Report on 74th meeting of the German Data Forum

At its 74th meeting, the RatSWD bid farewell to its former chair, Prof. Dr. Monika Jungbauer-Gans. In her speech, the current RatSWD Chair, Prof. Dr. Kerstin Schneider, praised Monika Jungbauer-Gans for her dedicated work in various roles, including several years as Chair of the RatSWD. She championed many issues, such as the ethical handling of data, and made a significant contribution to the further development of the RatSWD. We would like to thank her very much for her commitment and wish her all the best for the future.

This was followed by several presentations offering exciting insights into the work of various research projects and working groups. One project presented focused on the development of new research data, targeting process-generated data from companies. At the same time, the RatSWD also learned about another project that addressed the handling of data sets when research data centres are closed.

In addition to discussing current political developments, the consultations also focused on plans for the upcoming RatSWD elections in March 2026 and the 10th Conference for Social and Economic Data in June 2026.

Finally, the RatSWD accredited the Deutsches Gedächtnis archive as a research data centre. The Deutsches Gedächtnis archive at the Fernuniversität in Hagen specialises in interviews with contemporary witnesses in order to preserve experiences of important historical events. You can find out more about the work of the new RDC here. This means that there are currently 39 accredited research data centres working together in the context of the social and economic sciences, all of which are committed to adhering to common quality standards.