Inside EOSC

About Inside EOSC

Inside EOSC is a podcast series that brings you conversations with the people shaping the European Open Science Cloud. Hosted by Andrew Dubber, each episode highlights the researchers, policy makers, and innovators building the infrastructures, services, and collaborations that make research more open, interoperable, and impactful. Produced by the Horizon Europe project LUMEN, the series offers an inside look at how EOSC is transforming the way knowledge is created and shared across disciplines. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy (https://acast.com/privacy) for more information.

Publisher

Andrew Dubber

Category

science · science · technology

Language

en

Explicit

No

First episode

2 Sept 2025

Latest episode

30 Sept 2026

Latest episodes

12 episodes in the feed.

1. 

   30 Sept 2026

   Ravi Kapur

   This episode of Inside EOSC features Ravi Kapur, filmmaker, science communicator and founder of Imperative Space and ArtEO. This special live edition was recorded at the second Innovation Prototyping Lab in Brussels, with colleagues from LUMEN and GRAPHIA, an audience in the room and people joining online. Ravi traces his route from physics through documentary filmmaking and science education to working with satellite Earth observation data. We discuss how educational initiatives grow by fitting into people's working lives, and what it takes to make scientific data useful to the communities it concerns. From farmers to international development organisations, the challenge is often finding a common language and understanding what people need. Through ArtEO, he extends that invitation to artists, giving them room to respond to environmental data through their own practice and emotional reactions. We explore how those encounters can inform scientific work, the infrastructure behind open data, and the environmental costs of collecting and processing it. Ravi reflects on what LUMEN and GRAPHIA could offer through connections between disciplines and human judgement in knowledge discovery. The episode continues after the closing credits with questions from the live audience, opening up a discussion about artistic and scientific rigour, creative disruption, serendipity, and the effect of generative AI on critical thinking. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy (https://acast.com/privacy) for more information.

2. 

   26 Aug 2026

   Diane Morrow & Crystal Silver

   This episode of Inside EOSC features Diane Morrow and Crystal Silver, postdoctoral researchers at Abertay University in Dundee. Diane leads the co-design workshops for the LUMEN project and Crystal leads them for GRAPHIA, and we sat down together at the Innovation Prototyping Lab in Zagreb, between the workshops they were running that week. They arrived at this work by different routes: Diane through biomedical science and digital health into human-computer interaction, Crystal through experimental psychology and the study of social agency into user experience research. We talk about what LUMEN and GRAPHIA are each building on the GoTriple platform, why the supposed divide between humanities people and technology people barely exists in practice, and what co-design actually means: flattening hierarchy so that everyone in the room speaks with the same weight, and complexity gets a safe space. From there the conversation turns to method and craft. Why their approach is deliberately agnostic and iterative, each workshop informing the next. The different magic of in-person and online sessions, where anonymity can give people the confidence to speak. The strange business of co-designing the user experience of a system that does not yet exist. And whether a room full of non-experts can genuinely design something good, or only recognise it when they see it. We end on what they each hope the projects will deliver: discovery systems that respect the autonomy of the researchers who use them. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy (https://acast.com/privacy) for more information.

3. 

   29 Jul 2026

   Robbert Dijkgraaf

   This episode of Inside EOSC features Robbert Dijkgraaf, president-elect of the International Science Council, distinguished university professor at the University of Amsterdam, and former Dutch Minister of Education, Culture and Science. A theoretical physicist who spent the best part of a decade directing the Institute for Advanced Study in Princeton, he spoke with us at the EOSC Symposium in Brussels. Dijkgraaf describes the twentieth century as the age that found the building blocks of matter, life and information, and the twenty-first as the age that learns to build with them. He calls this a new Renaissance, in which science shifts from discovering what exists to designing what might be, and argues that its future will look more like the arts: exploratory, imaginative, and steered by a sense of where you want to arrive. We explore why curiosity-driven research, the usefulness of useless knowledge, so often yields the largest breakthroughs, and why asking science for narrow, predetermined solutions can leave us with more equations than variables. The conversation turns to EOSC as a central nervous system for European research, through which data flows and, just as importantly, flows back out to society. Dijkgraaf reflects on why data is never simply interchangeable, why Europe is well placed to set the standards for responsible innovation, and why the post-war compact between science and society now needs to be redesigned. He also explains what his own surname, the name of the medieval, democratically elected keeper of the dikes and the commons, might still teach us about shared responsibility. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy (https://acast.com/privacy) for more information.

