[00:00.000 --> 00:09.800] Hi, my name is Rachel Ainsworth and I'm the Research Software Community Manager for the [00:09.800 --> 00:14.600] Software Sustainability Institute and I'm based at the University of Manchester in the UK. [00:14.600 --> 00:19.600] Today I'm going to talk to you about how the Software Sustainability Institute supports [00:19.600 --> 00:25.280] research software through community building and events. [00:25.280 --> 00:30.440] The Software Sustainability Institute, or SSI for short, is a national facility in the [00:30.440 --> 00:36.120] UK promoting the advancement of software and research since 2010 by cultivating better, [00:36.120 --> 00:40.200] more sustainable research software to enable world-class research. [00:40.200 --> 00:45.240] And this is more distinctly stated in our motto, better software, better research. [00:45.240 --> 00:50.000] The Institute is a collaboration between the universities of Edinburgh, Manchester, Oxford [00:50.120 --> 00:56.440] and Southampton and we are very proudly supported by all seven UK research councils. [00:56.440 --> 01:01.840] Research software, which encompasses code, processes and community, reaches boundaries [01:01.840 --> 01:06.440] and its development cycle that prevent improvement, growth and adoption. [01:06.440 --> 01:12.000] And the Institute provides the expertise and services needed to negotiate to the next stage. [01:12.000 --> 01:17.200] We advocate for all things research software through programs, events, policy and tools [01:17.200 --> 01:23.200] to support the community developing and using research software. [01:23.200 --> 01:25.560] The Institute is comprised of five teams. [01:25.560 --> 01:29.760] There's a software team which helps the community to develop software that meets the needs of [01:29.760 --> 01:33.440] reliable, reproducible and reusable research. [01:33.440 --> 01:37.960] There's a policy and research team which collects evidence on and promotes the place of software [01:37.960 --> 01:41.560] and research and shares this information with stakeholders. [01:41.560 --> 01:45.640] There's a training team which delivers essential software skills to researchers and partners [01:45.640 --> 01:49.320] with institutions, doctoral schools and the community. [01:49.320 --> 01:53.440] There's a community team which develops communities of practice by supporting the right people [01:53.440 --> 01:56.160] to understand and address topical issues. [01:56.160 --> 02:00.040] And finally, we have a communications and outreach team which exploits our platform [02:00.040 --> 02:04.160] to enable engagement, delivery and uptake. [02:04.160 --> 02:08.800] The teams are involved in many different activities, some of which are listed here on this slide. [02:08.800 --> 02:12.560] I don't have time to go through all of these today and my talk will focus on the community [02:12.560 --> 02:18.680] events, activities and resources and how you can benefit from them and get involved. [02:18.680 --> 02:23.440] From the community angle, in order to facilitate the advancement of software and research, [02:23.440 --> 02:29.000] the Institute has engaged researchers, research software engineers and developers, instructors [02:29.000 --> 02:34.280] and trainers that deliver research software training, research policy makers and groups [02:34.280 --> 02:38.200] that provide services that support research software development. [02:38.200 --> 02:42.360] We have a dedicated community team but we collaborate closely with all teams within [02:42.360 --> 02:48.800] the Institute in order to more effectively engage the research software community. [02:48.800 --> 02:53.680] Our programming ranges from blog posts, news items, guides and social media that you can [02:53.680 --> 03:00.560] consume to workshops and events where we facilitate collaboration and co-creation amongst our community. [03:00.560 --> 03:05.120] We also run a fellowship program which engages across all of our activities. [03:05.120 --> 03:09.760] SSI Fellows champion the Institute's mission through organizing events and growing their [03:09.760 --> 03:13.920] own communities of practice. [03:13.920 --> 03:18.080] The fellowship program engages with natural ambassadors of better software practice from [03:18.080 --> 03:23.200] the research community, empowering those working to improve software practices in their domains [03:23.200 --> 03:28.760] and areas of work with funding and visibility to run their own workshops, training, events [03:28.760 --> 03:32.640] and other activities and nurture their communities. [03:32.640 --> 03:37.080] In return, Fellows help the Institute discover important