The second edition of the Data Curathon (i.e. curation marathons), organized as part of the french ‘Printemps de la Donnée’, brought together 12 local teams for an immersive experience in research data curation. Organized around Tuesday, May 5, 2026, the event kicked off with an online launch meeting bringing together all participants and continued over several days with a shared objective: improving the quality, documentation, and reusability of research data.

Led by a dedicated organizing committee—Erwan Guillou, Thomas Jouneau, and Rachel Prost (Recherche Data Gouv), Jennifer Palethorpe (University of Nantes), Lucie Marie (Sciences Po Paris), as well as Frédérique Gros and Alena Lapatniova (Progedo)—the Curathon provided an opportunity to learn, exchange ideas, and innovate together in a friendly and collaborative atmosphere.

A Variety of Approaches

Compared with the previous edition, this year's Curathon featured a wider range of formats. This evolution placed greater emphasis on metadata quality, showcasing a rich diversity of approaches and content. Here is an overview of the initiatives:

• Marseille: Held in a focused and productive atmosphere at the Saint-Charles campus university library, the day combined an introduction to the Recherche Data Gouv ecosystem, a presentation of the Dat'AMU repository, and a researcher’s feedback on her experience. The event produced tangible outcomes: 2 curated datasets, 3 newly created collections, and 3 requests for laboratory support.
• Besançon BFC: For the Bourgogne–Franche-Comté team, the Curathon was first and foremost an opportunity for in-person exchanges between research data librarians who usually work far apart geographically. The session proved especially productive: 29 ORCID identifiers were added, Research Organization Registry (ROR) identifiers for institutions were finalized, 28 projects were created in the dedicated registry, and 73 datasets, including nine collections, were identified for linking to the regional institutional repository.
• EcoDoR (Montepellier): The EcoDoR edition focused on demystifying data curation by presenting current practices implemented by members of the network. With 19 participants, half of whom were newcomers, the day emphasized training through a collective demonstration, the use of Recherche Data Gouv's curation report template, and hands-on exercises using 3 fictional datasets deposited in the repository's sandbox environment. By the end of the day, participants were able to complete a curation report and had reflected on their own curation policies, including file formats and quality criteria.
• Poitiers: The Poitiers edition took the form of a mini-symposium bringing together 24 participants (17 on site and 7 online) around metadata quality tools. Eight tools were presented in workshop sessions: AMIS, Maggot, Nakala, Madbot, the Recherche Data Gouv catalogue, UCLR, elabFTW, and assist_moderation-Nkl. Each presentation highlighted the tool's objectives, scope, limitations, and potential synergies with other solutions. The role of artificial intelligence in metadata management emerged as a common theme throughout the discussions.
• Paris CDSP (Sciences Po): With around 40 participants from diverse backgrounds, this edition focused on awareness-raising and training. The morning plenary sessions covered CoreTrustSeal, the Centre for Socio-Political Data (CDSP) guides for data dissemination, the RésIn network, the Progedo catalogue, and the DataV tool. In the afternoon, three parallel workshops explored metadata standards, data anonymization, and data curation within Recherche Data Gouv, laying the foundation for the next editions with a stronger practical focus.

Curathons were also organized in Avignon, Grenoble, Lyon, Nancy, Nantes, and Strasbourg. While many organizers returned after taking part in the 2025 edition, new cities also joined the initiative, including La Rochelle, Poitiers, and Montpellier. Altogether, 150 participants received training, expanded their knowledge, practiced curation techniques, and exchanged ideas on this key aspect of research data management.

What's Next?

This second edition confirms the growing enthusiasm for Curathons and highlights the need for opportunities to come together and discuss research data documentation.
As Curathons gradually become recurring events, the role of the organizing committee is expected to evolve toward coordinating the various local initiatives.
Next year, the committee will continue supporting local organizers in setting up their Curathons. It will also place greater emphasis on communication in order to reach a broader audience, both among prospective organizers and participants.

See you next year to continue collaborating on new research data curation projects!

Call for Expressions of Interest

If you would like to:

• Join the organizing committee,
• Participate in Curathon 2027,
• Be contacted about the next Curathon,
• Share your ideas or feedback,

please contact: curathon-comite-organisation[at]groupes.renater.fr 

To stay informed about future Curathon activities, feel free to subscribe to the newsletter by emailing: curathon[at]groupes.renater.fr