4. 

   24 Jun 2026

   Sona Arasteh

   This episode of Inside EOSC features Sona Arasteh, Communication Officer at the Max Weber Foundation and Policy Officer for OPERAS, who coordinates the EOSC Opportunity Area on Open Scholarly Communication. She came to research communication by an unusual route, holding a PhD in German literature, and she now runs the communications for the LUMEN project. We begin with what "open" actually means in scholarly communication, working through the differences between green, gold and diamond open access and the awkward economics of article processing charges. Sona explains the work of OPERAS in building infrastructure for the social sciences and humanities, the sheer breadth of what counts as research data once you move beyond the hard sciences, and how LUMEN sets out to make all of that heterogeneous material discoverable and interoperable through a living data mesh and a shared ontology, always with an eye on the question of what it is ultimately for. From there the conversation turns to the ethics of communicating research on commercial platforms: why LUMEN chose not to use X, the quiet return to conferences and trusted personal networks, and the difference between genuine engagement and metrics that only flatter. We ask whether there could be an "open communication" counterpart to open access, and what it would take to build one. Sona reflects on the soft‑power role of the Max Weber Foundation and its overseas institutes, before returning to her own identity as a literary scholar and leaving us with an unlikely recommendation and a spot of homework. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy (https://acast.com/privacy) for more information.

5. 

   27 May 2026

   Bob Jones

   This episode of Inside EOSC features Bob Jones, Special Envoy for the EOSC Federation. Bob arrived at CERN in 1984 as a technical student, writing COBOL programmes for the civil engineers digging the tunnel that would become the Large Hadron Collider. He worked alongside Tim Berners-Lee during the years the World Wide Web was being invented, and went on to lead the European DataGrid, the LHC Computing Grid, CERN openlab, and Helix Nebula. He was in the room at the founding meeting with Commissioner Carlos Moedas where the European Open Science Cloud was first imagined, and he served two full terms as a Director of the EOSC Association before being appointed Special Envoy for the build-up phase of the Federation. The conversation moves from CERN's culture of practical experimentation to the policy architecture of EOSC. Bob explains how the sustainability of the data, the standards, and the infrastructure are all entangled, and why a research community will only commit to EOSC if it can be relied on a decade from now. He answers the deceptively simple question of what a data space actually is, and reflects on how it might apply not just to industrial supply chains and health data, but to the social sciences and humanities corpus that sits at the heart of the LUMEN project. We discuss the 2020 Commission study on Expanding EOSC that grew out of his initiative, the case for pairing FAIR data with just data principles in an era of AI, and how to interpret data sovereignty without closing the door to international collaboration. Bob also reflects on his own path: from Birmingham to Geneva, from COBOL to special envoy, from theoretical physics' tools to the diplomacy of large public infrastructures. He identifies curiosity and empathy as the qualities that carried him through a long career at one of Europe's most international institutions, and he ends on the legacy he hopes to leave: an EOSC Federation that is larger than its first wave, trusted by researchers across sectors, and able to continue under its own strength once the build-up phase is done. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy (https://acast.com/privacy) for more information.

6. 