information about software in different [03:37.080 --> 03:45.640] research domains and guide to training, policies, community work and consultancy engagements. [03:45.640 --> 03:49.720] Here are some examples of our Fellows activities that we have supported. [03:49.720 --> 03:55.480] At the top of this list is Carpentries Offline which was started by a number of our Fellows [03:55.480 --> 04:00.040] at our annual event which I'll talk about in a few more slides. [04:00.040 --> 04:07.760] The project is all about supporting software Carpentries training in areas with unreliable [04:07.760 --> 04:11.160] internet usage through the use of Raspberry Pis. [04:11.160 --> 04:19.080] There are also a number of coding workshops such as, you know, our workshops for archaeologists, [04:19.080 --> 04:24.280] our packages for arnithologists, so we have those research domains who are covered by the [04:24.280 --> 04:28.640] specific training and topics. [04:28.640 --> 04:33.160] There are activities related to mental health within research software and then some of [04:33.160 --> 04:39.160] our Fellows have also piloted training developed by the SSIs such as the Intermediate Research [04:39.160 --> 04:41.360] Software Development in Python. [04:41.360 --> 04:44.120] And these are just a few of the activities. [04:44.120 --> 04:48.840] You can read a lot more about the various activities that our Fellows get up to on the [04:48.840 --> 04:55.640] Software Sustainability Institute website and blog. [04:55.640 --> 05:01.680] Collaborations Workshop is the Institute's premier annual conference and it brings together [05:01.680 --> 05:07.760] stakeholders across the entire research software community such as researchers, software developers, [05:07.760 --> 05:13.320] managers, funders, policy makers and more to explore important ideas in software and [05:13.320 --> 05:18.240] research and to plant the seeds of interdisciplinary collaborations. [05:18.240 --> 05:23.400] Collaborations Workshop 2023 will take place as a hybrid event in Manchester, UK from the [05:23.400 --> 05:26.360] 2nd to the 4th of May 2023. [05:26.360 --> 05:30.360] And the theme of this year's workshop is sustainable career development for those in the research [05:30.360 --> 05:35.440] software community, looking after your software, your career and yourself. [05:35.440 --> 05:40.760] The theme encompasses technical development which can include topics such as software [05:40.760 --> 05:46.760] sustainability, software products and digital tools, infrastructure and documentation, software [05:46.760 --> 05:49.400] development skills and training. [05:49.400 --> 05:53.680] It encompasses career development which includes topics such as career pathways related to [05:53.680 --> 05:58.520] research software, how to get credit for your work, mentorship and inclusive leadership [05:58.520 --> 06:00.520] to support teamwork. [06:00.520 --> 06:05.160] And it also encompasses personal development which includes topics such as sustaining your [06:05.160 --> 06:08.920] mental health, well-being and finding community. [06:08.920 --> 06:14.680] Registration is open and so is the call for submissions. [06:14.680 --> 06:18.760] Collaborations Workshop is an unconference which means that it is not only comprised [06:18.760 --> 06:24.680] of presentations but it also involves a lot of interactive sessions led by participants. [06:24.680 --> 06:27.920] The key notes in Lightning Talks inform and inspire. [06:27.920 --> 06:32.400] Lightning Talks also provide the perfect opportunity for participants and sponsors to introduce [06:32.400 --> 06:35.560] themselves and their work at the workshop. [06:35.560 --> 06:40.640] Panels are informative but also allow discussion and exploration of a topic or theme to showcase [06:40.640 --> 06:42.880] different perspectives. [06:42.880 --> 06:48.080] Many workshops and demo sessions are contributed by participants and they demonstrate a particular [06:48.080 --> 06:53.520] research software product, digital tool, project, approach or standard, deliver specific [06:53.520 --> 07:00.880] training, interactive tutorials, conduct information gathering or explore a topic. [07:00.880 --> 07:05.960] And each of these session types feed into the more interactive sessions that follow. [07:05.960 --> 07:09.840] For example, the discussion session allows groups of people to discuss a topic that [07:09.840 --> 07:13.600] interests them in a way that furthers our knowledge of that topic. [07:13.600 --> 07:17.800] The groups also co-author blog posts summarizing their discussion which are then published [07:17.800 --> 07:22.640] on the SSI website to disseminate to the