2026-05-19 –, Hans Idzerda
Do you still see researchers downloading large datasets to their laptops before starting analysis? Despite the availability of cloud platforms and large online datasets, this remains common practice in many research fields. But what is holding us back from more efficient, cloud-native approaches?
In this open discussion you will exchange experiences with others who support research infrastructures and digital research practices in the Netherlands. Together you will explore what is needed to make cloud-native data access and processing easier and more widely adopted across research domains.
You will discuss questions such as:
What technical, organisational or skills barriers still prevent researchers from using cloud-native workflows?
Where are the biggest gaps in infrastructure, training, standards or coordination?
How can community-driven initiatives be supported by institutions and national infrastructures?
You will work together to identify concrete challenges, needs and opportunities. The goal is to produce a shared list of priorities and possible next steps for the Dutch research ecosystem.
The discussion builds on experiences from recent national initiatives exploring cloud-native research infrastructures, but the focus will be broader: connecting insights across disciplines and institutions.
If you work on research support, digital infrastructure, data services or policy, this session offers a chance to compare perspectives and help shape future approaches for more efficient research workflows.
This session is particularly interesting for research IT and infrastructure providers, research software engineers and data engineers, data stewards and research data support staff, national infrastructure organisations and service providers, and oolicy makers and programme managers working on digital research infrastructure. Participants who work close to researchers and see everyday data workflow challenges are especially welcome. The goal is to connect perspectives across institutions and roles.
What is the key take away of your session?:A shared overview of the main barriers, needs and opportunities for cloud-native research workflows in the Netherlands, plus concrete ideas for community-driven next steps.
Dr. Girgin is the lead of the Center of Expertise in Big Geodata Science, a facility advancing geospatial big data and cloud computing technologies. His research focuses on scalable, cloud-native geospatial data access and processing, with particular attention to performance and energy efficiency. He develops tools and platforms that support Open Science and best practices in research data management and research software development. He has led the design and development of platforms such as Open Data Explorer and OpenSTAC, enabling efficient discovery and access of large-scale research data. His leads collaborative projects, including CLOUD-NES and ECO-SCALE. He had also developed methodologies and systems for industrial risk assessment, including the European Commission's eNatech database and the RAPID-N system. He serves on the ESA DestinE Sounding Board NL, is an eScience Center Fellow, and a SURF Research Support Champion.
Francesco is a Senior Research Software Engineer at the Netherlands eScience Center, the Dutch national center of expertise for software in academic research. In his position, he collaborates with researchers on topics related to Environment and Sustainability, combining experience in data handling and HPC with a more recently developed passion for geospatial applications.