   29 Apr 2026

   Yann Le Franc

   This episode of Inside EOSC features Yann Le Franc, CEO of eScience Data Factory, work package leader for LUMEN, and head of secretariat at EUDAT. Yann traces his journey from computational neuroscience, where he built models of the spinal cord and worked at the International Neuroinformatics Coordinating Facility in Sweden, into the world of semantic web technologies and data management. He explains the foundational concepts of knowledge graphs and ontologies: how RDF triples represent subject, predicate, and object; how ontologies layer meaning onto otherwise structureless graphs; and why these technologies matter for both human navigation and machine reasoning. The conversation touches on the limits of triples when representing the messy nuance of human relationships, and on the work in FAIR Impact on aligning ontologies that describe the same concept differently across domains. We explore why knowledge graphs are valuable for AI, why grounding language models in structured, contextualised data produces measurably better answers, and why provenance and FAIR principles matter when ontologies are themselves models built by particular people for particular purposes. Yann reflects on the philosophical roots of ontology and the impossibility of a single universal model. The discussion turns to EUDAT's recent selection as a candidate node in the EOSC Federation, and the governance and sustainability challenges of providing transnational access to compute and storage across European borders. Yann also reflects on the unusual dual identity of scientist and entrepreneur, his decision to return to business school, and his growing focus on sustainable business models for European research infrastructures. The episode closes with a return to neuroscience: why our analogies for the brain are borrowed from computers, why LLMs are statistical machines rather than intelligent ones, and Yann's quiet conviction that science will save the world. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy (https://acast.com/privacy) for more information.

7. 

   25 Mar 2026

   Enrica Porcari

   This episode of Inside EOSC features Enrica Porcari, Chief Information Officer at CERN, a role she took on in January 2026. Enrica's path to leading technology at one of the world's foremost scientific institutions is anything but conventional. A social scientist by training, she began her career as a park ranger before spending three decades in humanitarian and development organisations, including the UN World Food Programme and CGIAR. She discusses what that outsider's perspective brings to CERN and why a laboratory dedicated to understanding the origins of the universe has, for the first time, chosen to create a CIO role and filled it with someone from outside the world of particle physics. The conversation explores the relationship between fundamental research and societal impact, from the unintended consequences of CERN's most famous export, the World Wide Web, to the deliberate, inclusive approach to quantum computing through the Open Quantum Institute. Enrica explains how this initiative brings together scientists, diplomats, the private sector and communities in the Global South to ensure that quantum technologies address sustainable development goals from the outset, rather than as an afterthought. We also discuss CERN's relationship with EOSC, European values of openness and collaboration, and why she describes herself as a "realistic optimist" about the future of technology in the service of humanity. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy (https://acast.com/privacy) for more information.

8. 

   25 Feb 2026

   Julien Homo

   This episode of Inside EOSC features Julien Homo, CEO and Data Architect of the French SME Foxcub, and the technical coordinator for the LUMEN project. Julien discusses his transition from large private-sector industrial environments to the collaborative world of European public research, sharing how his background in knowledge representation and artificial intelligence informs his work in building large-scale technical infrastructures. We delve into the technical heart of LUMEN, exploring the concept of the Data Mesh, a decentralised framework designed to foster interdisciplinary collaboration without the need for a single, massive central platform. Julien explains how this model allows diverse scientific communities, from molecular dynamics to social sciences, to share data products and services while maintaining their own specialised tools and cultures. The conversation also clarifies the distinction between data meshes and knowledge graphs, and why translating research data into "triples" is essential for connecting different discovery platforms across the EOSC ecosystem. Beyond the technical architecture, Julien reflects on the cultural and operational differences between private industry and public consortia. He examines the challenges of managing 21 partners and 7 million euros in public funding to create white-label solutions that remain flexible enough to adapt across different domains. Finally, we discuss the evolving role of LLMs and AI in knowledge exploration, the importance of "openness" for commercial innovation, and the story behind the name Foxcub. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy (https://acast.com/privacy) for more information.

9. 