wider research software community. [07:22.640 --> 07:26.400] The collaborative ideas session follows this and it's used to get people talking about [07:26.400 --> 07:27.800] their work. [07:27.800 --> 07:32.800] Groups identify problems within research software and work together to come up with a solution [07:32.800 --> 07:36.080] and this facilitates more focused creation. [07:36.080 --> 07:40.400] And the final day of the workshop is the hack day, where teams form to work on projects [07:40.400 --> 07:45.240] generated during the collaborative ideas session and other ideas pitched during the course [07:45.240 --> 07:46.840] of the event. [07:46.840 --> 07:51.840] And this facilitates co-creation among participants and establishes collaborations that last [07:51.840 --> 07:54.400] beyond the workshop. [07:54.400 --> 07:58.680] Throughout the workshop, we also facilitate opportunities for networking amongst participants [07:58.680 --> 08:03.480] to support collaboration. [08:03.480 --> 08:07.240] Outcomes of collaborations workshop include the blog posts from the discussion groups [08:07.240 --> 08:11.760] and the collaborative ideas proposed which feed into the hack day projects. [08:11.760 --> 08:15.920] Participants often start one or two collaborations on average based on their discussions at [08:15.920 --> 08:22.160] the workshop and often carry on working on the hack day project after the event ends. [08:22.160 --> 08:26.280] Carpentries offline is one of the projects that was born out of the collaborations workshop [08:26.280 --> 08:32.400] hack day which has been sustained by our SSI fellows as I've mentioned before. [08:32.400 --> 08:36.920] And coding confessions is another example project which aims to normalize failure in [08:36.920 --> 08:44.440] research software to create an inclusive space for sharing and learning from experiences. [08:44.440 --> 08:48.720] The institute has published an event organization guide based on how we organize and project [08:48.720 --> 08:53.440] manage events with collaborations workshop being the main example throughout. [08:53.440 --> 08:57.440] The guide takes an experiential approach where it matches what we have actually done and [08:57.440 --> 09:03.960] our lessons learned and we provide templates that we use for the event roadmap, venue requirements, [09:03.960 --> 09:08.720] managing the event budget, a duties roster, event roles and risk management. [09:08.720 --> 09:13.200] There is an in practice section which includes detailed write-ups of how we organized the [09:13.200 --> 09:17.800] most recent collaborations workshops from feasibility to closing. [09:17.800 --> 09:22.240] The guide has lots of tips for online and interactive workshops from technical setup [09:22.240 --> 09:26.720] to the program and our next steps are looking at hybrid considerations for collaborations [09:26.720 --> 09:28.880] workshop 2023. [09:28.880 --> 09:33.360] If you use any aspects of the guide you can contribute an in practice chapter based on [09:33.360 --> 09:39.680] your experience or suggest updates to the text. [09:39.680 --> 09:44.600] The final activity that I want to mention is the research software camps which are led [09:44.600 --> 09:47.120] by our communications and outreach team. [09:47.120 --> 09:52.080] They are free online events which take place over two weeks twice a year and each camp [09:52.080 --> 09:56.920] focuses on introducing and exploring a topic around research software and starting discussions [09:56.920 --> 09:59.600] among various research communities. [09:59.600 --> 10:04.200] The camps that we have had so far have been themed around supporting mental health, next [10:04.200 --> 10:10.320] steps in coding, research software being on the spreadsheet and research accessibility. [10:10.320 --> 10:15.520] Sessions include panels, training, workshops, guides, blog posts and social media discussions [10:15.520 --> 10:21.320] and there are many opportunities to get involved either via the organizing committee as presenters, [10:21.320 --> 10:25.160] mentors and experts. [10:25.160 --> 10:29.520] To give more context into how connected and embedded the institute is in the better software [10:29.520 --> 10:33.360] landscape you can view some of our collaborators and partners here. [10:33.360 --> 10:37.680] We are very practiced in fruitful collaborations and we are always interested in hearing about [10:37.680 --> 10:42.520] new initiatives, projects, activities and events from community members so please do [10:42.520 --> 10:45.360] not hesitate to get in touch with us. [10:45.360 --> 10:49.520] Here are some of our contact details, please sign up to our mailing