’s ongoing work in the national research infrastructure space.
This video is part of ML4AU’s regular program of talks on Machine Learning and also includes a presentation by Dr. Anastasios Papaioannou, Data Science Manager at Intersect. Watch this video to gain a deeper understanding of the key areas of opportunity for Machine Learning in social science research.
Explainer | Data Availability and Transparency Act 2022: What’s in it for the social sciences?
October 2022
The Data Availability and Transparency Act 2022 establishes a scheme for sharing Australian Government data with researchers. This post explains what it means for the social sciences and how to get ready.
Outreach | The role of data science in getting research infrastructure right for the social sciences (video)
Sydney, 19 August 2022
In this 10-min address to the Australian Data Science Network (ADSN), Dr Isabel Ceron (Academy’s Senior Policy Analyst) makes a case for the potential role(s) of data scientists in a future social science research ecosystem. Should we train all social scientists in data science? Should there be a data scientist in every social science research team? There might yet be a better alternative.
This video is part of the ADSN Series: Advancing Data-intensive Research in Australia, including presentations by Prof Louisa Jorm (Centre for Big Data Research in Health, UNSW Sydney), Prof Lesley Wyborn (Chair, National Committee for Data in Science), and Shannon Callaghan (Senior Policy Advisor, ADRC).
Project | Australia’s Data-Enabled Research Futures: The Social Sciences
June 2021 - June 2022
Australia’s Data Enabled Research Future was a collaboration between Australia’s Learned Academies, the Australian Council of Learned Academies (ACOLA) and the Australian Research Data Commons (ARDC).
The final report outlines:
- What a fully-developed research data ecosystem could deliver for the social sciences and to Australians more broadly
- Critical issues that need to be addressed in order for a fully-developed Research Data Commons to operate effectively in the social sciences
- Priorities for investment over the next 5 to 10 years.
Roundtable | Social Sciences Research Infrastructure
Canberra, 5th April 2022
On Tuesday, April 5, representatives from Australian universities, research institutes, community organisations, Academies, public collections and data agencies convened in Canberra to discuss opportunities to enhance planning and investment in social science research infrastructure.
The discussion covered physical and digital data repositories; governance and policy frameworks to control and manage access, privacy, and security; the increasingly sophisticated tools and technologies used to connect and analyse information; and the need for a highly-skilled workforce of researchers, methodologists, data scientists and engineers.