   21 Jan 2026

   Fotis Psomopoulos

   This episode of Inside EOSC features Fotis Psomopoulos, Coordinator of the EVERSE project and Senior Researcher at the Centre for Research and Technology Hellas (CERTH). The discussion traces Fotis’s journey from electrical engineering into the life sciences, and his evolving understanding of research infrastructures, from an early focus on physical hardware to a realisation that infrastructures are fundamentally about communities and standardised services. We explore the often-overlooked role of software in the research ecosystem. Fotis explains why software has historically been treated as a 'second-class citizen' compared to data, and outlines EVERSE’s mission to elevate it through defined indicators of excellence and quality toolkits. He unpacks the distinction between Open Source and FAIR principles, and details the 'three-tier' hierarchy of research software, ranging from personal analysis scripts to critical community infrastructure. The conversation touches on the impact of AI on coding practices, where Fotis characterises AI as a collaborative partner rather than a replacement for human expertise. He also reflects on the importance of global collaboration, citing examples from African research contexts that offer valuable lessons for Europe regarding efficiency and software maintenance. The episode concludes with a look at the cultural shifts required to recognise software as a primary research output, and the inherent interdisciplinarity of 'writing with code'. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy (https://acast.com/privacy) for more information.

10. 

    26 Nov 2025

    Klaus Tochtermann

    This episode of Inside EOSC features Klaus Tochtermann, president of the EOSC Association and director of ZBW. The discussion traces Klaus’s early work in hypermedia in the mid-1990s, his move into digital libraries, and his long involvement in shaping what would become the European Open Science Cloud. He reflects on the shift from traditional library practice to large-scale digital infrastructures, and how this has altered both research behaviour and expectations. We explore how open science has changed over three decades, touching on social media’s early promise for scholarly communication, the relationship between FAIR data principles and broader questions of openness, and the challenge of maintaining trust in a climate shaped by geopolitical tensions around data. Klaus explains why data sovereignty has become central to Europe’s approach, and why sustainable funding and meaningful involvement of researchers are essential for EOSC’s future. He also outlines how EOSC might act as a model beyond Europe, and the difficult negotiations ahead as the next Framework Programme takes shape. He describes the need for deeper interaction between scientific infrastructures and industry, noting both mutual interests and the barriers that remain. The episode offers a reflective look at Klaus’s career of building new institutions and his thoughts on where science, technology and policy may be heading next, all framed by his commitment to openness, interdisciplinarity and practical support for researchers across Europe. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy (https://acast.com/privacy) for more information.

11. 

    29 Oct 2025

    Sy Holsinger

    In this episode, Andrew Dubber speaks with Sy Holsinger, Chief Technology Officer of OPERAS and Project Coordinator of GRAPHIA, about the evolving landscape of the European Open Science Cloud (EOSC). They discuss the origins of EOSC in distributed computing at CERN, the development of European research infrastructures, and the unique role OPERAS plays in open scholarly communication for the social sciences and humanities. Holsinger reflects on how OPERAS integrates with projects such as LUMEN and GRAPHIA, exploring knowledge graphs, research assessment, and the ethical implications of artificial intelligence in SSH research. The conversation touches on sustainability, collaboration, and the distinctively European approach to building federated research infrastructures. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy (https://acast.com/privacy) for more information.

12. 

    2 Sept 2025

    Suzanne Dumouchel

    In the first episode of Inside EOSC, Andrew Dubber speaks with Suzanne Dumouchel, Director of the EOSC Association, Head of International Cooperation at CNRS, and coordinator of the Horizon Europe project LUMEN. Suzanne reflects on her journey from researching eighteenth-century literary newspapers to leading a European initiative that shapes the future of scientific collaboration. She explains the purpose of the European Open Science Cloud (EOSC) as a federation of tools, services, and infrastructures designed to make research more open, interoperable, and impactful across domains. The conversation explores the principles of FAIR data (Findable, Accessible, Interoperable, Reusable), the challenges of sustainability and governance in large scientific infrastructures, and the importance of both technical and human interoperability. Suzanne also introduces the LUMEN project, which builds interoperable discovery platforms for four distinct research domains – Social Sciences and Humanities, Mathematics, Earth Science, and Molecular Dynamics – while providing a white-label framework adaptable to other fields. Looking ahead, Suzanne emphasises the importance of maintaining open science support at the policy level and cautions against the risks of reverting to closed systems. Inside EOSC is produced within the LUMEN project, which receives funding from the European Union’s Horizon Europe research and innovation programme under grant agreement No. 101187940 Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy (https://acast.com/privacy) for more information.

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Based on episode analysis; this does not confirm that the show is currently accepting guests.