list and you can follow [10:49.520 --> 10:52.960] us on social media and I look forward to answering any of your questions. [10:52.960 --> 10:53.960] Thank you so much for having me. [11:04.360 --> 11:09.360] Thank you Rachel for that fantastic talk. [11:09.360 --> 11:13.400] We've had a few questions come in but if anyone else has questions that they'd like to ask [11:13.400 --> 11:19.120] either in the open research room or in the Q&A for the specific room for this please [11:19.120 --> 11:20.560] do ask these questions. [11:20.560 --> 11:26.320] So the first one I think I might ask is that Rachel, a lot of these, this was really really [11:26.320 --> 11:31.960] interesting and very UK oriented but I understand that there are also international fellows [11:31.960 --> 11:35.280] maybe since this is quite an international audience you could tell us just a little bit [11:35.280 --> 11:37.680] about how that works and what you look for. [11:37.680 --> 11:38.680] Yeah, great. [11:38.680 --> 11:40.760] Thanks for that question, Jo. [11:40.760 --> 11:46.600] Last year in, well I guess it's not last year anymore but for the 2022 fellows we started [11:46.600 --> 11:53.480] piloting an international fellowship program and this is because we want to explore how [11:53.480 --> 11:57.880] best to scale up this program internationally for the future. [11:57.880 --> 12:03.560] So we've started out with, I think we had four fellows in 2022 who are international [12:03.560 --> 12:09.520] and so we were exploring with them kind of the bottlenecks and administration and particularly [12:09.520 --> 12:15.760] you know issues surrounding finance and things like that because we, the research software [12:15.760 --> 12:17.720] community is quite global. [12:17.720 --> 12:24.960] We collaborate with a lot of folks internationally just as an institute and so we wanted to begin [12:24.960 --> 12:27.680] reflecting that within our fellowship program. [12:27.680 --> 12:35.280] And so we had four international fellows in 2022 and this year for 2023 we have six international [12:35.280 --> 12:40.960] fellows and we are collaborating of course with Open Life Science of which you are a [12:40.960 --> 12:46.320] director of and we're very very grateful that Open Life Science are helping us to pilot [12:46.320 --> 12:50.880] this program and to help us scale it a bit more in the future as well. [12:51.840 --> 12:56.800] Super, we don't have long left but we have a question from Celia asking whether you're [12:56.800 --> 13:02.160] raising awareness and training about open source and licenses as part of the SSI's work. [13:02.160 --> 13:05.960] So yeah, so the SSI does a lot of training. [13:05.960 --> 13:12.640] We are heavily, we collaborate heavily with the carpentries community so we teach a lot [13:12.640 --> 13:17.400] of software carpentry and data carpentry and we also do instructor training. [13:17.400 --> 13:22.160] There have been workshops in the past led by SSI around licensing in particular I believe [13:22.160 --> 13:28.400] and we have guides on the website but I do believe licensing is potentially also covered [13:28.400 --> 13:29.400] in software carpentry. [13:29.400 --> 13:33.720] Actually, that's a really good question but we do have guides on our website as well around [13:33.720 --> 13:34.720] that. [13:34.720 --> 13:35.720] Yes. [13:35.720 --> 13:37.080] Well timed. [13:37.080 --> 13:42.800] I think we're about to hop over to the next session so I'm mentally sending a fantastic [13:42.800 --> 13:43.800] round of applause. [13:43.800 --> 13:50.800] Thank you so much. [13:50.800 --> 13:57.880] Yeah, it's, I think it, yeah, it's just finished. [13:57.880 --> 13:58.880] Nice. [13:58.880 --> 13:59.880] Thank you. [13:59.880 --> 14:08.280] I really like some of this stress by having it pre-recorded, it's just stress beforehand [14:08.280 --> 14:09.280] rather than now. [14:09.280 --> 14:10.920] Yeah, I was thinking that. [14:10.920 --> 14:16.760] I was just like pre-recording a talk is, it always takes longer than you think it's [14:16.760 --> 14:20.240] going to take but then like today I'm just like oh I'm really glad I don't have to give [14:20.240 --> 14:21.240] a talk today. [14:21.240 --> 14:22.240] Yeah. [14:22.240 --> 14:23.240] All right. [14:23.240 --> 14:26.520] I would love to hang in chat but I need to go and prep for the next one. [14:26.520 --> 14:27.520] Thanks so much, Jo. [14:27.520 --> 14:28.520] All right. [14:28.520 --> 14:29.520] Bye. [14:29.520 --> 14:30.520] Bye. [14:30.520 --> 14:30.520] Bye. [14:40.920 --> 14:41.920] Bye. [14:41.920 --> 14:41.920] Bye. [15:11.920 --> 15:12.920] Bye. [15:12.920 --> 15:13.920] Bye.