Maastricht University (UM) is the most international university in the Netherlands with over 22,000 students and more than 4,500 employees. The university distinguishes itself with its innovative education model, international character and multidisciplinary approach to research and education. Today, it is considered one of the best young universities in the world. UM participates in OpenAgri with the Institute of Data Science (IDS), as coordinator of the project and work package leader, and the Department of Technology and Society Studies (TSS) contributing its expertise of societal aspects.
IDS, a multi-disciplinary research unit in the Department of Advanced Computing Sciences (DACS) and Faculty of Science and Engineering, is committed to research in data science and artificial intelligence, collaborating across disciplines, institutions, and sectors. The goal of our research is to accelerate scientific discovery, improve clinical care and well-being, and to strengthen communities. We specialise in machine learning, decentralised applications related to biomedical data, as well as promoting the FAIR (findable, accessible, interoperable, and reusable) principles. IDS currently has projects at the intersection of data science and AI with food, agriculture, bioinformatics, clinical care, law, and social networks.
The Department of Technology and Society Studies, part of the Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences, provides interdisciplinary insights on the role of technology in modern societies and the resulting challenges that they need to address.
Role in the project:
UM is the coordinator of the OpenAgri project, and as such is responsible for the overall effective delivery of the project objectives, as well as addressing issues around ethics, open science, and data management. In addition, UM leads WP2 the core technology development work package responsible for the delivery of the Open Source digital agricultural services. Here our focus is not only on the development of easy-to-use services for integration in the OpenAgri pilots, but also the creation of vibrant Open Source communities around the digital services. To ensure the suitability of the developed services from a usability and societal perspective, the TSS department will contribute its expertise.
